If you’re noticing a smell from your heat pump, it’s trying to tell you that something is up. We’ve developed a list of the most commonly encountered six heat pump smells, what causes them and how you can fix them.
- Heat pump smells musty
- Heat pump smells like fish
- Heat pump smells like sulfur
- Heat pump smells like sewer
- Heat pump smells like burning
- Heat pump defrost cycle smells
1. Heat Pump Smells Musty
If your heat pump smells musty, there’s probably mold growing on wet evaporator coils or in the ductwork. This heat pump odor is often referred to as dirty sock syndrome. You can deter this by scheduling regular heat pump maintenance and air duct cleaning.
2. Heat Pump Smells Like Fish
If your heat pump smells like fish, there could be a few things wrong:
- Motor is too hot
- Wiring issue
- Plastic components or coating is melting
- Other mechanical problem
Electrical problems are unsafe, so turn your heat pump system off immediately at the breaker box and call us at for heat pump repair.
3. Heat Pump Smells Like Sulfur
Normally when you smell a rotten egg smell, you’ve got a gas leak. But your heat pump doesn’t utilize natural gas. If your heat pump smells like sulfur, a small animal may have gotten inside it for warmth and died. One of our Kilbourne Heating & AC technicians can remove the smell by cleaning your heat pump.
4. Heat Pump Smells Like Sewer
As we discussed before, your heat pump is electric, so any rotten egg smells are linked to a gas leak somewhere else. If your heat pump smells like sewer, you might currently have a backed-up or broken sewer line. We advise getting in touch with a company that does sewer line repair.
5. Heat Pump Smells Like Burning
You might have an electrical problem if your heat pump smells like burning, burning plastic or burning rubber. This burning smell can be due to melting plastic on electrical wires. Electrical issues in HVAC systems are serious and could result in a fire. If you notice this smell, turn off your heat pump at the breaker and call us at .
6. Heat Pump Defrost Cycle Smells
Like we discussed above, a dirty socks smell can happen when your evaporator coils need to be cleaned. You might notice this smell when your heat pump has defrost mode.
It’s ordinary for your heat pump to have to use defrost mode during heating season. When the air is much cooler, frost can form rapidly on the coils from condensation and restrict heating. During defrost mode, your heat pump temporarily switches to ac to clear away the frost.
Having a Kilbourne Heating & AC HVAC technician clean the coils will help eliminate the smell.
Depend on for Your Heat Pump Repair Needs
It can be difficult to troubleshoot your heat pump by yourself. Your comfort matters to us at Kilbourne Heating & AC, so you can count on our experts to help you when you need us. When you need heat pump repair in that you can rely on, call us at .