Air ducts in your houses must be kept clean for the air inside the place to be clean, healthy, and energy efficient. But the process of air duct cleaning is a time-consuming one and needs detailed planning. One of the things you need to plan while cleaning the air ducts is the best time of year to clean air ducts.
There are not one, but two seasons when you can clean your air ducts, spring, and fall. If you decide to clean the air ducts during spring, it will allow you to clean up all the dirt, dust, pet hair, and dander accumulated throughout the winter. On the other hand, cleaning the ducts in the fall ensures the upcoming winter will be a comfortable one.
Let’s take a detailed look at when you have to clean your air ducts.
When is the best time to clean air ducts?
With time, air ducts keep accumulating dirt, dust, pet hair, debris, mold, and even pests such as rodents and insects. These things harm the inhabitants in a couple of ways. First, they cause the air that is circulated throughout the house to become dirty and unhealthy. Also, these block the air ducts and cause the HVAC system to overwork and cost the owners more money.
This is why cleaning air ducts is very important. But this process brings about its own set of problems, one of which is deciding the best time to get ducts cleaned. Because you have to think about the logistics and the reason behind cleaning your air ducts at particular seasons. We, at 832 Service, suggest you either clean your air ducts in spring, or you do that in early fall.
There are very good arguments in favor of both these seasons, and let’s take a look at them.
When to do duct cleaning: Spring
When you ask professionals, “when should I clean my air ducts?”, the chances are that at least 50% of the time they will suggest that you do it during spring, or late spring to be more specific. But why is that? Here are a few reasons:
1. Getting rid of the dust
During winter, the house, as well as the air ducts in it, become increasingly dustier for a few reasons. First, during winter, the air is much dryer than in any other season. The lack of water vapor in the air causes the dirt and dust particles to move around more freely, and they enter your house easily through the windows and the doors.
Second, during winter, people spend a lot more time at home than during other seasons. This causes them to stir up a lot of dirt as well as bring a lot of them inside the home as the dirt clings to their clothes. All of this dirt gets sucked up by the air ducts, which causes dust and dirt buildup in them.
Third, if you have pets, then they will shed their winter coats during spring. These hairs and dander get deposited in the air ducts, which can be a nuisance. If you clean the air ducts in spring, you can get rid of all the built-up dust, pet hair, dander, and dirt from the air ducts, which can help keep your house and the furniture inside it much cleaner than before.
2. To remain healthy
The dirt, dust, and pet hair deposited inside the air ducts not only make the house dirty, but they have another, more serious implication as well. These things, along with the pollen that gets released into the air during spring, can cause a lot of health problems for the inhabitants, such as asthma and allergies.
Cleaning air ducts in late spring not only gets rid of the dust, dirt, and pet hair that have been collected by the air ducts throughout the winter, but it also gets rid of pollens. As a result, you as well as your family members can rest easy with a reduced risk of allergies and other respiratory issues during spring.
Learn Also How to prepare for Air duct Cleaning.
3. Removing pests
During the winter months, you use your HVAC systems to warm the air inside the house. This causes warm air to flow through the air ducts. As animals and insects are very good at detecting the difference in temperatures, some of them try to get away from the cold weather outside and get inside your air ducts.
Now, this causes a couple of problems. First, once these insects and pests get in, they don’t leave. These animals keep damaging the air ducts and costing you a lot of money due to the resulting inefficiency of the HVAC systems. Also, these animals excrete inside the ducts and even die there, causing the house to stink of dead carcasses and excretion.
Cleaning air ducts during spring makes sure you have gotten rid of every insect and animal living inside your air ducts during winter as well as cleaning up their mess. This not only helps you keep the integrity of the air ducts and HVAC systems intact but also makes sure your house does not stink.
When should you get your air ducts cleaned: Fall
Other than spring, there is another season that is suggested by professionals like us, at 832 Service, which is fall. There are plenty of reasons why you might consider cleaning your air ducts during fall, rather than in spring. Here are some of them:
1. To get rid of mold
When the temperature starts to drop as fall approaches, the low temperature causes mold to grow in your air ducts. As mold proliferates, it can take over the entire air duct system in your house, and cause serious health issues. Some molds can even cause fatal issues for people who have weaker immune systems.
If you clean your air ducts during the early fall, it prevents mold to grow, or even if they have started growing, their proliferation can be stopped. This makes sure you, as well as the other inhabitants of the house, remain healthy throughout the winter.
2. To increase the efficiency of the HVAC systems
During winter, you need to use your HVAC systems for a long time. Because of this, you need the systems to be at the top of their performance, so that you don’t have to pay way over your head. If there is dirt, dust, mold, or other blockages inside the air ducts, the HVAC systems will not perform at their fullest, and hence will end up consuming a lot of power.
This causes the systems to be energy inefficient, and you will have to spend a lot of money on energy bills. If you clean the air ducts before winter arrives, you will make sure that you can spend quality time inside your house in winter without having to think about spending a boatload of money.
Know How long does it take to clean Air Duct?
Final Words
The best time of the year to clean air ducts is when the dirt level in the air is the lowest. Since winter has the highest amount of dust in the air, cleaning air ducts just before or right after winter is the best idea. We provide top-quality air duct cleaning services, which you can easily book by giving us a call today!
FAQ
1. How often should furnace ducts be cleaned?
Furnace ducts, also known as air ducts, need to be cleaned every 2-3 years. But this timeframe can change depending on a lot of factors. For example, if you live in an area that is full of dirt and dust, you will need to clean your air ducts more often.
2. How do I know if my air ducts were cleaned properly?
It is very easy to see if your air ducts have been cleaned properly. Once the professionals have done their cleaning, you can shine a flashlight inside the ducts to see if you can see any specks of dirt, dust, or other particles. If you don’t see any, that means the ducts have been cleaned properly.
3. Can I clean ducts myself?
Yes, you can technically clean your air ducts yourself, but it is not recommended. Because air duct cleaning is a time-consuming procedure, and it takes a lot of experience to do it. If you follow the DIY method, you will run the risk of not cleaning the entire system or damaging it.