I have talked about the air duct cleaning cost that comes with AC maintenance & repair cost many times. But the molds in ducts is not the only enemy of your air vents. Along with mold removal and complete air duct cleaning, you need to take care of the leaks to ensure the best performance from your heating and cooling system.
But often, people fail to understand the basics of how the leak checkup should be. So, here I am explaining it to you so that you don’t miss out on the opportunity to cut a slack from energy consumption by properly addressing the leaks.
5 Signs of leaks in Air Ducts
Now, let’s get into what you are here for – ways to know if there are any leaks in your HVAC system air ducts.
1. Higher electricity/energy bills
Last June, my sister called me for a home remedy of her uncontrollable electricity bills. She knows I am kind of an expert on this stuff.
I already knew it was her HVAC system because she didn’t manage to take the time for air duct cleaning in the last year or two. So, there was no doubt for me that it was her leaked air ducts that are fluctuating the energy bills.
When your air ducts get leaked, the efficiency of the system comes down to a minimum. So, for proper heating and air conditioning of the room or your house, the HVAC system consumes more energy which piles up the bills. If this waste of energy can be controlled and mitigated, you will be able to save from 10-30%.
That’s why, if you come across an over-the-top electric bill that you are confident you didn’t consume, you can safely assume it’s something about the air conditioning units’ air ducts.
2. Inconsistent temperature throughout the house
The previous trick to check whether or not there are any leaks in your air ducts is somewhat time-dependent. Unless it is the beginning of the month when you get the bills on your hand, there is no possible way to know if your HVAC system air ducts are wasting energy or not. But there are other signs that can hint you it is time to call an air conditioning service provider or air duct cleaner who can check and fix the air duct system.
I am talking about the uneven temperature.
When there is a leak in your system, the air can pass through midway. Once the air starts to pass through, your rooms won’t get the same amount of airflow that you were expecting. So, as soon as you feel that your house is cold in some places and warm in others, make sure you call air conditioning repair guys and get it fixed ASAP.
3. Inconsistent humidity level across the house
Apart from the temperature of the HVAC unit, the humidity level of your house can be compromised too.
It is as important to control the humidity level of the house as the temperature adjustment is required for maximum comfort.
That’s why if you start to realize the humidity level in your home is not right, you should go and check your air ducts for leaks.
4. Poor air quality
Along with inconsistent temperature balance and humidity level, there are other bad sides to having leaked HVAC system air ducts. As you know, these air ducts, if leaked, imbalances the humidity level. That means if there is more than enough humidity level in your home, the HVAC unit will not be able to absorb the humidity from the air and as a result, the damp environment in your home may give birth to millions of microorganisms. So, the air quality from these ducts is not the best as you would expect.
5. Dusty house
Last but not least, look out for the dusty house. This is perhaps the biggest giveaway on a potential air duct leak.
Leaked air duct system always results in a dusty house. The leaks let dust enter the HVAC system and as a result, they end up on your furniture and floor.
Besides, this dust also affects the performance of your HVAC system and if the amount of dust is high in your ducts, you might need to spend more in air duct cleaning cost and worse, go through complete duct replacement.
Is it okay if I make any delay in fixing the air duct leaks?
No, definitely No.
Get on board with the leak fixing as soon as possible.
Do you know what will happen if you delay the inevitable? First of all, the leak or the tear on the air duct will increase and turn out to be a long rip.
Secondly, your entire house will be dusty and that means along with air duct cleaning costs, you’ll have to bear the house cleaning costs too.
Lastly, there will be a big chance that you and your family will be in some kind of health hazard. As mentioned earlier, the leaks help the bacteria and other microorganisms to grow. Eventually, these microorganisms and the dust flows into the room, making everyone sick.
How to fix the leaks in air ducts?
There are some common fixes to the leaks in air ducts. But before you proceed, you need to inspect how big the leak is. If the leak is small, you can patch that up using duct tape.
Do you need professional help to fix the leaks in your air ducts?
Yes, you will need a professional when the leak is too big to handle with duct tape. But even after your use duct tape to the air duct leak, you will need to call for professional air duct system service providers to wrap things for good.
What we learned by now?
Check for leaks on your air ducts and constantly monitor the temperature, humidity and electric bills. And when you find the leak in the air duct system, make no delay in addressing the situation by yourself or calling for professional help.
See a relevant infographic here – 5 Signs of leaks in Air Ducts [Infographic]
