Often overlooked, inspection of your ducts for rips and tears is critical.
Another component of the home that is often overlooked is the ductwork that carries the warm and cool air from your heating and cooling equipment to the various rooms in your home.
If you have a forced air furnace or central air conditioner, you’ll have ductwork that carries the warm and cool air your equipment creates to different rooms in the house. Ducts are typically sheet metal or “flexible”.
If you have flexible ducts and they are over 10 to 15 years old, they probably need to be replaced. Older flexible ducts often have very poor insulation,may have asbestos as the insulation material, and they likely have rips and tears. In addition, many contractors do not properly seal the duct connections when they’re installed which leads to the air you’re paying to create to be dissipated in the attic, basement, and walls. This is not what you want.
If you are in the process of having your flexible ducts replaced, you want to look for the following qualities from the contractor:
- R-8 insulation is best; go no lower than R-6.
- Ensure there is a 3-step, UL 181 approved duct sealing process
- Anti-microbial lining ensures contaminants don’t adhere to the duct lining
- Insist upon dense weave/heat resistant jackets
- Ask about balancing dampers if you have rooms that are far apart
Ductwork must be well-sealed, insulated, and balanced to ensure your home’s heating and cooling systems work as efficiently as possible.
Most homes have leaky ductwork and insufficient air flow, which results in an uncomfortable living environment — regardless of the thermostat setting.
A duct system that is properly sealed can make your home more comfortable, energy efficient, and deliver cleaner air.
Replacing or making improvements to your duct system can:
Improve Comfort
Sealing and insulating ducts can help with common comfort problems, such as rooms that are too hot in the summer or too cold in the winter.
Enhance Indoor Air Quality
Fumes from household and garden chemicals, insulation particles, and dust can enter your duct system, aggravating asthma and allergy problems. Sealing ducts can help improve indoor air quality by reducing the risk of pollutants entering ducts and circulating through your home.
Promote Safety
During normal operation, gas appliances such as water heaters, clothes dryers,and furnaces release combustion gases (like carbon monoxide) through their venting systems. Leaky ductwork in your heating and cooling system may cause “back-drafting,” where these gases are drawn back into the living space, rather than expelled to the outdoors. Sealing leaks can reduce this risk.
Save Money
Leaky ducts can reduce heating and cooling system efficiency by as much as 20 percent. Sealing and insulating ducts increases efficiency, lowers your energy bills, and can often pay for itself in energy savings. Plus, if you’re planning to install new heating and cooling equipment, a well-designed and sealed duct system may allow you to downsize to a smaller, less costly heating and cooling system that will provide better dehumidification.
GreenHomes America technicians are experts in sealing your home’s ducts to optimize air flow. They also insulate ductwork in attics and crawlspaces to provide maximum comfort.