What does it mean when your heater is smoking?
Natural gas and propane are both smokeless fuels, so when your gas heater is smoking, it’s because something else is burning. More often than not, the culprit is dust or debris that has collected on the burner after the heater has been idle for an extended period.
Why is my car heater smoking?
If the “smoke” has a sweet smell with it then it could be steam cause by a leak from the heater core or coolant hoses in your heater. Usually this fogs up the interior glass as well as leaving a slimy film. This can leave your cooling system low on coolant decreasing the output from your heater.
Why does it smell like smoke when I turn on the heat?
Burning Dust Smell If many months have passed since its last use, dust and other types of debris may collect on the burners, heat exchangers, air ducts and other components of the heating unit. When you turn the furnace on, this dust and debris burn off, releasing a smoky odor. If you smell burning dust, don’t worry.
Should a propane heater smoke?
Propane Heaters Run on a Specific Oxygen Ratio Although propane is largely known as a “clean” fuel, that doesn’t mean it never produces smoke. While normal propane combustion produces water vapor and carbon dioxide at safe levels, incomplete propane combustion produces carbon monoxide instead.
Why do electric heaters smoke?
The main culprit is dust and the buildup of these dust balls in on or around the inside or outside of the unit. The vents could have dust built up in them, or even the heater coils themselves if your heater is stored in a dry, arid environment all season.
Will a heater core smoke?
Fog Inside Your Car First, the heater core could be malfunctioning and, as such, the defrosters aren’t working. Second, the core could be blowing fog/smoke into your vehicle’s cabin. Both are bad signs and need to be checked into right away.
Do heaters smoke?
When you start up the furnace after the warm summer months, you’ll usually smell an odor similar to smoke coming out of your heat vents. This smell comes from the furnace burning out the dust that entered it while the furnace sat idle. The burning smell generally subsides after an hour or so.
Does a propane heater produce soot?
A properly adjusted propane heating system should produce little soot. Most of the byproducts of propane combustion are carbon compounds. Since soot is primarily carbon, a certain amount inside your furnace is normal. Ideally, there shouldn’t be any soot, because complete combustion produces only gaseous byproducts.
Can heater dust cause fire?
If the debris pile becomes large enough, there can be a very serious risk a fire igniting inside the furnace. Heater furnace filters are specially designed to protect both the furnace and air conditioner from collecting dust. The filter may then get sucked into the furnace allowing the dust it carried to catch fire.