Air ducts aren’t exactly known for being visible or accessible, which only makes sense considering that none of us really want to hear the air rattling the duct or see the entire line stringing through the home.
Unfortunately, we pay the price for having our aesthetic preferences protected. That price typically comes in the form of inconvenience. But not just inconvenience for those that work on the duct.
It’s also inconvenient for you– the person that is generally responsible for keeping tabs on the state of the ducts. If you can’t see the ducts or easily access them, then how are you meant to check to see if they need to be cleaned?
Don’t worry. There are a few easy ways for you to do that. However, just because they’re easy, that doesn’t mean that they’re quick to type out. So, keep reading below for some tips on how to check your air duct!
Visible dust.
This is typically the easiest place for people to start checking the state of their air duct. That’s usually because you’ve most likely been checking for it subconsciously. Take a moment and think back to a time when you flicked on the air conditioning or heating system.
Once you have that moment in mind, really consider if you’ve seen debris or dust kick up from the air vents. Now, let’s suppose you have seen that. You may want to double-check it by running that test again.
If you come out with the same result, that could mean that there is a large amount of dust or other contaminants in the air ducts themselves. In that case, you want to quickly take measures to protect yourself and everyone else in the home.
Quickly clogged air filters.
This is another thing where your memory could really help. So, let’s do the same exercise before. Think back about how often you’ve noticed your air filters get clogged up. Has the rate increased, decreased or stayed the same?
In any case, I’d suggest that you do some research on how long the filter is meant to last you. If it’s way under that time, it could mean that there’s something seriously wrong with the entire system or at least that there’s a heavily debris-ridden duct.
Unpleasant odor.
Just like in nature, an unpleasant smell is typically a bad sign. In fact, if you smell one in your own home, and the reason is escaping you, one of the usual suspects could be your air ducts.
It could be the result of many different things inside your air ducts, but it more commonly stems from the buildup of dust and other debris inside the actual duct. The worst part is that as you let it sit, it will likely continue to degrade–thus impacting your air quality even further.
Pests in your air ducts.
Pests are never a good sign. Unless you happen to be purposefully attracting them, which I certainly wouldn’t recommend, but in most cases, they’re only attracted to conditions that allow them to live comfortably. That means access to food, water and shelter.
The food and water can come from your home, but the shelter could be the dust and debris in the air duct system itself.
So, if you notice pests coming out of your ducts or sitting inside, you need to take note of that immediately, and ideally, call in some pest control experts. The quicker that you can get rid of them, the quicker you’ll be able to stop breathing in their contaminants.
Check your energy bill.
It can seem like a weird idea at first, but your energy bill can actually provide a lot of insight into the current state of all the ductwork in your house.
A higher energy bill than usually without a reasonable explanation, such as new electronics or habits, could allude to a clogged HVAC system that has to pull overtime in order to reach your desired temperature.
So, carefully examine it. Funny enough, that bill can pay off.
No evidence of the previous cleaning.
This is important whether you’re moving into a new home or you’ve lived in the same one for years. If there’s no evidence that a duct cleaning was conducted before, you need to get one as soon as possible.
Otherwise, you’ll be breathing in the contaminants that the duct system accumulated through the previous residents’ stay or even debris from the construction of the home.
Strange racket coming from the air duct system.
If you notice that there are new or unfamiliar sounds coming from the air ducts, that could be evidence of something inside the air duct itself. That alone could lead to future problems with your HVAC system, but it could also have a good degree of other consequences.
So, keep that in mind the next time you hear some rattling. It could be easily cleaned out, or the cleaning could be used to determine the real cause– either way, you’ll have an answer to that annoying sound.
Get professionals to quickly clean your air ducts!
If you’ve noticed one or several of the things that I listed above, then you most certainly need to have your air ducts cleaned. If you decide to wait, it’ll only lead to more problems and more risks to your respiratory system as a whole, and at the end of the day, that’s the last thing anybody wants.
So, call in the professionals! Let us protect your health and the condition of your HVAC system with a quick and easy cleaning!
