How Often Should You Clean Your Air Ducts?
Having your whole air conditioning systems cleaned has become popular in recent years. Most of the air conditioning units, that are self-contained, have different recommended times for when you should have the air conditioning unit cleaned, which usually is or twice a year. Normally this is done at the start of the season, and the end of the season. The vacuuming of many air conditioning units should be done before you have the new filter installed in the unit. Some home owners choose to do the vacuuming themselves; however, many air conditioner service companies will do this as put of a turn up, and care packages.
HVAC or heating, ventilation air conditioning systems are different in how vacuuming is done. Since HVAC systems use vents to push the air around the home, it is hard to vacuum the ducts yourself. Professional HVAC cleaning companies will use specialized vacuums, blowers and brushes to clean the intake, supply and return ducts that run throughout your house. The service should also include the cleaning of the air handler, grilles, fans, registers, house, motors, and the coils that make up the HVAC.
At the moment, there is no research that proves that having your ducts cleaned will improve the air quality or lowers the amount of dust that is in your home. However, there is evidence that proves that having dirty coils, air handling units, and motors will make a HVAC unit less efficient overall. To keep your HVAC unit running efficiently a cleaning once every few years is recommended for most units.
What is Duct Cleaning?
Many home owners have become aware that indoor air pollution is a problem, and the people with allergies and asthma are affected by these pollutants. There are a lot of companies that are creating and marketing services and products that are designed to improve the air quality inside your home. Vacuuming and cleaning air ducts is one of the newest services, and was created for outdoor air conditioning units that need to be cleaned and vacuumed to keep dust, pollen, and other pollutants out of the home. To keep your HVAC unit running smoothly we have duct cleaning tips for you to go through.
Both air ducts and HVAC’s can become caked in dust, and other contaminants over time. Duct cleaning normally refers to the cleaning of the both the HVAC units and the duct systems to remove dirt, mold, and other problems that can happen to a duct system.
Should You Have The Ducts Cleaned?
While having the HVAC units cleaned every few years is recommended to keeping the system running efficiently, most units do not have a recommended time period for the ducts. Outdoor air conditioning units will need to be cleaned and vacuumed once or twice a year, as they can get clogged with dirt, pollen, and other particles that are in the air.
Many air conditioning service companies will offer this service. The number of times that your unit should be vacuumed will depend on how much you use the unit, where you live (highways and industrial areas will cause the unit to become dirty faster), and if there is someone with an allergy to pollen or dirt in the home.
Indoor air quality has become a concern for many homeowners. At the moment, there is no solid research that proves that clean ducts will help improve the air quality in your home. So, unless your ducts are really dirty, you should just wait to have them cleaned. If you have your ducts cleaned properly, it is not going to hurt anything, but is not something that generally needs to be done. There are many reason why you should have your HVAC and ducts system cleaned. These are various duct cleaning tips :
Renovation
Ducts should be sealed off when home renovations are being done; however, this does not mean that they were. If the ducts are left open, then dangerous debris and dust can become lodged in the ducts, until the HVAC is turned on and forces the debris and dust back into the room. If you know that your house had lead paint removal, asbestos abatement, or a lot of dust produced, you should have the duct system vacuumed before you turn on the HVAC unit. This is the one of the good duct cleaning tips that you can follow.
Mold
Mold is one the worst things to have inside of a home. Mold can cause weaker immune systems, and breathing problems. If you notice mold growing in the duct work, both the HVAC and ducts should be cleaned and vacuumed to remove the mold. One of the easiest duct cleaning tips to follow is vacuumed the mold.
Animals
Animals live in duct work is common in some places in the world. If you think that there are animals that are in your ducts, you will need to have them removed. After the animals are removed from the duct system, you should have the entire HVAC unit and the ducts cleaned as you may not know how long the animals lived in the duct system, and if there is damage to the system.
Contaminants
You begin to notice that there is pet hair, debris, odor, or other contaminants that are being released into the room, from the air ducts even after the registers in the HVAC unit are vacuumed and cleaned. This is the time when you should have the ducts thoroughly cleaned.
Illness
If you, or someone else in your family, have suffered from unexplained allergies or asthma attacks, and you have taken all the other steps to decontaminate your house from the trigger, you may want to have the HVAC and ducts cleaned. This will either confirm or deny that the cause was in the duct system.
If you’re having questions about duct cleaning for your AC system, give Armstrong Air and Heating AC contractors a call at 407-877-8090 today!
