But here at Ahoy! Cooling & Heating, we don’t care how dapper this duck looks in his suit. We just care about the ducts in your home, and how they optimize your heating and cooling system’s performance. If you’ve never paid much thought to your actual ductwork, it’s probably about time that you do.
What Is Ductwork?
Ductwork is typically made of flexible sheet metal, and it works to carry and distribute air to different rooms in your home. There are different types or levels of ductwork, depending on what you want it to accomplish. If you’re looking for a top-of-the-line solution, we recommend gold anti-microbial ductwork. This ductwork is stronger and better insulated, so not only will it perform better over time, it will also keep your air cleaner– even without the use of filtration or UV lights!
The vents you see throughout your home (AKA the ones frequently collecting dust) are where each segment of ductwork ends. If you hold your hand in front of a vent, you should feel cool air coming out while your system is running. Without ductwork, your system wouldn’t be able to cool your entire home. And while most homes have ductwork in place, proper installation and continued maintenance is important if you want it to actually work.
Why Should I Care About Ductwork?
If your ductwork wasn’t installed properly, or if it’s getting old, it can start to leak. Leaky ducts create inefficiencies within your air conditioning system, which cause you to spend more money on energy bills. It can also affect the indoor air quality of your home.
Ahoy! Cooling & Heating offers duct cleaning and full duct replacement. Most of the time, we don’t think duct cleaning is worth the price tag, especially when you could install an indoor air quality solution like a PCO light. This will work much better and last much longer if you’re getting your ducts cleaned for IAQ purposes.
However, if your ductwork is 10-15 years old, it’s probably time to replace your ductwork completely. Why? Read on to see how Tampa duct replacement can re-invigorate your AC system’s performance and help you save money on energy bills!
1) Improves Comfort
Sealing and insulating ducts can help with common comfort problems, such as rooms that are too hot in the summer or too cold in the winter. We frequently see customers who recently installed new systems with other companies but are still experiencing comfort issues. As long as the system was installed properly, the culprit is almost always inefficient ductwork.
Whenever we perform an estimate for system replacement, we always inspect the existing ductwork to make sure that ducts aren’t causing the homeowner’s issues. This is a much less expensive service than replacing your entire system, and if you need a new system and ductwork, it’s often something we can discount with the price of your new system.
2) Enhances Indoor Air Quality
Fumes from household and garden chemicals, insulation particles, and dust can enter your duct system, making existing asthma and allergy problems worse. Sealing your ducts can reduce the risk of those pollutants entering ducts and circulating throughout your home. If you’re looking to step up your indoor air quality, we recommend a PCO light, which is installed in your ductwork and kills harmful VOC’s and particles instantly.
3) Keeps You Safe
Gas appliances such as water heaters, clothes dryers, and furnaces release combustion gases (like carbon monoxide) through their venting systems. Leaky ductwork in your heating and cooling system may cause back-drafting, where gases are drawn back into the living space instead of released outdoors. Sealing leaks can reduce this risk, keeping your family safe from potential hazards.
4) Saves You Money
And who doesn’t want that? Leaky ductwork can reduce the efficiency of your air conditioning system by as much as 20%! Sealing and insulating ducts increases efficiency, lowers your energy bills, and often pays for itself in energy savings. Plus, if you’re planning to install a new heating and cooling system, a well-designed and sealed duct system may allow you to downsize to a smaller, less costly system, which will provide better dehumidification.
If you’re noticing some energy inefficiencies in your home, give us a call. We’d be happy to inspect your ductwork to determine if its the root of your problems!
