Most homes today have air ducts to deliver hot and cold air from their HVAC unit. As you can imagine, these ducts can be a haven for dust and other debris. It’s important to keep the ducts as clean as possible. Unfortunately, cleaning air ducts isn’t exactly a DIY project. You can proactively clean the supply and return vents to try and prevent build-up in the ducts. Accessing the internal air duct requires special tools and knowledge about the construction and type of duct.
Why Clean Air Ducts Matter
Are you one of the millions who suffer from allergies and/or asthma? If so, cleaning your ducts is a no-brainer. Keeping this important part of your home’s infrastructure clean will help keep symptoms at bay and ultimately make you more comfortable. Many believe that the home envelope prevents build-up in the duct system, but the opposite is true! The air INSIDE your home may be worse that you’d like to believe.
Signs of a Dirty Duct
If your home is very dry and dusty, and you need to change your HVAC filter more than once a month, you may need to have the ducts cleaned. If you live in a moist, humid environment and see signs of mold or mildew (black spots) in your HVAC system, you probably need to clean your ducts.
Here are a few good reasons to clean your ducts:
- You have pets that shed hair!
- You recently had large areas of the home painted or remodeled.
- Your ceiling fans accumulate a great deal of dust every week.
- Your eyes and/or throat are often itchy.
Cleaning your own ducts is a challenge for most homeowners. Consider hiring a professional who has high power vacuum systems with specialized hoses and tools, designed to do much more superficially clean the duct.
Here are a few more things you can do at home to keep your ducts as clean as possible:
- Change your HVAC filters every 30 days.
- Vacuum the return filter grill every time you install a new filter.
- Dust, vacuum, and sweep often.
- Do not allow dust and debris to be pushed into the floor registers.