Air Quality Series On Air Duct Cleaning Part 2 Of 3

Determining Whether The Duct Cleaning Job Was Thorough

The best way to check that your heating and cooling system is now clean is a thorough visual inspection. Your service provider may take photos to show you what the condition is inside the ducts. Every part of the system should appear clean. You should not be able to see any debris. Before work begins, show your service provide the Post-Cleaning Checklist below. Once the job is done, ask to see each part of your system to make sure the job was satisfactorily done. If your answer to any of the questions is “No,” this could mean there is a problem with the work. Ask your service provider to fix any problems until your answer to all of the questions is “Yes.”

Post-Cleaning Checklist

In General:

• Was the entire heating and cooling system accessed and cleaned by the service provider? This includes all ductwork and all components including humidifiers, fans, coils and drain pans.

• Has your service provider satisfactorily shown you that the ductwork and plenums are clean? Plenums are spaces in which return or supply air moves or is mixed, including the wall cavity, the duct, the attic, the crawl space, and the joist space)

Heating:

• Is the surface of the heat exchanger clean to the naked eye?

Cooling Components:

• Do both sides of the cooling coil appear clean to the naked eye?

• Does a flashlight beam shine through the cooling coil to the other side if you point the flashlight into the coil? If the coil is clean, it should.

• Are the coil fins evenly spaced and straight (instead of being mashed together and bent)?

• Does the coil pan drain properly, and is it completely clean?

Blower:

• Are the blades of the blower clean? You should not see any oil or debris.

• Is the blower compartment devoid of debris or dust?

Plenums:

• Is the return air devoid of debris or dust to the naked eye?

• Are the filters the efficiency that is recommended by the manufacturer of the heating and cooling system? Do the filters fit as they should?

• Is the plenum for the supply air devoid of contaminants and moisture stains? This plenum is downstream of the air handling unit.

Metal Ducts:

• Are the surfaces in the interior ductwork devoid of debris to the naked eye? Randomly select several places in both the supply and return sides of your system to look at.

Fiberglass:

• Is the fiberglass material in your system devoid of abrasions and tears and is it adhering to the materials under it, as it should be?

Access Doors:

• If there were access doors installed in sheet metal ducts during the job, are they attached with something more than just duct tape, like rivets, mastic or screws?

• With the system turned on and running, is there either no or very little air leakage through the access doors or covers?

Air Vents:

• Has the service provider firmly reattached all grilles, diffusers and registers to the floors, walls and ceilings?

• Are the grilles, diffusers and registers visibly clean?

System Operation:

• Does the HVAC system operate as it should in both modes (heating and cooling) after the cleaning job?

To learn how to hire a qualified pro to clean your air ducts read part one and learn how to keep your air vents free of mold in part three of this series. Also, check out our FAQ: Do I need to have my home's air ducts cleaned regularly?

Photo courtesy of Safe House Air Duct and Carpet Cleaning