Is Air Duct Cleaning A Waste Of Money?

Properly maintaining your home’s HVAC system is critical in order to ensure that it is up to the task of keeping you and your family comfortable year-round. Yet, while most homeowners know that they need to have their HVAC system serviced at least once a year in order to ensure that it runs efficiently and won’t break down on them when they need it most, many have not considered whether or not they should have their air ducts cleaned. Even worse is the fact that many homeowners choose not to have their air ducts cleaned because there is a misconception that air duct cleaning is a waste of money and it does not need to be part of one’s home maintenance checklist. In this post we hope to provide clarification to this highly searched question, Is air duct cleaning a waste of money?

In reality, the fact is that your home’s air ducts provide an important service by circulating air throughout your home in order to ensure your comfort regardless of the season. However, over time, dust, debris, and even mold can build up in your air vents, which can then be circulated throughout your home when you run your heater or air conditioner, severely impacting the air quality in your home. It is then important that you make having your air ducts cleaned regularly a priority in order to ensure the safety and efficiency of your HVAC system.

If you are like many homeowners who believe that air duct cleaning is a waste of money, keep reading to learn more about the important role air duct cleaning plays in HVAC maintenance.

What is Involved in Air Duct Cleaning?

Oftentimes homeowners think that air duct cleaning is unnecessary as they don’t realize what all it entails. Air duct cleaning goes beyond just cleaning around vents, as a quality cleaning service should include:

• Supply and Return Air Ducts
• Registers
• Heat Exchangers and Cooling Coils

An experienced air duct cleaning service will use specialized equipment in order to ensure that your entire HVAC system is clean, ensuring that your system can run properly and circulate clean air throughout your home.

What Are The Benefits of Air Duct Cleaning?

Air duct cleaning is an important investment as it not only ensures that you and your family breathe clean air, but also that your HVAC system does not have to struggle to keep your home comfortable. If you do not have your air ducts cleaned regularly, a few of the benefits you stand to gain by doing so include:

• Improved Indoor Air Quality
• Reduced Allergy Symptoms
• Improved Airflow
• Less Frequent Repairs
• Energy Savings
• And a Cleaner Living Environment

Even if air quality is not of concern to you, one of the biggest reasons to consider having your air ducts cleaned is to improve the efficiency of your HVAC system. If your air ducts are clogged with debris and your HVAC system does not have sufficient airflow, it will have to work harder to cool/heat your home. This can translate to higher utility bills and more frequent HVAC repairs.

What Happens if You Don’t Have Your Air Ducts Cleaned?

Even knowing the benefits air duct cleaning can provide, homeowners still often neglect to have this service performed as they do not see it as a priority. However, failing to have your air ducts cleaned will not simply cause the air quality in your home to go down slightly, it can actually cause a series of problems throughout your home. Some side-effects of not having your air ducts cleaned frequently enough can include:

• Mold Spore Development
• Fungus Growth
• Musty Smells When You Run Your HVAC System
• Your Home May Require More Frequent Dusting
• Increased Allergy and Asthma Symptoms
• Increased Incidence of Illness
• And Increased Utility Bills (Your HVAC System Will Have to Work Harder to Heat/Cool Your Home)

Failing to have your air ducts cleaned frequently enough can cause a host of problems, particularly if anyone in your family suffers from/is susceptible to respiratory problems.

How Can I Tell If My Air Ducts Need Cleaning?

Considering the important role air duct cleaning plays in ensuring your family’s health, comfort, and safety, you may find yourself wondering how you will know when it is time to have your air ducts cleaned. While it is probably best to assume that your air ducts need cleaning if you haven’t had this service performed before, you should also schedule a cleaning if you notice any of these signs:

• Mold in Your Air Ducts: If you can see mold in or around your air ducts, you should assume that there is likely also mold growing throughout your ducting and HVAC system. In order to ensure your family’s health and safety, you should have the mold removed and your air ducts professionally cleaned.

• You’ve Discovered Pests: If you discover pests like rats or mice inside your home, there is a good chance that they are using your air ducts to get around. Once you have an exterminator to address your pest problem, you will want to have your air ducts cleaned to remove any organic matter these pests may have left behind before they cause germs to spread throughout your home the next time you run your HVAC system.

• You’re Dusting More Than Normal: If you find that you are having to dust your home a lot more than normal to keep things clean, it is likely that buildup in your air ducts is to blame. Having your air ducts cleaned will cut back on how often you have to clean, as your HVAC system won’t be blowing dusty air throughout your home.

How Often Should Air Ducts Be Cleaned?

Of course, if you do not notice any signs indicating that your air ducts need cleaning, this does not necessarily mean that you are off the hook. You should still consider having your air ducts cleaned every 2-3 years in order to ensure that your HVAC system is able to run properly and distribute clean air throughout your home. You may also want to consider more frequent cleanings if you have pets or if anyone in your household has a respiratory condition.

How Much Does it Cost?

Homeowners may forgo having their air ducts cleaned because they believe this service will be very expensive, however, air duct cleaning may be more affordable than you think. While the actual cost to clean your home’s air ducts will depend on several factors including the size of your home and how many vents you have, the average homeowner pays around $378 to have their air ducts cleaned. Considering that having your air ducts cleaned can increase the air quality in your home, reduce the amount of dusting you have to do, and it can lower your utility bills, this makes having your air ducts cleaned a worthwhile investment.

Do not let common misconceptions dissuade you from investing in having your home’s air ducts cleaned. Air duct cleaning is a critical part of HVAC maintenance that ensures your system’s safety and efficiency.

So is air duct cleaning a waste of money? We’re going to say no. With all the benefits that come with clean air ducts, we’d say it’s worth it. Feel free to contact us to learn more about the importance of air duct cleaning as well as to schedule an appointment to have your ducts cleaned.