Is spring your favorite season?

If so, you’re not alone; not only do many Californians favor spring, but it’s also the country’s most popular season. From warmer weather and longer days to trees and flowers blooming again, these are just a few things that make spring popular.

However, spring’s warmer days also mean you’ll begin to rely more on your HVAC system to cool your home. Unfortunately, if your ducts have issues, your air conditioner’s performance will suffer, too.

That’s why it’s wise to get a ductwork inspection in spring.

But why exactly is it crucial to inspect your ducts during this season? This guide discusses the perks and pros of hiring a professional to inspect your ducts, so read on. 

Discover and Address Energy-Wasting Duct Problems

Leaky air ducts can lower your HVAC system’s performance and efficiency by up to 20%. Incorrect installation, old age, and even pest infestations can cause or contribute to duct leakage.

Getting an HVAC check-up for your ducts allows you to discover such problems. A reliable technician will thoroughly inspect your ductwork to find issues such as:

  • Cracks, holes, gaps, or missing duct insulation
  • Wet insulation materials
  • Loose, disconnected, or damaged ducts

The technician will then suggest appropriate solutions based on their findings.

For example, if you have leaky ducts and missing insulation, the technician will recommend sealing and insulating them. But if there’s significant damage, they may advise you to get your air ducts repaired.

Those solutions can help reduce thermal loss from the ducts, keep conditioned air from leaking out, and boost airflow. These benefits can help improve your HVAC system’s efficiency, resulting in more energy savings. 

Help Your HVAC System Last Longer  

Dirty and leaky ducts can compromise airflow and affect your HVAC system’s efficiency. For example, the air pollutants they circulate throughout your home can cause your filters to clog up faster. Clogged filters restrict airflow, forcing your HVAC system to work harder and use more energy.

Unfortunately, that problem causes higher energy bills and can shorten your system’s lifespan.

So, before your energy bills go any higher and your HVAC experiences premature breakdowns, get a qualified technician to inspect your ducts. This way, they can determine if your ducts need cleaning or repairs. If they do, invest in these services to help make your HVAC system last longer and perform efficiently again. 

Can Help Enhance Indoor Air Quality (IAQ)

IAQ pertains to how the air inside a building, such as a home, affects the health of occupants. It can be worse than outdoor air because it can be a mix of the following indoor pollutants:

  • Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from paints, aerosol sprays, disinfectants, etc.
  • Indoor molds
  • Pet and human dander
  • Combustion byproducts of fuel-burning appliances like gas ovens and furnaces

Polluted outdoor air can also enter and accumulate in your home and HVAC ducts. This is a cause of concern, considering that out of 200 U.S. metropolitan areas, Visalia has the worst annual particle pollution. It’s also the second worst for high ozone days and the fourth worst for 24-hour particle pollution. 

How Spring Duct Inspection Can Help Boost IAQ

With a thorough inspection, a professional HVAC technician can determine how dirty your ducts are. The pro will also look for signs of duct damage, such as gaps and leaks, where air pollutants may enter and mix with conditioned air. Depending on their findings, they may suggest air duct cleaning, sanitization, and repairs.

Getting a pro to inspect and clean your air ducts in spring can be even more beneficial if you rely on a gas furnace for heating. As mentioned above, such appliances can lower IAQ because they emit byproducts (e.g., particle pollutants). So, your furnace use last winter could’ve made your air ducts dirty, which is why it makes sense to get them checked and cleaned in spring. 

Your Ducts May Be Harboring Unwanted Guests

Visalia’s mild climate allows pests like rodents to be active year-round. However, these critters have a good reason to invade your home in winter: to seek refuge in its warmth. Once inside, they look for a damp, dark spot where they’re least likely to get disturbed.

Those characteristics describe the insides of ducts, so it’s no wonder pests often love to hide in them. Then, come spring, when food sources become more abundant, they’ll become more active again. 

What Pests Can Do to Your Ducts and IAQ

Mice and rats may tear chunks of duct insulation to build their nests. They can also make the insulating materials wet by urinating on them. These problems reduce the efficiency and performance of your duct insulation materials.

That’s bad enough, but it could be worse because pests, especially their droppings, can lower your IAQ. The foul odors of their excrement can mix with the cool air from your air conditioner.

Pest droppings may also contain germs that, when inhaled, can make you ill. An example is hantavirus from rodents, which the CDC says can be transmitted through the air. 

Determine Possible Pest Infestations With Ductwork Inspection

A ductwork inspection by a reputable HVAC company is a reliable way to determine if you have (or had) pests in your ducts. Their technician will let you know if they find debris in the ductwork that looks like pest droppings. They’ll also tell you if they see any live (or dead) pests.

From there, they’ll recommend deep cleaning and sanitizing your air ducts. They’ll also suggest you call a pest control company to deal with an ongoing infestation. 

Schedule Your Spring Ductwork Inspection Today

A professional spring ductwork inspection helps determine if your ducts waste energy and contribute to poor IAQ. If they do, the expert can clean, sanitize, or repair them before the problems worsen.

If you’re ready to get the ducts in your Visalia, CA, home inspected, Comfort Now’s industry-certified HVAC technicians are here to help! We’ve been in business since 2011, and our money-back guarantee can help reassure you that you’ll be happy with our services.

So, call us today! We’ll gladly work on your ducts this spring and help prepare them for summer.