Frequent duct cleaning should not be necessary. Most professionals recommend cleaning the duct system every 3-5 years, and inspecting the coils every year. Every duct system is different and is exposed to different operating conditions. If your inspection reveals contamination every year, you need to review why your ducts get dirty. Often it is hard to know if your duct system will need to be cleaned, but there are several things that you should consider:
Moldy Ductwork
If you see mold growing in your ductwork, you’ve got a serious problem. The health risks alone are reason enough for a thorough cleaning and sanitization, but you also need to find out why mold is growing and correct the problem.
Infestation
Vermin and insect infestation can also pose serious health risks. If you see evidence of this kind of problem, pest control should come first, then repairs to ductwork and a thorough cleaning would be in order.
Pets
Pet dander is also a leading cause of allergies. Years of accumulation in your duct system can generate a constant ‘cloud’ in the air you breath in your home. Regular filter changes will help, but duct cleaning every 3-5 years will still be needed.
Asthma & Allergies
The American Lung Association states, “ fragile lung tissue can be easily damaged by pollutants in the air, resulting in an increased risk of asthma, allergies and bronchitis”. Your air conditioning duct work has everything to do with the quality of the air you breath in your house. Reqular cleaning, good filtration, and fresh air exchange are all important aspects of maintaining good indoor air quality.
Smoking
Smoking indoors can cause a number of problems for your ductwork. Aside from the smoke itself being unhealthy, it creates a somewhat sticky layer on the inside of your ducts leading to a severe buildup of contaminants and creating a perfect breading ground for bacteria, mold, and mites. As you well know by now, all of these are contributors to asthma, allergies, bronchitis, and perhaps even more sever breathing problems.
Elderly or Children in the Home
Everyone is aware of the increased risk to elderly and children of breathing problems. According to Scientific America, a baby crawling on the floor inhales the equivalent of 4 cigarettes a day, as a result of the outgassing of carpets, molds, mildews, fungi, dust mites, etc.
Recent Water Damage
Moisture makes it possible for mold to grow, so naturally if you’ve had some water damage, you could have mold growing in your ductwork. You should at least have a camera inspection conducted to make sure.
There are a few tricks you can use to see for yourself the condition of your duct system. Remove a few of the registers (usually a metal grill over a vent). Set a camera to flash and hold it down the duct. Snap a picture or two and see what it looks like. Those little cameras for computers work great too if the cord is long enough and it’s convenient to move the computer. You can also try a flashlight and mirror, but that’s not nearly as effective. Some homes have ductwork behind the filter that is pretty easy to see just by removing the filter and shining a flashlight. The Evaporator can be much harder to see, and is more critical that it be clean for efficient and trouble free operation, so you should have that checked annually by a qualified technician.
HEP can take care of all your indoor air quality issues from cleaning to installing the latest technology. Schedule a free consultation today. HEP is without a doubt the best duct cleaning and HVAC specialist in the Knoxville, TN area!
