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furnace issue's

Posted: Mon May 23, 2011 6:07 pm
by mrbb
Ok, I have a mobile ho,e I use as a weekend place from time to time
its an older mobile home
It has a oil furnace, that i burn kero. in due to its an outside tank, and winters my way get very cold
any ways i have it cleaned every year, new nozzle and what ever the guy does
I have no idea on a furnace, ZERO experience beside this unit, as i have electric in my home all my life
I trust the hvac furnace repair man I hire to know what he needs to
Problem is, over the past 3 yrs I have been getting a stronger and stronger smell of kero when the heat comes on
getting to the point, it very nasty and overwhelming
I called the repair man and he said all looks good, and a little smellis normal
I tried to explain to him, that is getting worse, he, turns it on, smells it as it is, and just says that OK nothig to worry about
It is in a very rural area, and he is the only guy arround near the place

is this smell really normal??

what can be the cause
I looked to see what I can, and can find nothing leaking at what connection I can see

Out by the tank, I get very light smell, but assume thats because there in 100+ gallons of it in the tank

what are some probelm that I might have/

its from 1970 or so, so its not a new unit
works fine beside the smell
help!

Re: furnace issue's

Posted: Mon May 23, 2011 7:24 pm
by Greg
I'm going to move this to the Heating section.
Just a thought would be a crack in the heat exchanger or a leak in the vent. Where did you notice the smell? near the furnace or near the registers?

Greg

Re: furnace issue's

Posted: Mon May 23, 2011 9:42 pm
by mrbb
it comes out of the floor vents in all rooms
It has been doing this more and stronger smelling the past 3 yrs or so, just getting strongeer and smellier every year
the funrnace cleaner guy, tells me it normakl and don't worry, every yr
But its getting so strong now, I just don't buy it!
again, I KNOW nothing about furnace's
and am not very good at fixing anything in general

I have tried to see if i can tell if anything is leaking at what connections I can see, but honestly, most are in places I cannot see at all, so again, that doesn't help me

minus the smell, it seems to work fine

do all furnaces that burn kero. have a smell?

Re: furnace issue's

Posted: Tue May 24, 2011 7:45 pm
by Bill
Hi, I am not an expert in kerosene furnaces. But no your furnace should not smell out of the vents. You stated that your furnace is older, and as with any older furnace the heat exchanger is problem the cause of your problem. The reason i say this, even if your not burning all the fuel in the heat exchanger the non spent fuel should be contained in the heat exchanger and vented out the flue. So if the heat exchanger is cracked the smell will be able to enter the air that is circulated through out the your home and you might be able to smell it coming out the vents. I hope this helps you.
Bill

Re: furnace issue's

Posted: Tue May 24, 2011 8:30 pm
by Greg
The combustion chamber & the heat exchanger are 2 separate sealed chambers. The burner in the combustion chamber heats the air in the exchanger then the air in the exchanger is blown into the ducts. If you have a smell getting through the ducts than there has to be a crack or hole. Exchangers are NOT repairable, plan now on replacing the furnace.

DO NOT use the furnace, if you have an odor you also have carbon monoxide getting through into the home.

Greg

Re: furnace issue's

Posted: Tue May 31, 2011 11:45 pm
by mrbb
Thanks guys
I have a carbon monoxide , like a smoke alarm for it, that has a digital reading level

IT states my place is safe

I will I gues have to have someone look at it

question?/
The HVAC guy I have been dealing with claims there is nothing wrong with it, but the smell keeps getting stronger

SO, what do I tell him to look for?

and what would it cost(ballpark) to fix, or replace comon problems that cause this smell?

Thanks again, and sorry about the delay getting back here been very busy!

Re: furnace issue's

Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2011 9:33 pm
by Bill
Hi,
Tell him what you just said, That you want the problem fixed and don't want the smell anymore. As far as how much it cost, I can't say as every part of the country is different and all repairs are different. Sorry no help there.
Bill

Re: furnace issue's

Posted: Fri Jun 03, 2011 3:00 pm
by mrbb
thanks, I reciently lost my job, so cost will be an issue for me, was hoping to get a ballpark idea what I am in for, best worse case deal
or about's of it>
thanks again,

Re: furnace issue's

Posted: Fri Jun 03, 2011 6:49 pm
by stevieb
Hi
Sorry to tell you we had the same problem. Noticed a fine oily residue on the appliances etc. Our reputable experienced furnace people shut the unit down. The unit had a crack and our detector did not go off either. The smell is not normal. I own 3 mobile homes and can safely say kerosene smell is not normal. Are you sure this repair guy is experienced? My unit was 25 yrs old. Including installation new unit was $3800.00 They also advised after we smelled kerosene with the new unit to have the ductwork cleaned as there was residue in them. If this is a place you don't use to often and freeze ups are not a concern, you may want to try an alternative heat source.

Re: furnace issue's

Posted: Sun Jun 05, 2011 1:02 pm
by mrbb
Thanks
The guys I have been using has been a service repair guy in the area for over 30+ yrs, is actually planning to retire soon or so he tells me, but he only works on one or two mobile homes, as few are in the area.

I do not use the place a lot, but when I do, its mostly in winter month , as it is a hunting place of sorts.
I do not have any issues with residue on things, and my ducts do not semll or feel any residue in them, I checked them!

I again, only get the smell for the first few minutes of the furnace starts up
say like it will run for 10 minutes to bring temp up to what ever, the first 5 it will have the smell, then it will be much less!

I really hate to have to spend like 4 grand to get a new furnace
but again, this one is about 50 yrs old, so maybe its due!

Hoe long should a furnace last