I have a 3 year old HVAC system. It has a gas furnace, not a heat pump. Every fall when I've turned on the heat I get a nasty dirty sock smell. Shortly after, I have episodes of asthma which I have not had since a kid (I'm an old man now).

From reading online it seems that a UV light above the coils is a recommended fix. Thoughts on that?

Also, how much should I expect to pay to have it installed (I'm not at all handy and, at my age, don't want to even try)?

Is it something that should have been installed originally. That is, might I have a warranty claim? (Apparently, another solution is to dip the coils in a Teflon antimicrobial solution as a permanent fix. Shouldn't that have been done prior to installation?)

jt2hunt said:

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That's just the heat burning off all the dust that's in the furnace

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Nope, that's an acrid smell. This is different. More of a swampy, nasty smell.

Google "dirty sock syndrome". You'll get thousands of hits. It's the heat burning off slime and possibly mold that's grown on the coils. I suspect it's due to the newer coils designed to make ACs more efficient but don't drain as well as older ones used to.

Huge fan of UV. Installed mine when the system was new and there isn't a single spot of organic in the plenum. That even accounts for me not changing the bulb as often as I should. I have a big box filter in the unit as well.

UV is not a gimmick in my opinion. But, before installing, go ahead and pay the piper to have it cleaned very well and get the bulk out.

Asthma family but only at events like this.

UV is not required & many don't elect this option
Dust burning off is certainly afoot as well as the swamp
IMHO the swamp is being evaporated at an accelerated rate from the drain pan's summer condensate accumulation.

So looking for a fix would be
SlimeOut tabs in drain pan during the summer months
HVAC Contract to inspect/tune system twice/yr w/tabs
Eventually you will have a new improved drain pan every time the system is replaced/upgraded

In 1999 my new trips to get allergies shots (never since a kid) listed suspects that finally resolved: mold in the drain pan. New HVAC, no more shots.

If something else discovered, inquiring minds need to know! Please post again.

agdoc2001 said:

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I had "dirty sock syndrome" once. That was the last time I brought home one of the girls from Silk Stocking.

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Good thing your user name checks out.

I almost decided to kick my heater on its own so it doesn't give me any surprises in the middle of the night since it was a brand new unit and i wasn't sure what to expect.. Well i didn't and at 4:30AM when our heater kicked on finally every smoke alarm in my house was going off. Thankfully it wasn't anything but i was not able to fall asleep after that.