Air Duct Cleaning

[JL_LI]

Clean your filters regularly and replace them when they don’t come clean. You don’t need help for that unless you have high ceilings.

 

[warrent]

I know this thread was revived because of spam but here's a story on filters:

https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/portable-air-purifier-tests-marketplace-1.5900782

 

[imwjl]

My wife wants this controversial procedure done as well as better duct circulation in the house. I'd like the latter but earlier sided with the furnace installer about the challenges when your furnace isn't in center of the basement.

Time for some more learning.

 

[Peegoo]

If you want relief and reduced allergy symptoms, the best thing to do is remove all carpeting and go to hard floors.

Duct cleaning is a waste of money. BUT you can do one thing that is beneficial if you have floor-mounted registers: pull the grates off and peek down in there with a light and a mirror. Many builders require all contractors to "broom clean" the area before they leave, and many contractors take the lazy route and sweep sawdust and debris into those open ducts. If you see debris in there, poke a Shop Vac hose in there and suck it all out.

 

[getbent]

I have been using a merv 17 filter and it has stopped any sneezing in our house during winter.

like everyone else said, the duct cleaning thing is a scam.

 

[Greg70]

I bought my house 7 years ago and it came with a UV sterilizer built into the furnace air return. The bulbs were long burned out and I didn't feel it was necessary. When that new disease that we can't talk about came around, I got new lamps for it and put it back into service. UV kills all sorts of stuff, including the new disease. It might also be a good option for allergies because it kills anything floating around in the airstream.

Years ago I had a professional cleaning service come in and sanitize a rooftop unit and ductwork at the plant that I worked at. One of our employees was having allergy issues and was complaining that it was an unsafe work environment. They did the usual duct cleaning but the also cleaned out the entire rooftop unit. Sometimes the condensate pans can get moldy if they don't drain real well. She seemed to do better afterwards but it may have been a placebo effect.

 

[Vibroluxer]

I'm the odd man out. Our youngest has eczema, psoriasis, and terrible allergies.
Now our house was built in 1941 on the heights above a valley. In the valley is a steel mill and right down the way is a coal fired electric plant so over the years a lot of dust settled over the area and ultimately in the vents.

We got ours cleaned once and they did a bang up job. They drilled 1 inch holes for the equipment and they removed a ton of stuff.

I think it helped my boy.

 

[telestratosonic]

I have terrible winter allergies and I'm thinking about getting my air ducts cleaned. I've read different reports and some say it works for allergies and some say it makes them worse by stirring up all the dust.
Plus the price quotes I've gotten go between 400 and 800. Anyone have experience in this area?

Don't have the link but CBC's Marketplace up here in Canada just ran an exposé on the duct cleaning scams out there.

 

[mad dog]

My wife thought it was a good idea. Til they did damage to the plaster surrounding several air ducts. We have a natural gas furnace, forced air, with two air filters. Runs rather clean. Where is all this alleged bad stuff supposed to come from? I call scam.

 

[stxrus]

Duct cleaning is pretty useless, IMO. An ion filter/generator, a UV filter, and regular filter replacement are your best bet.…both in cost and effectiveness

 

[boxocrap]

I have terrible winter allergies and I'm thinking about getting my air ducts cleaned. I've read different reports and some say it works for allergies and some say it makes them worse by stirring up all the dust.
Plus the price quotes I've gotten go between 400 and 800. Anyone have experience in this area?

ya i have a little experience..best to get them cleaned and then...use j clothes or equiv..and cover you ducts with them..they will trap a lot of that stuff..thats what we use here and it has worked for us

 

[Fretting out]

Ah there’s a good amount of flow through those mastards, how much stuff could really be clogged up in there?

And if it’s that caked on it’s probably gonna take more than what they do to get rid of it

I bet they keep a real dusty filter of some sort that they show afterwards to make you feel like they did a lot when it probably does very little

Maybe I’ll look into it and have my mind changed but I don’t know

Edit: I’m a moron, I just realized this is one of those zombie threads!

 

[stratisfied]

There are a lot of bad companies doing this type of work. I found a good one through referrals from neighbors. The difference has been like night and day. I can go weeks without dusting instead of days. I had chronic sinusitis one episode after another. I have gone 6 months with no symptoms since the cleaning.

Edit: Yikes, I just got sucked in with the Zombies.