Keeping your home clean is one thing, but have you thought about the hidden dust in your home? The vents and air ducts in your home can harbor a lot of debris, and this debris can be circulated through your home if you aren’t keeping things cleaned. Cates Heating and Cooling has a few tips for keeping your vents clean to prevent air pollution in your house.
How to Clean Air Vents
Cleaning air vents is fairly easy. You’ll need a vacuum, screwdriver, broom, and cleaning brush to clean the vents. Here are the steps you should take to clean your air vents:
- Turn off the power to your HVAC system.
- Unscrew and remove the air duct covers. Using the cleaning brush, remove all the dust and grime. If the covers are really dirty, you might need to use soap and water, too.
- Use your vacuum to clean as much of the air vent as possible. You might need to rent a heavy-duty vacuum because a household vacuum won’t be strong enough to really get a deep clean in the vents.
- Use the vacuum to clean the grills on the ceiling. Dust on these will likely fall, so be sure to protect your eyes and face during the process, especially if you have allergies or asthma.
- Put all covers back and turn the power to your HVAC unit back on.
Air vents can be cleaned as often as you would like. Many homeowners like to clean air vents every four to six months. It is also a good idea to make sure your air filter is clean. If your air filter is full of dust, it is probably a good time to change it out with a new one, which will help prevent dust from immediately refilling the ducts and vents.
How to Clean Air Ducts
Cleaning air ducts is a bit more challenging than the vents. Unfortunately, you won’t be able to do a deep clean like a professional service would. We recommend a deep clean once or twice a year depending on whether or not anyone in your family is suffering from allergies or asthma. Deep cleans performed by an HVAC company will include the use of a vacuum that removes everything from deep inside your ductwork to get a more thorough clean. We don’t really recommend that you attempt to clean the air ducts yourself.
Why Clean Vents and Ducts?
Air vents and ducts are often not thought of as culprits for dirt and allergens, but they can cause a lot of problems in your home. You should keep your vents and ducts clean to prevent dust, debris, and any allergens out of the air in your home. Cleaning air ducts can help prevent breathing and lung problems.
When you keep your ducts clean, you are also less likely to spend a ton of money on repairs and services. Dust can cause wear and tear on the parts of your HVAC system, which can lead to premature maintenance needs and repairs.
Hiring a Professional
For some homeowners, cleaning the air conditioning vents and ducts is too much work to do themselves. Fortunately, HVAC technicians are well-equipped to provide this service for homeowners. Hiring a professional is a good way to ensure that your ducts are completely cleaned out without any injuries or other issues resulting from the cleaning.
If you are looking for HVAC maintenance in the Kansas City Metro Area, contact Cates Heating and Cooling today. One of our technicians can get you set up on a maintenance and cleaning schedule right away. Give us a call today at 913-888-4470.
