Scheduling any kind of air conditioning repair is never convenient, but if your air conditioner or furnace goes out in the middle of the night, you'll be glad that you have a company nearby that offers 24-hour emergency HVAC services. With a simple phone call, technicians can arrive at your front door and fix any issue that you have—large or small—in no time.

But even though the services are readily available, there are still a lot of people that wonder whether or not their specific situation justifies an actual HVAC emergency. Below are a few of the most common scenarios that technicians see. If any of them look familiar, contact a professional immediately.

1. Smoke Smell

If you smell smoke in your home, try not to panic. Instead, look for flames and try to figure out where the smoke is coming from. If it's emanating from your vents, then chances are it could be something as small as a tiny electrical fire that has already been extinguished. If smoke continues to billow in your home, you may be dealing with an electrical fire from your HVAC system, so you need to vacate the house and contact emergency services right away.

2. Unit Not Working

Since the main function of an HVAC system is to cool and heat your home, if it's not doing that at all, then that's an emergency. The issue here is about much more than comfort; a house without AC in the summer, for instance, can be dangerous in households with older people and babies. Furthermore, a house with unregulated temperatures may soon experience damage to the wooden floorboards, furniture, pipes, and electrical systems. Many of these items can struggle at extreme temperatures.

3. Weird smells

In addition to smoke, there are two smells that every homeowner needs to be on the lookout for: mold and gas. Mold can spring up within 48 hours of the right kind of conditions, and while gas may be harder to detect, it can be dangerous, if not fatal, if left unchecked. If you smell either of these two things coming from your air vents, you'll need to contact a company that offers 24-hour emergency HVAC services to get it taken care of as soon as possible since your family's health may be at risk.

For more information on whether you've got a small or big problem, contact local 24-hour emergency HVAC services.