Air ducts are an often overlooked part of your home. Air ducts do their thing behind the scenes and do not have a tendency to need repair so it is only natural to forget about them when it comes to maintenance and cleaning your home. The result is that the bulk of home owners only clean their air ducts after a problem is discovered. Even the US EPA suggests that air ducts should be cleaned on an as needed basis however this logic has one potentially fatal flaw.
Using this methodology to mold in air ducts is sensible only if the cleaning is performed as a preventative procedure in response to a certain event or condition but not as a reactive response to an occasion or condition. This won't prevent you and your family from being exposed to unhealthy air within your home if it is not brought on by to a distinct event.
It is not unheard-of for mold in air ducts to build up from the expected deterioration of your air conditioner, leaking roof and pipe leaks which can exist for many years before being detected. Rodents and insects can occupy your air ducts on and off for years without being detected.
Examples of getting your air ducts cleaned as a preventative measure on an as needed basis include cleaning them immediately after discovering a leaking roof, a pipe leak, a nearby industrial fire, a flood, home remodeling, rodent infestation, moving into a new house.
Unless a family member has asthma or allergies, the biggest issue with air ducts is mold. Mold can create a bunch very serious health situations that typically take a long time and multiple expensive doctor visits to diagnose. Mold related sicknesses often show up well after a person has been exposed to the mold. Furthermore, people with asthma and allergies could very well be much more sensitive to mold in the air and the results much more acute.
Unless you get your HVAC system and air ducts inspected and serviced routinely, the most common ways people learn their air ducts have mold is:
- A family member becomes sick
- They smell it
If a member of your family becomes ill as a result of mold in the air ducts then it's obvious they should have been cleaned to prevent this and there is real concern that other loved ones have been affected although the symptoms won't show until year later.
Mold is difficult to detect and apart from a family member becoming sick or complaining of other symptoms it is most often detected by smell. Relying on smell to detect the presence is not smart due to the fact that not all mold smells and secondly, if you can smell mold or mildew, the infestation is almost certainly serious. It doesn't take much mold to cause complications, often times less than is needed to smell it. By the time you smell mold, family members have very likely been exposed to it for an extended period of time which can have permanent health issues, many times showing up years later.
The sensible way to prevent family members from being exposed to mold is preventing it from entering your heating and cooling system and ductwork. The best strategy to do this is with routine professional air duct cleaner or diligent cleaning and inspection by the homeowner.
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