Tips and Tricks About Cleaning Air Ducts & Vents

by: David Marquardt

Is the air in your home clean? All of us breathe air when we are inside the home and most people are unsure about how clean the air inside their home is. Just like the air outside your home has several contaminants and pollutants, the air inside your home also have several contaminants. So if you breathe this air full of contaminants, the health risks increase multifold. You will be prone to various respiratory diseases, which can further get aggravated and take the form of allergy, asthma, persistent cough, nausea, headaches, and even fatigue. The root cause of these illnesses is the contaminants who have found their way into your home because your air duct or HVAC system is dirty.

Reduce health risks by cleaning Ducts

Contaminants in the air duct or your ventilation system are in different forms like fungi, Mold, allergens and bacteria. Allergens like pollen, dust, and pet dander are quite common and can get inside the HVAC system in your home, which will circulate it right into the air that you breathe. Such a scenario will pose higher health risks and create negative health consequences on a long-term basis. According to the American College of Allergy almost 50% of illnesses are caused by pollutants that exist in the air inside your home due to improper vent cleaning.

As a result, it is important to clean your HVAC system on a regular basis. It is not only the health perspective in question here but a clean air duct system will provide higher performance as compared to a dirty system. Efficient running of your air duct or HVAC system will help in reducing your energy bills. Cleaner air duct systems will have a longer lifespan and will have less technical problems. So there are many more advantages of having a clean HVAC system other than the fact that it will keep the air in your home cleaner.

Factors That Affect Cleaning

Vent cleaning is a must and needs to be done on a regular basis. The industry standards recommend that you should have an expert inspect your air ducts and vents once every two years, and also initiate vent cleaning once every 5-7 years. Of course there is no harm in initiating a vent cleaning process once every 3-4 years also but all this depends on the conditions within your home.

On the other hand the NADCA or National Air Duct Cleaners Association does not recommend any specific time frame for air duct cleaning. According to them air duct cleaning should be initiated by a homeowner when they feel it is necessary and have outlined certain factors that will lead to frequent vent cleaning. According to them, vent cleaning becomes necessary within a short period of time if:

1. Smoking is done in the house
2. There are pets in the house that shed hair and dander
3. There is damage or water contamination in the home or to the HVAC system
4. NADCA also recommends air duct cleaning prior to occupancy of a new home.

Cleaning Methods

The most effective way of air duct cleaning is by using source removal methods. A powerful vacuum cleaner is used as a part of this method and it can suck air with dirt from your air duct and ventilation system. There are certain devices, which are inserted into the air ducts like brushes, skipper balls and air whips to dislodge any dirt or debris that is stuck to the inner surface of the ventilation system.

You can choose a duct cleaning contractor who is an expert in vent cleaning and will be able to clean your piping, registers, ductwork, and blower motor. These professional vent cleaning experts also use vacuums mounted on trucks, which can clean according to NADCA standards. The vacuums mounted on trucks are very powerful cleaners.

You need to be careful while hiring air duct cleaning contractor. You can start with several contractors who will inspect your air duct and ventilation system and then offer you their best quote. You need to make sure that the air duct cleaning contractor visually inspects the air ducts and the various components of your HVAC system before offering you a cleaning solution.

If you hire NADCA contractors then you will be rest assured that your vent cleaning process will be based on NADCA guidelines. Check the license of the vent cleaning company and ask for at least 3 references. Last but not the least; don’t hire someone who offers you the lowest price because that will translate into inadequate cleaning.