Why Does My Heat Pump Make My Home Smell Bad?

If your heat pump fills your Rockledge, FL, home with any odor, you need to do something about it. Heat pumps should operate without odors, meaning that any smells are signs of trouble. Let’s review a few common heat pump odors and what may cause each smell.

Ether

This is the characteristic odor of refrigerant. When you notice it, you may also hear hissing or gurgling sounds that would further confirm that refrigerant gas is leaking from your heat pump.

This substance can be quite dangerous. As soon as you catch a whiff of it in the air, turn off your heat pump, leave your home and call for professional help. Let our HVAC service technicians stop the leak and refill your system.

Burning

Since heat pumps typically run on electricity, this smell should be particularly concerning. It’s a strong indicator that an electrical fire may have broken out somewhere in your system. At the very least, it suggests that some of your heat pump’s wiring may have lost its insulation and begun overheating, possibly causing various nearby plastic components to melt.

Musty Odors

Any musty smells should leave you suspicious that biological matter is growing somewhere in your heat pump. Two of the most common areas where this occurs are in the system’s ductwork and on its evaporator coils.

This matter can adversely affect your home’s indoor air quality and impair your heat pump’s ability to function. HVAC service technicians can remove biological growth from every part of your heat pump during an annual maintenance checkup.

Heed your nose. When it tells you something is wrong, call Merritt Island Air & Heat to sign up for the best heat pump services around Rockledge, FL. We’ll eliminate any heat pump smell and optimize your system’s performance.

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