How Often Should You Clean Your Air Ducts?

If you have central heating and cooling, your AC and furnace require a pristine air duct system to keep them in top shape. Your air ducts move air produced by these units into each household room. If you have subpar metal ductwork, higher energy bills will reach you instead of conditioned air.

Cleaning the air duct system reduces most ductwork concerns. But how often should you clean your air ducts?

At Smooth Sailing Heating & Cooling, our HVAC professionals in Boiling Springs, SC follow the National Air Duct Cleaners Association (NADCA) guidelines for duct cleaning. Although these guidelines don’t reflect a regular duct cleaning schedule, they highlight indicators to help you determine when cleaning is necessary.

Below, we’ll delve into those signs and why to choose a professional solution for air duct cleaning. 

Moving In 

When moving into a new home, you have a lot on your plate, from getting the power turned on to remodeling rooms. Cleaning your air ducts may not seem high on your priority list. However, you should consider this service, especially if the previous owners haven’t had a duct cleaning in years or have contributed to excess household pollutants. 

For instance, if they had furry pets, unusual hair and dander amounts may sit deep in the vents. If the previous owners smoked in the house, soot and other tobacco residues build up, creating dirty air ducts.

However, do all major construction and demolishing remodeling projects before cleaning the ducts. Otherwise, drywall particles, sawdust, and other debris will float up and enter through your vents, settling in the ducts. They’ll blow out of your vents and into your breathing air once you start your units, making a mess in each room and promoting respiratory illnesses. 

Respiratory Irritations

It takes much less than floating sawdust and drywall contaminants to contribute to respiratory ailments. Something as little as extra dust hanging around can provoke sneezing, coughing, redness, flu-like symptoms, allergies, asthma, and other flare-ups.

Since dust mites accumulate on untouched surfaces, it’s not uncommon for your body to react negatively when your air ducts host these substances. If you feel something is jeopardizing your indoor air quality, have a professional check and clean your system. 

Dust and Spores Appearing Everywhere

How often should you clean your air ducts if you’re not only feeling the symptoms of dust but also seeing it all over your furniture and floors? The answer is as often as necessary for keeping your home clean and loved ones safe. However, there’s something more concerning than dust and dander.

Mold and mildew often grow in hard-to-reach places that don’t receive ample sunlight. During the winter, warm air travels through the air ducts, increasing humidity and moisture levels and causing fungi to grow and spread. You may notice these toxins leaking out of your air vents or landing nearby, and you’ll smell a musty aroma. 

When visible mold growth occurs, you need a professional with the right equipment to clean your dirty air ducts. These living spores that stick to the ducts' walls won’t completely disappear without the right sanitizing equipment and power washing hoses. 

Infestations

In Boiling Springs, it’s common for squirrels, mice, birds, and other small creatures to nest in your warm air ducts during the winter. You may not like these uninvited house guests exposing your ducts to bacteria, dirt, and dust alongside twigs and leaves as they build nests.

Many of these creatures will also chew and squeeze into your small ducts. The metal seams will split and snap, causing the system to fall apart. You can also expect dents, cracks, and holes that release controlled air within your walls rather than into your rooms.

A professional will clean the pests' droppings and debris while repairing any damage caused by their appearance. 

Professional Air Duct Cleaning in Boiling Springs, SC

When you notice dust and fungi around your air vents, you’ll probably want to take a damp cloth to them. However, these long, winding metal tunnels allow you to reach just a few feet into your vents. A DIY cleaning will only reach about 10% of your ducts. 

The Smooth Sailing Heating & Cooling team snakes in a camera as part of our video inspection so we can note all imperfections. Our duct cleaning services include honest, top-notch workmanship from knowledgeable technicians. If you’re wondering how often should you clean your air ducts or fan motor in Boiling Springs, SC, call (864) 804-6400 today!