our air conditioner smell's like a rotten egg (it's like a smell of the heater when the first time you use it , for winter time)when it's start, the smell goes away when its continually running. and its smell again when it kicks back on. these only happen on 1 of 2 units.
what to look for ? and how to fix it ?
do i need a professional ac tech to look at it.
2006-07-17 16:02:43 · 6 answers · asked by frend 2 in Home & Garden ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
This question was asked before. According to vreels man (who got the best answer),
95% chance it's just a sewer gas. If your a/c is in the house you will have a 3/4inch line that drops into a 2 inch pipe below your a/c in the return air space. You can take a vent off to see the drain. Most likely the trap that keeps sewer gases out of the house beneath this has gone dry or is broken and sewer gases are being sucked through the a/c. If the primary 3/4 condensate drain is clogged it will not drip water into the 2" drain. I'd pour a glass of water into the 2" drain and see if the smell goes away in a couple of hours. I have found this to be the problem in many houses while investigating smells and doing smoke testing for sewer gas leaks. It would not hurt to call a plumber to investigate. I get calls like this all the time and it's usually something simple.
Source(s):
lic. plumber
P.S. Thanks vreels man, if I could transfer the points to you, I would.
2006-07-17 16:09:36 · answer #1 · answered by Mariposa 7 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Is it central air? I have a friend who lives in the country, and a mouse crawled into the duct work, couldn't get out, and died. This was in the winter, and for about two weeks the smell was not pleasant. It was different from the smell when you use the heater for the first time in winter - that's more like burning dust or something along those lines.
He could have had someone come out and fish the dead mouse out, but it would have been much more expensive than just letting nature take its course.
I don't know about window air units.
**after reading one of the other answers, I think you probably should have someone look at it, particularly if it doesn't go away after awhile. My friend's problem was bad for a day or two and then gradually diminished (day three was better, day four even better, and so on until it went away). If you are having sewer gasses back up you really should get that checked into.**
2006-07-17 23:09:41 · answer #2 · answered by Novice restauranteur 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The evaporator coil (inside one) is dirty, unplug the unit, pull it out and spray lysol, a dilute bleach solution or another cleaner on it, both sides, rinse from a spray bottle with clear water and wash or replace the filter. What you smell is mold and bacteria growing from the moisture taken from the room air. don't scrub or you will bend the little fins and reduce the efficiency of the unit. good luck!
2006-07-17 23:13:11 · answer #3 · answered by Michael S 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Check the filter and the (evaporator) cooling coils. Dirt builds up and causes odors. If this is a central unit there could be dirt in the ducts.
2006-07-17 23:18:23 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I reckon you'll find it needs re-gassing. Yes you need a professional..
2006-07-17 23:08:58 · answer #5 · answered by lestat_batisse 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I keep throwing eggs at it and they rot
2006-07-18 01:05:23 · answer #6 · answered by Vermin 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋