You'd love it if your family prepared only foods you like to smell, but that's not always possible. And many times, foods that have to cook for a long time send strong odors throughout the house unless you take specific steps. The first steps are rather basic, but there are additional steps involving your air conditioning that you might not have thought about.
Use the Exhaust Fan
The first steps are to use your exhaust fan over the stove. If you don't have an exhaust fan, place a table or box fan by the nearest window, pointing out so that when you turn the fan on, it will blow smelly air from inside the kitchen to the outside. Don't use your bathroom exhaust fans too much as these can overheat if you leave them on for a long time. (You can certainly turn on the bathroom fan as a way to help clear out odors, but limit how long the fan is on.)
Reroute the Intake Vents
If the odors seem to spread especially quickly throughout the house when the air conditioning is on, it's possible one of the intake vents for the air conditioner is in or near the kitchen. In good home design, the intake vents should not be in the kitchen or bathroom, but not all houses have a perfect design. In this case, you need to contact an HVAC company to evaluate the possibility of rerouting the intake vents that are near the kitchen. This may not be the easiest option, but it is necessary -- those vents should not be near any place where odors are a common occurrence.
Clean the Ductwork
If the odors seem to linger and spread long after the food has been eaten and the dishes cleaned up, the dust in your HVAC ductwork might be to blame. Cleaning ducts doesn't really help with allergies or keeping the house clean — but it may help remove stubborn odors like old cigarette smoke. If you're smelling your meals from last week when you turn on the AC, try getting the ducts cleaned. This shouldn't take long, but it should be left to professionals who can clean the ducts without spreading dust everywhere.
You can't control all food odors, but you can reduce the occurrence of strong, house-wide smells. Your HVAC equipment plays a crucial role in air circulation in the house, so don't ignore the system when trying to stop odors.
Share31 July 2018
Does your air conditioner smell, make loads of extra noise, or fail to cool your home? If you have noticed any of these problems, there might be issues with your air conditioning unit. Fortunately, you don't have to let a bum system make your home stuffy and uncomfortable. Professional heating ventilation and air conditioning contractors can snap your AC unit into shape in no time. By carefully checking your condenser and evaluating your refrigerant levels, the experts might be able to dramatically improve the cooling capacity of your home unit. Read here to find out how to spot problems before they make your space uncomfortable.