The Furnace and Duct Guide
The ultimate guide for the furnace and duct happiness.
Top 10 to keep your HVAC system in top shape.
Below you will find the most important elements of your system, take care of them and they will take care of you and your money!
The most obvious one is often the most unremembered. Our recommendation generally, is to clean your furnace and ducts every 2 years, given the dusty and dry climate in Calgary.
However, if you have severe allergies, pets, or have recently done home renovations, a shorter cleaning interval is recommended.
Besides this being a leading cause of house fires if not maintained. General maintenance and cleaning is essential for the HVAC system.
The purpose of the fresh air furnace intake is to draw in new outside air to your furnace. Meaning it also takes in all dust, allergens, and VOC’s.
Some new furnaces also have an exhaust to the outside as well. These vents are probably the dirtiest vents in your home.
Increases the efficiency of the AC coil
Helps the furnace remove the cool air.
It becomes a fire hazard (creosote build-up) if not maintained and cleaned regularly.
Chimney can become clogged with debris that can turn into a health hazard.
Clogged debris can plummet back down the chimney.
Kills and removes bacteria, mold and other contaminants from your ductwork system. Applied as a mist throughout the entire duct work, coating all sides.
Suggested if a cleaning has not been done over a significant time period, kids, pets or have a humidifier adding humidity to your duct work.
Learn more about this add on Sanitizer
Washable filter guaranteed for LIFE!
Allows for sufficient air flow to reach the furnace.
Stops and traps a minimum of 85 percent of dust and other fine particles. Compared to the standard disposable filters usually averaging around 15 percent.
Peak Webbing design ( No Foam )
Helps prevent dry skin, sinus congestion, dry throat, nose irritation, bloody noses, dry cough and cracked lips.
Helps prevent the cracking and separation damage to hardwood floors and other wooden finishing in your household
Allows for a more customization to your environment inside your home.
Save on energy bills and heating costs
Warm water moving through the pad causes the water to evaporate. Having a large build up of deposits will restrict the amount of water running through your pad, therefore reducing the efficiency of your humidifier.
Changing the humidifier pad is simple, cheap and quick!
Constantly cleans the AC coil keeping your AC at maximum efficiency.
Destroys VOC’s ( volatile organic compounds ) found inside your system.
Highly recommended for consumers with young children, air conditioning, humidifiers, weak immune system or live in a high humidity environment.
Cleaning the lines of the unit allows for the safe removal of dust, dirt, and debris
Recommended to clean depending on its use. More on central vacuum cleaning ...
CONSEQUENCES OF A DIRTY DUCTWORK SYSTEM
There are many downsides to a clogged dirty system, here are the top 5:
In the winter, dirt-clogged heat exchangers cannot warm the air as efficiently. In the summer, dirt-clogged coils are unable to cool the air as well. These are just examples of how it affects the heating and cooling systems runtime, requiring it to use more fuel and energy to heat and cool your home.
Dirt and dust restrict air flow. Even when your system is doing a good job heating and cooling the air, if the blower fan or motor can’t turn because of dirt or the air filter is clogged with dust, then the system can’t effectively circulate that properly warmed or cooled air throughout your home.
The longer your heating and cooling system operates, the more wear and tear it undergoes. Long run times can shorten the overall lifetime of HVAC systems, from AC compressors to hydro pumps, burners, and motor bearings. You’ll wear out your home’s HVAC system much sooner than expected.
The clogged ‘dirt’ in your system is, in reality, a combination of fine dirt, dead skin, pet dander, bacteria, pollen, mold spores, fungi, and even pet feces. These are left to contaminate your air and reduce the indoor quality of your air up to 70 times compared to outdoor air.
Dirt and dust spread quicker in a home with dirty ducts. No matter how much you may dust and clean your home, these fine particulate contaminants, including dangerous allergens, quickly flow from room to room and cycle throughout the house. this cycle turns into an endless cleaning battle that never ends.
