Burning/burnt smell in the basement

[Punkie]

Both dh and I noticed this in the past day, and I'm just not sure what to do or who to call (if anyone?)

When you walk down the basement stairs, there is a burnt smell right about 3/4 of the way down the staircase. On either side of the stairs are the water heater/furnace room and a closet, and both of those rooms smell fine. The smell continues into the main area where the entertainment room is, but it stops right by the couches :shrug There is a light fixture there, but it is rarely on. It works fine when I test it. The smoke alarms have not gone off.

There is also a weird smell by my front door, but I am not sure what it is. It smells more chemical-y, like fertilizer or something, so it is probably unrelated. DH recently sprayed for weeds there (maybe a week ago), so it could be that.

Any thoughts on who to call? I'm worried, but have no idea what I should do. My main concern is that its an electrical problem that will start a fire or some kind of gas issue.

[JJsMom]

:think Is your dryer down there? Did you look at cords, maybe one is wrapped around something and it's melting the cord? I'm not sure who you would call if you don't know what the problem is.

[gentle_answer]

You said the light fixture was rarely on, so this may not be it, but...

Whenever I smell something burning it's usually a bug touching the light. One time it was a bean bag thrown into the chandelier.

Do you have dogs? My dog once was chewing on a smoked pigs ear. We were searching everywhere for where the smoky smell was coming from.

[PurpleButterfly]

I would call an electrician - burnt smells often indicate wiring issues. :hugheart :pray

[Punkie]

I think I found the problem - it was our new DVR unit. The back smelled like the room smelled, it must've just travelled :shrug