Oh the nostalgic smell of the heat coming on for the first time of the season...perhaps it reminds you of this time last year, or, wait, is that the scent of a melting crayon? Or no, wait, more like burning hair? Now hold up, is this how heat is supposed to smell?
What You Should Be Doing Right Now.
That smell may be a lot less about nostalgia and a whole lot more about a missed step in your preparations for the heating season. So what's that one thing that you should be doing right now? It's easy. Vacuuming your baseboards. That's right, it's time to break out the vacuum or shop-vac and simply clean out the entire area around your baseboards. Pop the covers off, or even easier, just use the narrow hose attachment to suck debris, pet hair, and dust away (which could even be a fire hazard, by the way!)
Why?
If your base board fins are dirty, you reduce the efficiency of the heat transfer, so it takes more & more heat to heat the same room, the dirty baseboards don't release the heat to the air efficiently. So when you vacuum, you'll not only help avoid that tell-tale hot dusty odor when first turning on the heat, you'll also be taking an easy first-step to ensuring that your system runs efficiently and safely. And see...it was a crayon!
What if I forgot?
Already turned on the heat? Don't worry, we won't tell. Just go ahead and vacuum the baseboards today. Then enjoy the heat (without the smell)!
Links: YouTube Video