Learning how to clean your air ducts on your own can save you a lot of money since professional duct cleaners can charge a lot for it. It is not a common house chore as there is no need to do this as often, but it’s still a good skill to be familiar with.
Why should you be cleaning your air ducts?
There are many reasons to clean the air ducts in your house. If the air ducts stay clean, the heating system in your home would probably last longer since there are less dust and dirt to wear out its components. Your home will also be dust-free longer and the air inside will be much cleaner. For those with allergies, this is a big win.
You probably don’t have a high-powered vacuum system with hundred feet hoses, mostly because there’s no need to spend money on a thing that you will be used only once or twice a year. So follow this quick guide on how to clean your air ducts yourself. There are many different air duct designs, all with different angles and corners. This means there will be parts you probably won’t be able to reach, so keep in mind that you won’t do as good a job as a professional normally would. If you are thinking about skipping all the hassle and want to get the ducts in your house clean, don’t think twice and hire a professional such as Better Air.
Things you would need to clean your air ducts
- Quality brush. You would need a strong brush with stiff hair for scrubbing.
- A decent consumer vacuum with the necessary attachments would probably do the job.
- To reach into the air ducts you will need to unscrew the grates first, so get a bunch of screwdrivers and see which one would fit.
- Towels or paper towels. You will use this to cover up all the other air duct grates while you are cleaning the duct. If you don’t do this, dust will start flying into all the other rooms.
Air duct cleaning
- Cover the air duct grates with the before mentioned paper towels to avoid bringing dust into every room
- Make sure you have your fan on while cleaning to keep the dust moving through the duct instead of stacking in one place.
- You can start loosening the dust in the ducts by lightly tapping on the duct with the brush. This will break up any dust that has accumulated in one spot.
- Use the vacuum to start cleaning up any dust that’s moving through the ducts and the spots where it’s been gathering.
- Make sure to vacuum and then clean all the grates in your home, because they certainly have also been clogged with some dust.
- Turn off the power to the blower unit and clean the dust on and around the fan
- Finally, change the furnace filter since this will considerably reduce your dust build up in your ducts and in your home
Well, that’s about it, if you follow through this quick guide, then you have managed to clean your air ducts and have brought cleaner in your home.
