Gas and Oil Home Heating Furnaces - Carrier Gas Furnace Start Up WOES...

Hello All,

I live in Tucson, AZ. Last nite was a night cold enough for my wife to start up the furnace this morning around 6:00 am. As has happened the last 4 years since the house was built a PLUME of fine dust filled the house within moments. We had to open up all the windows and doors for the dust to settle. Not only that but the smoke alarm went off and called the fire department. (I have a security system in the house).

The filter was not filthy. What am I not doing properly as a preventative measure?

Answers to your "things we need to know" follows:

1. In which area you live and ambient temperatures you usually experience.
2. House style and construction details.
3. Make, model and age of equipment related to the problem.
4. Fuel type.
5. Water temperature and pressures of boiler systems.
6. What type of zoning do you have with your boiler system.
7. Thermostat type.

ANSWERS:
1. Live in Tucson, AZ.
2. House is stucco/wood frame..built 5 years ago.
3. Carrier WeatherMaker 8000 combo Air conditioner/Gas Furnace 5 years old.
4. Gas.
5. N/A
6. N/A
7. Digital thermostat.

ANY advice and help would be very much appreciated.

Thanking you in advance!

Is this a packaged/self contained unit or are the furnace & air conditioning two pieces of equipment? The dust was likely from an ill fitting filter or if the filter is wall/ceiling mounted, there could be some leaking return duct(s).

It's a self contained unit...I may have figured it out. I'm assuming that the Air Conditioner part does not use the same blower as the blower on the bottom of the unit? I vacuumed the bottom of the unit's walls, (covered in dust) and the blower itself and that has seemed to take care of the problem.

Next winter I guess I should do the same thing to avoid the dust storm....

Am I guessing right in the first paragraph?

Thanks!