Smelly Exhaust from Propane Heating Unit

ZONE CONTROL

assuming all else is o.k.

proper orifice size, gas pressure, flame color etc...

check for the presence of petroleum distillates in the area.
they are contained in many common household products. i.e. bug spray , paints, spray type lubricants, urethanes. also other common sources of odor bleaches nail polish removers.

any of these type products can linger for long periods of time in the surrounding air. you heat unit grabs that air for combustion and those chemicals can coat the burners producing an alddehyde odor. that odor can go on for extended periods time.

bc

Greg Stanfield

Smelly exhaust from Heating Unit

Had a new Central Heat and Air unit installed about 3 months ago. Once cold weather arrived we fired up the heating unit. We have noticed a really bad smell coming from the exhaust of the unit. It is a propane gas unit.
We have had a repairman from the shop that installed the unit and he said he could not find anything wrong with the unit but said there was a problem with the gas regulator.
We then had someone from the Gas Company out to check the regulator and they have told us there is nothing wrong with this piece either.
The exhaust fumes have a strong gas smell to them. I have removed the back plate from the unit myself and the flames on the burners are burning more yellow then blue.
Can anyone offer any suggestions as to what might be the problem?

Thanks for any help!!
Greg

jim lockard

yellow flame

yellow flames on L.P. gas could indicated a problem. You may want to find a Pro with a combustion analyzer and a gas gauge that can adjust your furnace properly. Best Wishes J.Lockard

lchmb

Have them

Have your installer verify the orifice size in the unit and the manifold pressure's to confirm it was converted properly. Could be a number of thing's but should be checked..

Empire_2

I agree

I'll bet the burner orifices have not been changed over to propane. Did your service guy check manifold pressure? I would call and ask the boss what was done to furnace to get it ready for propane.

Greg Stanfield

Thanks for the updates

Just had the Propane company come and check the regulator coming from my propane tank and he says that he adjusted the pressure to the proper settings as per the manf. recommendations for my area. He also said he would bring a new regulator in a couple days just to make sure the old one was not causing the problem even though it was holding the correct pressure when the unit was running. Still have the bad smell even after he made some adjustments. There is also some soot starting to show on the exhaust.

As for the gas jets being the correct ones. I did watch the guys that installed the unit change out the jets. They told me they had installed the ones to work with propane. I will double check this just to make sure.

Once again thanks for the information.
Greg

Richard Miller

A furnace should never be fired up for the first time without checking several things.

Temp rise

Manifold pressure

Incoming gas pressure

Visual flame inspection

Making sure that orrifices are the correct size.

(I didn't say anything about checking to make sure the valve was converted if it was a conversion. The manifold pressure test will show that.)

If it has a pilot light you should visually inspect the pilot flame too. (It may need adjusted or it may not have been converted.)

Anything less than this is sloppy workmanship.

Greg Stanfield

Just an update

First off thanks for all the information. The Gas Company just came out and installed a new gas regulator coming from the tank to the unit. So its now been proven that the unit is getting the correct amount of gas going to the unit as per the manufacturers suggested PSI for my area.
The Heating and Cooling company is supposed to be coming back to check it again. Cant wait to hear them say its the old regulator again.
Will keep you updated as new information becomes available.

Thanks again for the info,
Greg

John McArthur_2

Is there adequate and clean (free of contaminants) combustion air?

The yellow flame flame and soot seem to indicate a rich fuel mixture.

Mark Hunt

JFYI


Yellow and blue have NOTHING to do with this.

If the COMBUSTION appliance is not set up with a COMBUSTION analyser, all of the "experts" you have called so far are guessing.

The LP company only guarantees correct incoming pressure. The "heeter" guy only guarantees that it catches on fire. After that.........well.........

You have a COMBUSTION problem and neither of the "experts" you are dealing with knows how to deal with it. Sorry.

I defy anyone to tell me how a "blue" flame smells different from a "yellow" flame. And if by chance someone HAS been sniffing flames, can you tell me where Elvis is hiding out?

You have a problem sir that is beyond the knowledge level of the "pros" you have involved. Time to get someone that understands combustion in there and find the issue and solve it.

You DO understand that the other guys are hoping you'll just get used to it don't you?

Mark H

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