Key Takeaways
When you turn on your furnace in the fall, it might smell. Learn about why new furnaces smell, and which smells you should worry about. Dust and new furnace smell are not a problem, but gas and sulfur smells can indicate real danger.
Fall is coming. This is often the time of year people get new furnaces installed, when they will be needing them soon, but not right now, making installation less disruptive and ensuring your home is ready for the winter. It’s also the best time to get your furnace inspected for the winter.
Then you turn on your brand new furnace and notice a distinct odor.
Why Do New Furnaces Smell?
First of all, it is normal to get a whiff of something when you first turn on a newly installed furnace. This smell is primarily caused by off-gassing from new parts or manufacturing residue, and is a chemical or plastic smell.
Prepare for this by planning on running your system at a low setting and ventilating your home. Also, new furnaces are often a little dusty, creating a light burning odor. (This can also happen when you turn an older furnace on for the first time in the fall, after it’s been sitting idle). This is completely harmless and fades quickly, but can be annoying to some people and to pets. This too can be dealt with by running the system at a low level for a few hours.
When Should You Worry About the Smell?
Some smells may be an indication that your new furnace was improperly installed. If you smell gas or sulfur, turn the furnace off immediately! Call for service. Sulfur odors are dangerous, and gas smells may indicate that a connector was not tightened all the way. Do not ignore this.
Unlike the other smells mentioned, it won’t go away, and you have toxic and flammable gases in your home.
If the smell of burning dust persists after a few hours, especially if your furnace is older, it may indicate a dirty air filter. You should change your filters before you switch from air to heat. Lingering chemical smells (after a few days) could indicate a problem with your heat exchanger, a foreign object (such as a child’s or pet’s toy) in the ducts, or overheating.
Lastly, a moldy smell indicates moisture or mold in your furnace or your ducts, and that something needs to be cleaned. It’s worth considering cleaning your ducts prior to installing a new furnace so that you know there isn’t a problem with them.
How to Get Rid of the Smell
It’s normal that new furnaces smell, and it will go away on its own. You can speed up this process by increasing ventilation and running the furnace at a lower level, gradually building up to full use. You may find you need to open windows, even if it means “heating the outside” for a brief period.
Good filters will also reduce the “new furnace smell.” Getting your existing furnace inspected before heating season can detect problems that might cause odors before they happen, and can also clean out some dust.
Burning dust is harmless unless you are extremely sensitive to bad smells or have asthma triggered by dust, in which case you may want to do the initial furnace run while you are out. Chemical odors can be mildly toxic, especially if you are sensitive, so open windows to air your home out.
If you are looking to replace your furnace, we can help. Now is also a great time to have your furnace inspected and cleaned, and change air filters before the weather starts to turn. Either way, contact Capital City Comfort Solutions to get a quote or schedule your appointment today.