Can Duct Cleaning Reduce Allergies in My Phoenix Home?

A reality of living in the desert is that allergy season never seems to quit. However, have you ever stopped to ask yourself why this is the case? Believe it or not, most allergy sufferers don’t realize the triggers, factors or why they suffer allergies in the first place. The reality is that if you keep the air you breathe inside a home clean; it will significantly reduce the potential of triggering attacks. This is the primary reason why many homeowners ask; can duct cleaning reduce allergies from occurring?

Let’s take a look at the several reasons why taking the proactive step to keep your air ducts clean will significantly reduce the potential of allergy attacks from occurring in the first place.

First – Why Does Air Duct Cleaning Help Allergies?

The American Association of Respiratory Therapists, of which there are over 50,000 members in the United States alone, suggests that the best way for people to reduce the onset of any respiratory illness is to find ways of improving indoor air quality. Since the ductwork is the respiratory system of a home, keeping this unit as clean as possible is naturally the best starting place.

Ducts tend to become dirty. Whether it’s dirt, dust and allergens that seep their way through filters, fittings or leaks in the ducts, or rodents and pests that leave waste materials inside the ducts, the fact remains that there are several potentials triggers inside ducts that will find their way into our lungs. This is the primary reason why removing these triggers from the equation by cleaning your air ducts can reduce allergy attacks from happening.

Second – Does Air Duct Cleaning Reduce Dust?

Have you ever wondered what dust is comprised of? Actually, it’s not very appealing. Dust is made up of human skin, rodent and pest fecal material, small allergens, and several other triggering elements that the Asthma and Allergy Network suggests are the leading triggering factor of ‘common allergies’. By having a professional HVAC company in Phoenix complete air duct cleaning, it removes a lot of the impacted dust that is trapped inside these units. Plus, during the air duct cleaning process, the best companies will also make sure to see if any leaks are present and can often repair them on the spot. If the air duct system is sealed, it will reduce the potential of dust spreading through the house – and thus; will improve the air quality.

Third – How Often Should I Get My Ducts Cleaned?

There is an old expression that applies to this question – different strokes for different folks. If you are an allergy sufferer or somebody that lives with other respiratory illness, such as COPD, Asthma, Cystic Fibrosis or simple allergies, it’s recommended that you should have your air ducts cleaned twice per year.

• First, have your air ducts cleaned before you activate your AC unit in the spring


• Second, have your air ducts cleaned before you turn on the heating system in winter

This will give you the best odds of reducing the trigger factors that cause most allergy attacks and respiratory illness flair ups.

Taking the time to be proactive about indoor air quality is the best way to reduce the chances of having allergy attacks for the simple fact that we spend more time inside our homes than any other individual building or area. Having your air ducts cleaned frequently and changing out indoor air filters every month are the easiest ways to improve your indoor air quality.

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Are you looking to clean out your air ducts to reduce allergies? Call Scottsdale Air, an air duct cleaning company at 480-359-7141 and we can help improve your indoor air quality! 

Read related articles:

• Air Duct Leak Testing & Sealing Benefits In Your Home


• 3 Ways To Improve Poor Indoor Air Quality In The Desert


• Air Conditioning Duct Repair: Signs Your Ducts Need To Be Repaired

Can Duct Cleaning Reduce Allergies in My Phoenix Home?

3 Tips for Detecting Leaks in Ductwork

According to the US Department of Energy, leaking ductwork inside a home or commercial building is the leading cause of air conditioning inefficiency in America. For those that might not be aware of what ductwork actually is, essentially, it’s the veins of your cooling system. It transfers warm air from the building into the cooling system, and then shuttles the recently chilled air back into the home or office building. Although we know that leaking ducts is not a great thing, detecting leaks in ductwork is one of the most difficult things to accomplish.

Here are a few tips to help you find leaks in ductwork and what you can do to:

Tip #1 – How to Find Leaks in Ductwork at Home or in the Office

Contrary to popular belief, finding a leaking duct system can be discovered by home or commercial building owners initially. In fact, finding a big leak is rather simple – as you can literally feel cool air blowing out of the ductwork or in areas that are close to the duct system. However, some smaller leaks in homes are a bit more difficult to find. But there are a few things you can do at home to find them.

• Use the toilet paper method; which involves the use of toilet paper, ribbon or even incense sticks. Basically, what you’ll do is find the exposed ductwork and hold the toilet paper, ribbon or burning incense near the connected joints to see if air is leaking. You’ll notice a leak if the wind appears to swirl inconsistently.


• Lack of cool air. If you’re not as adventurous as some home owners that try the above method, another thing you can do is monitor the problem is check out the actual temperature inside your home. If your thermostat is set to 68 degrees and it seems to take forever for your indoor air temperature to cool to that level; or if your AC system continually runs; it can be leaking ductwork.


• Look at your energy bills. Since the root issue of leaking ducts is that cool air escapes during the summer and warm air escapes in winter when your heating unit is operational, this will impact your energy bill. If your bills are higher than usual, the culprit could be leaking ducts.

Tip #2 – Understand How Does Duct Leakage Happen so You Can Prevent it in the Future

If you’ve found a leaking ductwork system, and the ductwork repair company has made the repairs, you probably want to prevent it from happening again. Duct leakage is typically caused by two primary issues:

• Small holes that appear inside the actual ducts due to several factors


• Separation of the ducts from joints where they are connected together.

For the most part, ductwork leaks that occur in residential buildings come from joints where two pieces of ductwork are connected together via screw attachments. This can happen for several reasons such as:

• When air circulates it is very dense and can cause the ducts to ‘shake loose’.


• Some ducts are exposed to wind or other elements that enter roof areas and walls inside a home. This wind, combined with dirt, dust and debris can cause leaks.


• Rodents that nest inside your walls and attics can get inside ductwork and literally chew their way through the ductwork. Their fecal material and urine can also cause duct leaks.

If you have the ductwork sealed by a professional company in Scottsdale, they will recommend fixing the root cause of the leaking ducts; so that it hopefully doesn’t happen again.

Tip #3 – Work With Professionals That Specialize in Sealing Ductwork Leaks

There are several good companies that have the right tools, equipment and experience to fix AC issues. However, repairing and sealing ductwork is a specialty that requires the fine touch of an expert. The best thing you can do is work with a duct sealing company in Scottsdale that has experience fixing ductwork in homes or commercial buildings similar to yours. These contractors understand the ins and outs of sealing ductwork leaks and will take proactive measures to ensure the issue doesn’t happen again soon – saving you money and stress in the short and long term.

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Are you losing precious cool air from leaking air ducts? Call us at 480-359-7141 and we can help locate and seal the leak so that you can rest easy knowing your not losing any more air in your walls! 

Read related articles:

• Air Duct Leak Testing & Sealing Benefits In Your Home


• Most Efficient Air Conditioning Duct Repair in Scottsdale


• Air Conditioning Duct Repair: Signs Your Ducts Need To Be Repaired

3 Tips for Detecting Leaks in Ductwork

Does a Haboob Dust Storm Affect My Air Conditioning?

Tis the season for the dreaded haboob dust storms for those of us that live in the Scottsdale area. Along with the frustration that comes with having to sweep up all that dust and dirt around the home, also comes the common fact homeowners often ask; can a haboob dust storm affect my air conditioning system in a negative way? There are a few reasons why this happens and a few items you can do to reduce the chances of having AC issues after or during haboob season.

First – Why Does My Air Conditioner Run Slower After a Haboob?

This is best answered in a quick explanation on how an AC unit works. Any cooling unit is essentially a circulating system that needs to breathe efficiently in order to run correctly. When dust, dirt or anything else blocks the AC unit natural ability to breathe – it simply can’t function properly. The Phoenix summer storms tend to cause copious amounts dust, dirt (and sometimes mud) to embed itself on the outer filters of the AC unit. Simply put, this blocks the units ability to breathe. It can also block the condenser coils and lead to frozen pipes or water building up – that can eventually cost a pretty penny to repair.

Solution: The solution to this problem is to turn off your AC system during a haboob storm. Once the storm has passed, take a few moments to clear off any dirt or debris that has surrounded or embedded itself onto your cooling unit – then turn it back on.

Second – Are Dirty AC Unit Coils the Only Negative Affect On My Unit?

The quick answer here is a simple – no. Although the haboob dust storm is the quickest way to cause dirty AC unit coils; the fact is that it’s not the only component affected. A haboob can cause more dust and dirt to enter the home – which will eventually find itself trapped inside your indoor filters. Dirty filters can cause tons of problems for AC units as well during the summer.

Solution: Make sure to replace your indoor filters every month, but especially right after a haboob.

Third – How Can I Keep My Air Conditioning Unit Unaffected During a Haboob?

Many homeowners in Arizona are considering the addition of AC covers or shelters as a proactive and preventative measure to reduce the onset of dirt and debris clogging up their units. This is a very good way to protect your AC unit from intense summer heat as well – which can extend equipment life significantly. These actions can reduce the possibility of needing an air conditioning repair in Scottsdale AZ.

The best advice we can give to protect your AC system during a haboob is to simply shut it down for the time period – and take the time to clean it up after so that the dirt and grime deposited on the system doesn’t become trapped inside your cooling system.

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Are you looking to have your AC serviced after a Phoenix haboob? Scottsdale Air Heating & Cooling has been helping Arizona residents maintain a comfortable indoor environment since 1947! Call 480-359-7141 today for all of your A/C and Heating needs!  

Read related articles:

• Top 3 Reasons Why Air Conditioner Maintenance Is Important


• Need A Fast AC Fix? 3 Most Important Tips


• Is Your Home AC Blowing Hot Air? 3 Simple “Checks” Before You Call

 

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