Indoor air quality is a major concern for many homeowners, and helping people to improve their indoor air quality is one of our major concerns as well. We offer numerous ways to help improve a home’s air, such as installing a dehumidifier or air purifier in Dunedin, FL.
But often the biggest opponent of enjoying fresh, healthy, and humidity-balanced air is damaged ductwork. Leaky ducts are tricky because they hide out of sight, creating problems people may attribute to other sources. In fact, people are often unaware of the many ways their ducts can become damaged. As you’ll find out below, your ducts have several enemies that can harm them and end up affecting your HVAC system and indoor air quality…
Corrosion
Once upon a time, all ductwork was made of sheet metal. This is no longer the case: many ducts are made from flexible plastic and ductboard. But there are still key parts in a ventilation system made from sheet metal, and this metal can corrode and lead to air leaks. In our humid climate, corrosion is often a major problem for metal ducts.
Mold
Here’s another duct trouble that high humidity can make worse. Mold likes to grow in humid, dark areas, and ducts often qualify! If black mold begins to grow inside your ducts, it will become a significant health hazard because of the spread of toxic mold spores. But non-harmful molds will still do damage to duct material and eat through ductboard and plastic. (And they will spread a foul smell through your home.)
Animal infestations
This isn’t a pleasant one to talk about, but it happens. The same way mold likes to hide in dark places, animals can find the close confines of ducts an ideal place to nest. Rats are a big worry, but insects can also cause duct damage.
Movement
Impacts against your house can lead to duct damage. This is most likely to come from construction. The older the ductwork in your house, the more brittle and susceptible to physical shocks it will become.
Poor initial installation
Many original duct installation jobs done during the construction of a home are shoddy. We’ve often seen poor duct layouts that lead to inefficient HVAC performance. But these bad installations can also lead to damage over the long term. For example, a lengthy unsupported stretch of ducts will sag and start to break. Or the ducts have excess air pressure on them because they’re the wrong size.
Blocked room vents
We tell our customers to keep the room vents open around the house and make sure no furniture blocks them. This helps an HVAC system work at its highest efficiency, but it also protects the ductwork. When the vents are blocked, it causes an increase in the air pressure in the ductwork, and this will eventually lead to the ducts “springing” leaks.
If you suspect you’ve got faulty ductwork, you can rely on our team to find out. We can repair and replace the ducts that are giving you trouble.
The A/C Guy of Tampa Bay Inc. serves our Tampa Bay family with integrity and honor. Contact us for indoor air quality services, such as duct repair.