Family Owned & Operated

Making Homes & Businesses more comfortable since 1977

WHY YOU SHOULD (OR SHOULD NOT)  HAVE YOUR DUCTS CLEANED?

ANSWER(S): In most cases ducts should not be cleaned - dirty ductwork is a symptom, not a cause.  The cause is usually due to filters not fitting properly, filters not changed often enough, using  a low end filter that doesn't filter well, or having ducts that are not sealed well and bringing in dust from the outside and attic.  In addition, most duct work installed is either flexible or fiberglass lined duct board and running a mechanical device through the ducts will probably do more harm by destroying the lining.  A-Plus Air Conditioning has been involved in the duct cleaning business for over 10 years and is one of the few air conditioning companies that has ever done so.  After many years of doing so, we have come to the conclusion that the only ductwork that can be "safely" cleaned is metal duct.  And, at that, if you seal the ducts and use better filters, even then it is usually not necessary.  However, we do recommend "deodorizing" or "sanitizing" the ducts by fogging them with a solution that will kill most of the "harmful" particles that still remain in the ducts.

Allergy FACTS (for solutions - see below)

1) 50% of all illnesses are either caused or aggravated by polluted indoor air (Amer. College of Allergists)

2) One out of six people who suffer from allergies do so because of the direct relationship to the fungi and bacteria in the air duct systems. (Total Health & Better Health Magazines)

3) Children are more likely than adults to be affected by polluted air - they breathe faster, inhale more air per unit of body weight, and are closer to the ground where concentrations are higher. (Dept. of Consumer Affairs)

4) The elderly, asthmatics, people with breathing problems, allergies, and lung diseases are also more likely to be sensitive to pollutants. (Dept. of Consumer Affairs)

Allergy Solutions

1) Seal duct work to reduce outside contaminants from entering your building..

2) Use U.V. (ultra violet)  lights to reduce mold spores in the air if you have mold allergies.  Be sure to investigate the strength of the u.v. bulb.  Some devices are nothing more than a "bright light" and do very little.

3) Use high efficiency filtration to better filter the air.  The paper filters most of us are familiar with, that costs about $1 at the hardware store, only filters about 7% of the particles in the air.  We recommend, even for just normal use, using a low or middle grade 1" pleated filter.  If you have dust allergies, we suggest moving up to 4" pleated filters or a filter that removes more of the smaller particles, VOC's, pollens and viruses from the air.

4) Get your ducts "deodorized" and "sanitized".  Fogging the ducts, to kill the particles, is much safer and just as effective after the ducts have been sealed and better filtration is in place. 

5) Clean the evaporator coil and blower compartment when the ducts are "fogged".  This completes the "cleaning and killing" process of the entire air distribution system.