If you have forced-air heating and cooling, you rely on ducts to transport hot and cold air around your home. These ducts can get dirty, which leads to many problems, including health issues. If you haven’t had your ducts cleaned in a long time or ever, check out these four benefits of having your air ducts cleaned.
Removes Dangerous Mold
Image via Flickr by carlpenergy
Your ducts transport air, but they can get a little damp from condensation, and moist environments are a breeding ground for mold. Many forms of mold aren’t dangerous, but even these mild forms can cause irritation if you suffer from asthma or allergies. Of course, without taking a peek inside your air ducts, you don’t know if the mold is harmless or if it’s dangerous black mold, which can lead to serious complications, such as mental symptoms, respiratory symptoms, circulatory symptoms, and many others. A good professional cleaning will remove every type of mold from your ducts.
Prevents Irritants from Entering Your Breathing Air
Your forced-air heating and cooling systems have filters to trap particles, but no filter is perfect, and some irritants can enter your ducts. Overtime, these irritants collect and pollute your indoor air, which can cause breathing problems for everyone, especially people who suffer from allergies and asthma. For people with allergies, pollen and pet dander are particularly annoying, and for people with asthma, dust mites can cause major breathing issues. Routine cleanings remove all irritants and prevent them from collecting, which means you can breathe easy.
Stops Infestations
It is gross to consider, but you may have creatures living in your ducts. Rodents and insects enter your ducts through holes or gaps and make themselves at home. No one wants an infestation in their home, but if they are living in your ducts, you may not even realize there is an infestation. Rodents, in particular, pose a threat because they can spread disease or cause health issues. Imagine all the droppings in your ducts and the chemicals from the droppings being blown right into the air you breathe.
Improves Efficiency of the System
Cleaning your air ducts isn’t just about improving air quality. Having your ducts cleaned can actually improve the efficiency of your system. Think of the ducts like the arteries of your home. Just like cholesterol can line your arteries and make your heart work harder, irritants that enter the ducts line them and make the system work harder because the hole through which the air must travel is smaller. This puts a strain on the system and causes it to use more energy to properly heat and cool your home. A good cleaning will improve airflow, which improves efficiency.
You must routinely inspect and clean every part of your forced-air heating and cooling systems, which includes your ducts. Neglecting to have your ducts cleaned can lead to health issues and decreased system efficiency, so if you haven’t had yours inspected and cleaned in a while, it’s time to make the call.
