Strange burning smell from vents in home while ac is running... Any ideas of what this is?
A few days ago, I started smelling a strange burning smell and when I went looking for it, I couldn't find it. Then I noticed a few of the vents in the house smelled like a burning plastic but not all. And the unit is in the hall closet and there is no smell coming from there. When I first smelt this a couple nights ago, I turned off the ac and opened the windows and turned on all the ceiling fans. I woke up the next morning and the smell was gone so I turned it back on and went to the gym for a couple hours. Came home and no smell. Then tonight, I started smelling it again. And again, I cannot find exactly where it's coming from. Any ideas of what's causing this? And is it safe to be breathing this?
Furnace always smells like something died?
if its a gas or oil furnace has someone removed the blower and thoroughly inspected the blower shelf,and heat exchanger for a dead mouse,etc??......if its a heat pump sytem,you might have whats called "smelly socks" syndrone, "dirty socks syndone"or something similar..[ yes,its actually called that].. as far as i know it doesnt happen much with furnaces that have a central ac coil on top,,mostly it happens on heat pump systems..its still rare even with heat pump sytems,but happens enough that most techs that have been around a while have run into it or have heard of it.....the smell usually is strongest during or just after a defrost cycle...curing it usually involves a special cleaning of the indoor coil,,,but it can return...you can do an internet search on it....also,,if its a heat pump,had someone visually checked the auxillary heaters for dead mouse,etc??........dan******************... if you havent had the furnace checked by a technician then go ahead and pay to have that done unless the guy who cleaned the ducts checked it and was experienced with furnace problems,not just ducts...its possible that the flame isnt burning right and the flame or heat from the flame is going places that it shouldnt go,,or its possible the heat exchanger is cracked... everyones description of odors is different......its possible that there is mold/mildew in the ductwork but thats rare in ductwork that is not attached to central ac unless that ductwork goes through a crawlspace or very humid basement....also,,does the return duct pass through any areas that could have an odor from something?its possible a gap or hole in the return duct that is pulling the odor into the system....technicians vary in knowledge and ability,,maybe try getting it checked again by someone else??......dan
Do the a/c return vents go up or down?
It doesn't really matter which way the fins face. Because the return is down by the floor it's going suck in a lot more rather then being on the ceiling. Just make sure to clean it regularly and replace your filters once a month to every other month depending on how fast they get dirty. If you don't it can lead to many expensive problems.
AC/ Furnace Intake vent always runs?
[edit] I just read your next contribution, you have your own HVAC system. I would still look carefully for possible sources of cross-ventilation where you and your neighbor's ducts are not sealed away from each other properly. I wonder if your air return shares a duct with hers. That would be a lousy way to install a system, but I've seen dumber. [/edit] Are you saying the two downstairs apartments share the central air unit? We just got done selling a place like that, downstairs shared a system and upstairs shared a system. Much friction getting that sorted. Had to replace the thermostat with one that had a remote sensor, and average the temps in the two units to get decent service. So take a look at the thermostat and see if the Fan is set to ON. If it is, turn it to AUTO. That should allow the fan to turn off when the heating or cooling turn off. That'll reduce, to a degree, how much cigarette smoke you're exposed to. And if you're sharing an HVAC system, you're definitely exposed to your neighbor's smoke. There's no way around that. If that's the case however, invest in a charcoal furnace filter. That will do a better job of scrubbing out the smoke smell. Good luck with it.
Why does my car AC vent blow hot air when driving even when the AC is off?
Depending on system design, you either(A) have a heater control valve stuck in the open position, thereby causing heat to flow through the system at all times.The fact that you can't terminate air flow at the vents, however, would not really fit that scenario, without something otherwise unrelated failing at exactly the same time.If the blower motor runs even with the switch off, then that circuit is shorted. But that's rather unlikely, and it doesn't account for the hot air (just like the hot air doesn't explain the undesired flow) .It's more plausible that (b) your car relies on a vacuum signal to control the various doors partitioning airflow through the HVAC box (some mfrs, like Ford, use vacuum-operated actuators in lieu of electronically controlled motors and solenoids). If the system described doesn't use a heater control valve (some don't) and that vacuum signal was somehow interrupted or lost, then your blend door would default under a spring load to the heat position, and your recirculation door would default to fresh air. The ram air flow from vehicle speed would cause hot air to flow in the passenger compartment at all times, Even with the blower motor commanded OFF.On the system described, one open, damaged or disconnected vacuum line coupling (usually located at the main HVAC supply line at the firewall) would cause the complaint described. Its also possible that a vacuum check valve has failed, or a vacuum reservoir is leaking, in which case the problem would disappear with the engine idling, but occur at engine speeds above 1500 rpms.
Noisy AC air intake (need help reducing that noise).?
I'm renting an apartment that I got around October of last year. Until recently I've only been needing heating and due to the size of my heater compared to the size of my apartment... the heater only needs to be on for about 2 minutes to heat my apartment completely. The AC unit isn't quite as over sized and has to run for a bit longer. The air intake, unfortunately is incredibly loud and now that the AC needs to be running more constantly it is unbelievably annoying. Because I don't expect my slumlord owners to do much about the noise it seems to be up to me. So I'm looking for something I can put between the filter and the grate (I have about a 9-12 inches depth of working room) that doesn't reduce the air intake too much but will reduce the noise. Just to experiment I put a towel on the outside of the grate and the noise was pretty much instantly cut in half but I'm pretty sure almost no air was getting into the air conditioner. So if you have any ideas on how to reduce the noise please let me know.
Why does my chimney backdraft when I run the central air conditioner and the clothes dryer?
Some of the posters have hit on it. You need more make-up air in the house. Vent fans, dryers, range vents and furnace/AC all create a negative pressure in your house when in use. To make up for that, air is drawn in wherever possible. The answer is to add a make-up air vent which leads into the return air trunk of your heating and cooling ductwork. What it is: depending on the size of the home, probably a 6" duct that has a vent to the outside of the home (or 2 6" ducts in a larger home). There is a baffle inside the duct that only opens when a negative air pressure situation arises. It can be done as a DIY project if you have any "tin knocking" experience. Otherwise any local heating and cooling company can do it for you in about an hour or two. You'll find this a better solution than opening doors, windows or flues.
Can I put a portable A/C outside and vent the cool air through my sliding door?
You could, but most portable units have attachable exhaust ducting. If you want to do so, I would recommend getting a piece of flexible duct( 7″ or larger, depending on size of unit), cut a piece of plywood or duct board about 12 inches wide, as tall as the opening of the door, make a hole for a 7″ or larger collar. and attach the collar and flex to it. You may have to get creative when it comes to attaching the flexible duct to the unit though, as they usually don’t have a nice flat surface to attach to.
Can I run return air ducts outside my house?
I have done hundreds of jobs with supply air and return air ducts exposed to the weather. I used round or square duct lined with ductliner insulation 1 inch thick. I have jobs I installed 48 years ago and still working very well. seal the duct connections with all weather duct sealer, then paint the duct work to protect from the weather and it will out last you…RS