Prevent Wallet-Drain Due to Leaky Air Conditioning Ducts

Leaky air-con ducts lead to poor home cooling, extended waste of their time and costly gulps of wallet-drain. Yet inferior AC duct connections are common in homes throughout the nation.

It's a true simple matter: Efficient home cooling involves more than merely pumping refrigerated air into a hot house. It is a means of heat exchange that corrects rather than conquers the internal home. To be effective, a house ac system must circulate the existing air while stripping heat and humidity from the enclosed environment. A home with leaky ac ducts ceases to perform the work effectively.

A 20 Percent Waste Factor

According to federal Energy Star reports, the common home air cooling system looses up to twenty percent efficiency through leaky ductwork. Here is a huge selection of benefits it is possible to gain by correcting the challenge:

** Lower energy bills

** Lower repair costs

** Fewer repairs

** More efficient system

** More comfortable rooms due to better system distribution of air flow

** Cleaner indoor air due to reduced intake of irritants and allergens

** A sense of personal environmental stewardship

** Peace of mind in through an HVAC system that functions at peak efficiently and safety.

Sealing Your Home's Leaky AC Ductwork

Simple as it can sound, inspecting and repairing your home's air conditioning duct system can be hot, sweaty and risky. Most likely, you will be forced to enter the crawl space. In some events, you'll have to type in the attic. Furthermore, you may have to assist home insulation materials, restricted maneuvering space and darkness.

Before beginning the procedure, take a flashlight and poke your brain in your home's crawl space. On some houses, this space is so tight that even air conditioning repair professionals groan before entering. If you are terrified of snakes, hate spiders or have certain closterfobic responses to tight places, just close the hatch and call any local AC service center.

Still want to do the task yourself? Here goes:

1) Proper Clothing - Pull out or buy a mechanic's jumpsuit. A cheap one costs around $15.00, but better protection originates from high quality equipment. A jumpsuit provides you with full body protection against dirt, grime and creepy crawling things. It also has an extended selection of pockets for carrying choice tools.

2) Tools - Sealing AC ductwork doesn't take lots of tools. You need:

** Closable box cutter with extra blades.

** Flashlight equipped having a focus adjustable base.

** One-inch wide, extended-reach paint brush.

** A standard dust mask

** Tin snips and tie-down straps, the very first for trimming back joints as well as the second for re-hanging fallen ductwork.

** Backup flashlight for emergency exit.

** A roll of two-inch wide or three-inch wide, cold temperatures HVAC Aluminum Foil tape.

** A four foot duration of one-inch PVC pipe by having an elbow on one end - this is for moving fallen insulation, forgotten debris and if necessary an aggressive snake.

** HVAC certified sealant that fits the subsequent testing procedures: ASTM E84, NFPA 255 or UL 723. The flame spread rate should be less than 25. The smoke development rate must be under 50. These products can be purchased in a caulk-tube format, but you should also work with a brush to the sealing.

3) Sealing Process - Making Your Air Conditioning Ducts Airtight

This is visual process. In the event of holes in flex duct - often created by critters wanting to stay warm in the winter - you have to apply cold temperature HVAC Aluminum Foil tape. If the insulation is missing, you may should acquire additional flex duct, come up with a cut and after that connect and reseal the finished work.

To seal connections and split-joints apply tape and/or sealant as seems best for your situation. In the event that the joints are certainly not cut correctly, use box cutters or tin snips as suits situations to generate a better fit after which apply tape or sealant.

To seal vents with the room access point, apply certified HVAC sealant. Take your time. Make certain that the caulk spreads fully and retains experience of the aim of application. Be sure to seal the surface with the floor joists the place that the return air connection passes from the flooring. It also never hurts to cap-off the interior wall cavities where the flashing passes through.

If necessary, perform exactly the same processes with your attic and/or garage.

Additional Notes on Sealing Air Conditioning Ducts

Perhaps pretty much everything seems overkill. Think about which type consequences would come about if lungs created number of pin-holes. It wouldn't take long for breathing for being labored and inefficient. Every small leak increases the accumulated home cooling losses and expenses.

** Special Warning: If you encounter water or some other warning signs of sewage leakage, escape from under the house. Find a professional plumber to deal with the problem, and acquire issues of safety cleared up before continuing with your AC duct system repairs.

So get dressed for the occasion. Gear up while using right tools. Seal your leaky air conditioning ducts. Isn't it time you set an end to unnecessary wallet-drain.