Stuffy House? It's Time to Clean and Seal Your Dirty Air Ducts

If your home still feels extremely stuffy, even after you have done everything possible to clear out the air, it's probably time to clean and seal your old air ducts. Dirty and leaky air ducts can decrease your home's air quality over time, which can affect your family and pet's health.

With the information and simple tips below, you can improve your home's air quality, protect your loved ones' health and keep your cooling system in good working order.

Unless you do a lot of home renovations, you probably don't get to see your home's air ducts very often. Ducts usually hide behind your walls, beneath your floors and in other locations you can't access easily. Although air ducts are out of sight and out of mind, they can still experience some problems, like air leaks.

Leaks usually occur when air ducts tear, rust or pull loose from their seams. All of the problems make it easy for dust and other airborne particles to enter your duct system. Although some of the debris stays inside the ducts, most of the dust circulates into your living space.

There are several ways to tell if your air ducts leak. Your indoor environment will feel stuffy and unclean. The surfaces of your furniture, tables and floors will also build up with dust. The dust will also contain things that affect your loved ones' health.

Dust can contain dust mites, mold spores and dead insect casings. Mold in particular can wreak havoc on anyone who has a sensitive immune system, allergies or asthma. Even some dogs and cats can develop allergies to airborne contaminants.

If you haven't taken steps to clean and seal your air ducts yet, you should do so now.

You can do a couple of things yourself to make your home feel cleaner, including placing an air purifier in your home. An air purifier sucks in airborne debris and stores it in an air filtering device. Once the filter fills up or reaches a certain time limit, you change or empty it out.

It's also important to steam clean your carpets and furnishings regularly. Steam cleaning can remove dust mites, pet dander and many other contaminants from the fibers of sofas, carpets and curtains. If you have concerns about cleaning your belongings, consult with an indoor quality professional for more information.

Finally, reach out to a heating, air and ventilation (HVAC) company for help. An HVAC company will generally inspect your air ducts for anything that may cause them to leak, including tears, holes and loose connections. Some contractors perform leak testing on their clients' air ducts, which can help find problems faster.

If your air ducts are particularly damaged, then you may want to go ahead and replace them. Even if you seal the ducts, they may still leak in the future. If the leaks continue, they can eventually affect the performance and integrity of your cooling system.

If your air ducts don't have significant damage, contractors will clean them instead. Air duct cleaning isn't as difficult as you might think. In most cases, HVAC contractors will use special vacuums to clear out your duct system. The vacuums are strong enough to clean out air ducts hidden deep within your walls and beneath your flooring.

You may wish to have your air ducts cleaned every three to five years for the best results. Your HVAC service provider can discuss the best schedule for cleaning your air ducts when they visit your home.

To learn more about keeping your home and air ducts clean, contact the HVAC professionals at Air Supply for an appointment.