Duct Cleaning in Thornton, CO
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Eight months of heating pushes a lot of dust through your ducts
Your furnace runs October through May here, eight months a year. That is a long stretch of air moving through the same ductwork, and every pass carries dust, pet hair, and whatever else is in the house into the vents and trunk lines. It settles on the inside walls of the duct, not just at the filter.
On winter nights that average 16 degrees, the furnace cycles on and off many times to hold the house steady. Each cycle pushes more air through ducts carrying that buildup, and over eight months it works loose and blows back into the rooms you're heating.
- 8 months
- October through May, your furnace pushes air through your ducts
- 3 months
- June through August, your air conditioner does the same
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NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
- How often should air ducts be cleaned?
- There's no fixed schedule that fits every home. If anyone in the house has allergies, or you've had a rodent problem or a renovation that kicked up drywall dust, that's a reason to get it done. Homes with pets or heavy dust in the return air may need it more often. A contractor can look at your ducts and tell you what condition they're actually in rather than going by the calendar.
- Is air duct cleaning worth it?
- It's worth it when there's a real reason for it, like visible dust coming from the vents, a musty smell when the furnace runs, or debris you can see when a vent cover comes off. It won't lower your heating bills or fix a furnace that's struggling, and there's no proof it cuts down on illness in a typical home. Where it helps is comfort and keeping dust from recirculating, and that matters more here with the furnace running from October through May.
- What does air duct cleaning involve?
- A contractor connects a vacuum to the duct system to create negative pressure, then uses brushes or air whips to knock loose dust and debris from inside the ducts so it gets pulled into the vacuum instead of blown into your rooms. Each supply and return vent gets cleaned this way, and the furnace's blower compartment and coil are usually cleaned too since they collect the same dust. The filter should get replaced afterward since it isn't part of what gets cleaned.