Wildlife can enter your property from open vents or spaces both inside and under your home. At times, these animals can make their way into places such as the air conditioning system. When a wild animal does become trapped in your AC system and dies, the bad odor can be circulated within the rooms of your house while the AC is turned on. The smell will grow stronger as the animal decomposes. For small animals, the decomposition process takes about a week, but may last longer than a month for larger ones.
Finding and removing a dead animal can be a tedious job. You could choose to remove it yourself, or hire a professional pest control company to do the work.
Finding the Animal
- Turn off the air conditioning system.
- Use your sense of smell to locate the area where the odor of the dead animal is coming from. Try sniffing the air ducts. The carcass of the dead animal will smell strongest at the vent closest to it.
- Finding the animal may take some time, so be patient with yourself.
Removing the Animal
You will need old rags, a cleaning bush, a vacuum cleaner, and gloves.
- After locating the dead animal, use a screw driver to open the cover of the nearest vent.
- Use a vacuum cleaner to remove the dead animal, grabbing it with your gloved hands.
- If the air conditioning system is built within a wall, you must cut through the dry wall in order to reach the dead animal. (See How to Find and Remove a Dead Animal From the Wall.)
If the task proves to be too difficult for you to accomplish on your own, you can always hire the services of a pest control company or a wildlife removal company. They will locate and remove the carcass for you.