With a ‘new normal’ gradually starting to appear all over the world, indoor air health is becoming increasingly important. Stores and offices are opening after being locked down (and hence unventilated) for weeks on end, while homes have been packed day and night with family members sheltering in place. This means it’s time to think about duct cleaning in Jacksonville, FL. Why? Because the air inside our homes and offices may be up to five times more polluted than the outdoors.
In the course of everyday living, we all know that dirt and grime builds up in our homes and offices. But the quantity is a real shocker: anywhere up to forty pounds of dust can be drifting through the air at any given time, with some visibly settling on floors and furnishings and the rest recirculating through your air duct system, where much of it gets trapped. Quite obviously, this affects both air quality and airflows, with one being bad for your health (causing respiratory problems) and the other wrecking your budget (through soaring utility bills).
Filters certainly help, particularly if you change them every month. But they are only a small part of your AC system. Look at how dirty a filter gets in just a few weeks – and imagine all that grime and dirt lining every duct in your house or office, building up steadily, month after month. Packed with allergy-triggering dander and pollen, debris-lined ducts are perfect breeding grounds for mold, germs, bacteria, viruses and other pathogens that aggravate chronic conditions and cause repeat infections. And nobody wants to live or work in unhealthy surroundings – especially when it actually costs more each month!
Call in the professionals
Now is the time to call in the experts. Trying to clean your ducts yourself is not only dangerous in terms of your health (and extremely messy too), it’s also risky for your very expensive HVAC system. Indeed, there’s a good chance that lower utility bills will offset the cleaning fee in just a few months, while also extending the working life of your equipment, performing smoothly at its peak, without strain.
In general, air ducts should be cleaned any time between three and five years, depending on how long it takes for dirt to build up along them. However, there are many other factors that can affect this, including the location and at the age of a building. People who smoke indoors are another source of air pollutants, together with pets (especially long-haired breeds) shedding hair and dander that gets sucked into your cooling system. People with allergies, asthma or respiratory conditions are particularly susceptible to pathogens and allergens floating invisibly in the air. Other factors may include water contamination and mold. An added benefit: professional duct cleaning not only removes dirt, it also eliminates unpleasant odors, including tobacco, pet smells, mold, paint fumes and cleaning agents.
There are two other occasions when we recommend air duct cleaning in Jacksonville, FL: after renovating or remodeling a home or an office, and before moving into new premises. This ensures that you get off to a healthy start in a clean new environment, with your AC system at peak performance while utility bills stay low.
Warning signs
As a homeowner or office manager, you may be wondering how you can tell when it’s time to clean your air ducts. This obviously varies widely, depending on systems and where they are installed, building use, occupancy rates, location and climate. Good indicators that your air ducts need specialized care include visible clumps of dust and debris on and behind grills and registers, with more dust settling on surfaces. Allergy symptoms may flare up, including red, itchy eyes, sneezing and coughing, caused by airborne allergens. Worse still, airborne bio-contamination may trigger ailments such as hypersensitivity pneumonitis, allergic rhinitis, and asthma. And of course, in a post COVID-19 world, bacteria and viruses are a constant source of concern.
Clean air ducts ensure healthier living in pristine areas, with happier families and more productive employees. Having your ducts cleaned professionally is the smart option for protecting families and workers from harmful airborne agents, while lowering your monthly expenses and extending the working life of your equipment.
Two decades of expertise
Set up in March 1999 as a division specializing in indoor air quality, all our air duct cleaning specialists are backed by twenty years of experience in providing healthier, more comfortable homes and offices with lower upkeep costs. Equipped with special tools and well-honed techniques, our well-trained teams can clean the ductwork in an average family home in just a couple of hours, while larger or older houses and homes with pets perhaps needing half a day. That’s a lot faster (and cleaner!) than the average homeowner could handle this messy job, using regular household appliances.
If you’d like more detailed information or a quote on duct cleaning in Jacksonville, FL, contact one of our technical advisors to learn how professional AC duct cleaning can save you money, time and effort, making life better right around the clock.
