|
Knowledge about the potential benefits
and possible problems of air duct cleaning is limited.
Since conditions in every home are different, it is impossible
to generalize about whether or not air duct cleaning in your
home would be beneficial.
If no one in your household suffers from allergies or unexplained
symptoms or illnesses and if, after a visual inspection of
the inside of the ducts, you see no indication that your air
ducts are contaminated with large deposits of dust or mold
(no musty odor or visible mold growth), having your air ducts
cleaned is probably unnecessary. It is normal for the return
registers to get dusty as dust-laden air is pulled through
the grate. This does not indicate that your air ducts are
contaminated with heavy deposits of dust or debris; the registers
can be easily vacuumed or removed and cleaned.
On the other hand, if family members are experiencing unusual
or unexplained symptoms or illnesses that you think might
be related to your home environment, you should discuss the
situation with your doctor. EPA has published Indoor Air Quality:
An Introduction for Health Professionals that can be obtained
free of charge by contacting IAQ INFO at the number listed
in this guide. You may obtain another free EPA booklet from
IAQ INFO entitled The Inside Story: A Guide to Indoor Air
Quality for guidance on identifying possible indoor air quality
problems and ways to prevent or fix them.
You may consider having your air ducts cleaned simply because
it seems logical that air ducts will get dirty over time and
should occasionally be cleaned. While the debate about the
value of periodic duct cleaning continues, no evidence suggests
that such cleaning would be detrimental, provided that it
is done properly.
|
