The importance of air duct cleaning cannot be ignored when it comes to the health of a home. Air duct cleaning promotes healthy homes and office spaces. Just like the human body has functions of different organs, a building also has them. The cooling and heating systems of a building are the lungs as they take the air inside and exhale via an air vent. If the systems are working in good condition, all indoor air pollution can be cleaned thoroughly. However, it should be taken care that the ducts are regularly cleaned because if they are unclean then there can be health complications.
In America, October is dedicated as the month of Indoor Air Quality of an Indoor space. Here, residents are educated about the significance of indoor air quality. The amount of time spent indoors is much more on an average day, be it at home, office or in a vehicle. It has also been seen that approximately 90 percent of the time is spent indoors, hence the air quality and ventilation has to be the best. It is of sheer importance to take care of the air quality in the interiors by frequent air duct cleaning. What are the best possible ways to do so? If there is something, that will be discussed at length here.
Indoor Air Quality – Home and Residential Spaces
Nowadays, architecture has changed when it comes to home spaces as they are constructed to be more airtight. This is done to improve energy efficiency and decrease interior air leak. It has been seen that fresh airflow to the interior space decreases and is limited due to this. The NADCA or National Air Duct Cleaners Association has organized an initiative called Breathing Clean. This is to educate the homeowners and residents on how to improve the indoor air quality and their benefits. The importance and sustenance of indoor air quality in interior spaces are also explained.
According to Breathing Clean, most of the air pollutants that are generated inside a home are due to the regular activities. These activities include using chemicals that come from hairspray, cooking oils, allergens like dust, dirt and pet hair from the furs. Because of the confined interior spaces, these components are unable to leave and are present in the air inside. They find ways to enter the air ducts of cooling and heating systems and they get re-circulated and spread out. This promotes health complications as they trigger the respiratory system of individuals.
Indoor Air Quality – Work and Commercial Spaces
Just like indoor air quality of homes cannot be ignored, the same is the case with office spaces and commercial areas. It is extremely important to pay attention to such things that are responsible for the good health of individuals as well as building. They are not only linked to the health but also productivity and comfort of the space in concern. Many industries have reported of the sick building syndrome, where the respiratory organ is triggered due to the extreme dust and poor ventilation. The health issues that have been noticed are breathing difficulties, nausea, headaches, dry and itchy skin and eyes, and many other problems.
The main reason for these conditions is the poor ventilation conditions because, in olden times, energy conservation was given a priority over the ventilation. Poor HVAC or Heating Ventilation and air-conditioning system is also a major reason behind low-quality indoor air.
What are the symptoms of Indoor Air Pollution?
The common symptoms of poor quality indoor air which leads to indoor air pollution are –
- Headaches
- Irritation of eyes and nose
- Nausea
- Fatigue
- Throat infection
- Allergic reactions
- Breathing difficulties
The major factors that contribute to poor indoor air quality are –
- Pet hairs
- Mold
- Dirt and dust that come from outside and gets settled inside
- Volatile organic compounds present in the air
- Chemicals present on cosmetics
Steps that can be taken to get better indoor air quality extensively need professional care and maintenance. Professional air duct cleaning services are available and the experts are trained and the best in the industry. It is recommended that a professional air duct cleaning is done once every 3 to 5 years. Furthermore, it also depends on the condition of the air indoors, which might or might not be severe. It has not been scientifically proven that how vent cleaning benefits but definitely the performance gets better.
The indoor environment should be smoke-free as it is very detrimental to the health of an individual when cigarette smoke is inhaled. This not only is bad for an adult’s health but worse for a child’s health. The smoke from cigarettes consists of 4000 plus bad chemicals and passive smoking is also bad. This not only increases the risk of cancer but also asthma and fatal illnesses as well. If the HVAC system is poor then these chemicals get trapped inside and re-circulate at least 5 to 6 times on a daily basis.
Steps to be taken to diminish the pollution of indoor air –
- Inspection of mold
Mold inspection is the foremost important step to cleanse indoor air quality. Mold is a kind of fungi that grows in moist and damp surfaces. They are typically harmless but lead to breathing problems and difficulties. This is due to their ease of mixing into the air which makes it difficult to breathe in. The amount of mold development is directly related to the difficulty of breathing. They trigger extreme health complications and to avoid that it is recommended that cleaning should be done quarterly.
- Cleaning of air ducts
As per NADCA, air duct cleaning and coil cleaning should be done correctly and at regular intervals. This can only be done once an expert evaluates the site that needs cleaning. Getting a professional air duct cleaning reduces the indoor air pollution symptoms and increases energy conservation. Once a year, it is important to get the ducts inspected as well as cleaned. Always keep in mind to look for a company that is NADCA certified. This is because a NADCA certificate indicates that the service provider has the highest industry standards.
There is no one who would not know the importance of best quality indoor air quality as most of the time is spent here. Additionally, one must also know the steps that are necessary to take to curb the bad effects of poor quality of indoor air.
How to clean air ducts and vents –
The only way to ensure that your indoor air is clean is to clean ducts and vents. The air ducts consume all the dirt, dust, millions of dust particles, spider webs, hair, and many other allergens. Cleaning of air ducts and vents at home not only saves a lot of money but also keeps the cooling and heating systems working perfectly. To know how to clean them, keep reading the article. There are a few basic items that are required for cleaning air vents and ducts at home and they are –
- Brush
- Broom
- Vacuum cleaner
- Screwdriver
- Mask
- Gloves
- Soap and water
Steps to follow –
- Wear the mask on your face to cover the nose and exposed skin part and also the gloves on your hands.
- The connected power line has to be disconnected that is connected to the cooling and heating systems.
- The covers of the air vents and ducts have to be unscrewed from the fixing surface with the help of a screwdriver. Clean the grates properly with the brush as they can be grimy due to constant deposit of dust and dirt. You can finish off by cleaning with soap and water to make it absolutely dirt free.
- Let the ducts dry and then vacuum it and for this, you can also rent a high-power vacuum cleaner if you do not have one. Usual house vacuum cleaners are not as powerful as it is needed for this purpose. A heavy-duty vacuum will ensure that all the nooks and crevices are thoroughly cleaned and free from all debris.
- Lookout for mildew that gets deposited with time which might be stubborn than you can imagine.
- Use a broom to clean the openings in the ceiling as the vacuum will not be required here. You can think of hiring professional duct and vent cleaning services in case the deposit of dust and molds are too extreme.
Any particle irrespective of its state lingers in the air and settles down in the ducts and vents of any heating or cooling system of an interior. So each time you run the HVAC system of the residence, the debris gets circulated inside the system. This circulation further enables these dust particles to come through the vent and re-circulate in the entire house. In any professional air duct and vent cleaning service, they use products and instruments that are commercial grade. This is because the high-end equipment can remove even the deposits of the pollutants and contaminants from the duct.
As a result, the air that is circulated through the HVAC system is excellent and safe – devoid of all pollutants. In the process, the contaminants are sucked out of the vents. Along with this, the filtration system further helps in giving out clean air into the interior space. Once the cleaning is complete, all the holes that are the access points are closed. Resealing of the access holes are important as this ascertains that the HVAC system has returned to a refreshed and better condition. Residential air duct cleaning is of utmost importance as the health of the residents and the space is entirely dependent on that.
The HVAC duct and vent cleaning services are extremely professional and have the right amount of experience to complete the work. This includes the right set of equipment, tools, and resources where HEPA is used. HEPA, also known as High-Efficiency Particulate Air vacuuming devices are utilized to eradicate the contaminants from the interiors of residential space. The HVAC system of a home ensures that the air that is circulated in each and every room is comfortable. The interior space’s comfort is the priority which gets better only with good quality indoor air irrespective of the season.
The air that circulates from the air ducts and vents keep doing this numerous times a day. Here it is obvious that the same air keeps cycling in and out of the duct that fills the indoor environment. The quality of this air is the most important because it is the same air that you keep breathing with your family. Hence it is a necessity to keep the air clean and healthy for the sake of you and your loved one’s health. Cleaning of the air ducts and vents simply means the removal of pollutants and dust particles that lingers within ductwork.
The procedure also includes the return and supply of air through regulators and diffusers in ductwork. The system is constructed in such a manner that there is even distribution of clean and healthy air in all the rooms. The high-speed vacuum cleaners further ascertain the fact that all the debris and contaminants are whisked away. It further prevents the recirculation of the polluted air into your residential space. There are many benefits of getting professional air ducts and vents cleaning and they are –
- A cleaner and a healthier interior living atmosphere are created.
- The number of allergens, pollutants, and contaminants is heavily reduced.
- Air quality is improved which makes it easier to breathe as well.
- All the unpleasant and bad smell and odor from an interior is removed.
- The airflow efficiency also increases as the ducts work smoothly after every professional service.
You will understand that your HVAC system needs cleaning when the filters have not been changed for months. Also, look out for visible dust that gets settled on the body and duct cover. Furthermore, it is important that there is no mold in and around the duct, in case you notice anything, do not wait and get it cleaned.
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