Your HVAC system is one of the largest investments you’ll make in your home, and it’s one you want to get the most out of. As parts, labor, and electricity get more expensive, the cost of repairing or replacing your unit continues to go up, but so does the cost of running a system that isn’t working as well as it should. By maintaining your system and helping it run at peak efficiency, you can extend the life of your HVAC and avoid dramatic increases in your energy bills.
Cleaning your air ducts is one of the best ways to keep your HVAC system up and running and your energy costs down. Air ducts serve as the conduit for transferring the warm or cool air produced by the HVAC system throughout a building to maintain a comfortable interior temperature.
Over time, as the HVAC system draws air from the interior toward the coil and back again, the air ducts will begin to accumulate dirt and debris, clogging the air ducts and air filters and interfering with the unit’s ability to properly and effectively circulate air.
In Oklahoma, the most common culprits of dirty air ducts are allergens (such as pollen) and fine dust or dirt, but other contaminants like mold, dander, and pest infestations can also find their way into your ducts to be recirculated through your home, causing larger health problems like respiratory issues or allergic reactions.
Professional Air Duct Cleaning for Cleaner Air and Lower Bills
Air duct cleaning is a comprehensive process that removes the built-up dust and debris from the air ducts throughout the building. Although HVAC units have filters that are meant to trap and stop particulate matter from entering the air flow, some will inevitably slip through. In addition, unexpected detritus that never reaches the air filter, such as mouse droppings, can end up in air ducts, where the particles are circulated through the air you breathe every day.
To ensure that everyone in your home or business is breathing the cleanest, most high-quality air possible, it’s important to have your air ducts cleaned every three to five years. It’s usually best done before winter sets in, when particles like pollen that have accumulated during spring and early summer can be cleared out alongside any small debris that can enter the ductwork. Because air stagnates during the winter and you are inside more, cleaning your ducts in the fall can help ensure that the air that does circulate is clean going into the winter months.
During a professional air duct cleaning, your home will be divided into sections, or zones, based on the organization of the duct work. These zones will be cleaned individually using a special vacuum tube that is inserted into the ducts and pulls more than 10,000 CFM, or cubic feet per minute, of air into the vacuum along with all the debris it encounters.
Depending on the state of the ducts, the size of the building, and any evidence of specific contaminants, other tools may also be used, such as scrubbers. A professional air duct cleaning company like SafeAir Duct Solutions can also apply antimicrobial treatment to the ducts to prevent problematic growths like mold from contaminating the air for years to come.
4 Ways Air Duct Cleaning Can Lower Bills
With professionally cleaned air ducts, you’ll enjoy cleaner, healthier air and lower costs, thanks to:
1. Fewer supplemental units
Does your home or business struggle to keep up with ideal temperatures, forcing you to run fans, window AC units, or personal space heaters? When an HVAC system is functioning at peak capacity and efficiency, and can easily push all of its cool or warm air through ducts, your home will experience more consistent, comfortable and accurate temperatures throughout the entire building. This eliminates the need for costly supplemental units; a single space heater operating for most of the day, for example, could add almost $100 or more to your energy bill depending on electricity costs. An efficient HVAC allows for better temperature control without extra appliances.
2. Lower energy requirements
HVAC systems work by pulling or pushing air to and from the central coil, where it is heated or cooled and then returned to the rooms with vents. Dirty ducts are narrower and make smooth air transfer more difficult, meaning that your HVAC system needs to push or pull harder and run longer to get the air to where it needs to go. This takes more energy, which is reflected in your monthly bills. Cleaning air ducts makes this process more efficient, resulting in lower energy usage.
3. Cleaner coils and filters
For most homes, air filters can go one to three months before needing to be replaced, but if you find that you’re changing them more frequently, or that they are extremely dirty when you do change them, then it may mean air flow is being choked off from the system and more dust is settling and building up on the return ductwork. This poor air flow is also going to allow dust to accumulate on the air conditioning coil and in the housing walls. Not only does all this dust and dirt impact the operation of your system, it can also contain particulate matter that gets recirculated through your home.
Clean air ducts help your coils and filters do their job more effectively and efficiently, and will reduce the need for frequent replacements, saving you money on parts while reducing the load that your HVAC system is under.
4. Reduced maintenance and replacement costs
When an HVAC unit spends months or years fighting against constricted air ducts clogged with debris, it will wear out faster than it might have otherwise. This can lead to unexpected and expensive repairs at the worst time, like an air conditioner that goes out on a July afternoon or a heater that quits in the middle of winter, or the HVAC system will require a complete replacement prematurely. Keeping your ducts clean extends the life of the system, ensuring your home stays comfortable and more money stays in your pocket.
Improve Your Energy Efficiency with Duct Cleaning from SafeAir Duct Solutions
Keeping your home or business’s air ducts clean goes a long way toward improving not only your energy bills, but also the health of the people who live or work there. For more than 20 years, SafeAir Duct Solutions has been helping Oklahomans save money on their energy bills and improve the efficiency of their homes and businesses with commercial and residential air duct cleaning services.
A local, woman-owned company, SafeAir Duct Solutions understands that feeling safe and confident in your HVAC means trusting in the people who service it, which is why our NADCA-certified team of experts is held to the highest standards in cleaning methods and processes. We’re committed to honest, transparent, and exceptional customer service, and we always provide free estimates and upfront pricing so you’ll never see a hidden fee or charge after we leave.
Contact SafeAir Duct Solutions today for more on how our affordable duct cleaning services can help you save money on energy bills and get cleaner air.
