Air Duct Cleaning

We hear about Legionnaire’s disease outbreaks traced to the air conditioning system. Buildings are highlighted on the news as making their tenants sick and it’s referred to as sick building syndrome. Individual homes are linked to increases in allergies and asthma. Can it happen to your home and what can you do to prevent it or correct it if you are already the proud owner of a house that is making you sick?

The ever-increasing cases of sick building syndrome are due to the way houses and buildings are constructed to conserve energy. Stop air movement in and out of the home and you reduce the energy required to heat and cool the house. After you seal the house up, central cooling and heating systems maintain livable temperatures and humidity levels within the home by re-circulation of the same air and pollutants day after day.
Dust, bacteria, viruses, mold, fungus, mildew and gases circulate through the building.
The dust can come from skin, hair, clothes or just come off shoes when we walk in and out.

The mildew, fungus

and molds can come in along with the dust or we can grow our own in the HVAC system.The gases are volatile organic compounds that are given off by dyes, paints, varnishes and adhesives used in modern building materials. The best example of gases is that burning eye sensation we get after new carpet is installed.
As the AC system condenses moisture from the air, a drain is supposed to take this moisture out of the system. What really happens is that some of this water splashes on the interior insulation and some of it is left standing in the bottom of the pan that is not designed or installed to get it completely out of the system. So, now, we have moisture ready to support the growth of assorted micro-organisms that will cause a variety of respiratory problems.

Improve your well being
Does someone in your home experience allergies, asthma or respiratory disorders? What about headaches, nasal congestion or sinus problems? If so, the cure may be right under your nose in the form of the air you breathe.

Both Total Health and Better Health magazines cite that “1 of 6 people who suffer from allergies do so because of the direct relationship to fungi and bacteria in the air duct system.” Simply put: Dirty ducts can make you sick. Really sick. The Department of Consumer Affairs adds that “children and the elderly are especially affected by polluted indoor air.”

Dirt, pollen, smoke, pet hair, dust mites, even dead skin get trapped deep inside your ducts. This creates a breeding ground for bacteria. Every time you turn on your system, these contaminants get blown into the air that you and your family breathe.

Help eliminate odors and dust
Does someone in your home smoke? Do you have any pets? Well, that smoke and animal dander doesn’t disappear — it winds up in your duct system. Think about it. Don’t you notice that musty, stale smell that comes on when you start your system at the beginning of the heating or cooling season?

What about dust? Do you notice that a layer of dust seems to settle on your furniture right after turning your system on? That’s a tell-tale sign of ducts desperately in need of cleaning. Most furnaces are only equipped with a throw-away style fiberglass filter. The American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) reports that “most commercially available fiberglass furnace filters are less than 7% efficient.” This allows a tremendous amount of dust to settle into your duct work.

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