3 Heat Pump Odors You Shouldn’t Ignore in Lee County, FL

The heat pump in your Lee County, FL home should not emit any noticeable odors. Therefore, if you smell anything from your system, you should interpret it as a potential sign of trouble. Let’s review three serious heat pump odors that you should never ignore.

1. Burning

Heat pumps are electrically powered devices. For that reason, the sudden emergence of any burning odors can be hazardous. It’s possible that there may be an electrical fire somewhere inside your system or that its plastic or rubber components are melting.

2. Ether

This odor is one of the telltale indicators of a refrigerant leak. Usually, if your heat pump leaks refrigerant, you should also hear bubbling or gurgling sounds. These occur as air bubbles flood in and fill the space the escaping refrigerant has left open.

Also, since heat pumps rely on refrigerant to perform heat transfer, you should notice short cycling and declines in general performance whenever there’s been a leak. If you believe your heat pump is experiencing a refrigerant leak from the inside coils, shut the system down, leave your home and call for professional help. Refrigerant is toxic, and you should leave the business of dealing with leaks in the hands of trained professionals.

3. Fish

This strikingly unpleasant smell may point to many potential problems with your heat pump, including mechanical mishaps, faulty electrical wiring, airflow blockages or a broken motor. The only way to reliably diagnose the problem is to invite HVAC technicians into your home and ask them to inspect. To address the underlying issues that can lead to this smell in the first place, we recommend that you schedule heat pump maintenance services at least once per year.

Trust your nose to alert you when your heat pump is in trouble. If anything smells bizarre, call Spectrum Air Conditioning and Refrigeration and ask for HVAC repair services around Lee County, FL.

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