If you’re looking for an efficient air duct for commercial space or residential usage, spiral air ducts can be a good pick. Spiral ductwork comes with improved air quality and aesthetics.
HVAC Spiral Ductwork: Pros, Cons & Cost
Spiral ductwork was first manufactured in the 50s, made of galvanized steel. However, aluminum or copper can be used to make these spiral air ducts. As it has seams on the outer layer of the air duct, which makes the inner layer smoother. Because of this unique design, air passing through it has to face less resistance.
Like most air ducts, spiral ductwork comes in several diameters. Generally, the diameter of the spiral ductwork ranges from 3-inches to 60-inches.
Why Use Spiral Air Ducts
Usually, spiral air ducts are used in commercial areas, schools, movie theatres, warehouses, athletic venues, and so on. As spiral air ducts are easy to paint and blend with the building structure, it’s hard to notice them in buildings.
· Look
When you use regular air ducts, sometimes the whole building structure becomes unappealing. But by installing the spiral air ducts, you can maintain the aesthetics of your commercial space.
· Improved Functionality
Unlike regular air ducts, you don’t need to install spiral air ducts inside the ceiling or frame it. You can hand the spiral ductwork from the ceiling. Worried about the looks? As I mentioned earlier, you can modify or paint the spiral air duct in a way that goes with your building design.
4 Advantages of Using Spiral Air Ducts
1. Less Noise
Regular air ducts have sharp edges inside the air ducts, which restricts the airflow and make noise. But as spiral air ducts don’t have any sharp edge inside the air duct, it doesn’t make any noise when air passes through the spiral air duct. And because of this unique design, spiral air ducts are used in schools and movie theaters.
2. More Efficient
Spiral air ducts are spirally wound air ducts, which allow more air to pass through the air duct without any air resistance or drag. Besides, compared to other ductwork, there is less pressure drop in the spiral air duct. As a result, the air can have constant and equal pressure inside the ductwork. All these allow the produced air to go through the air ducts efficiently and minimize energy usage.
3. No Air Leak
When you use regular air ducts for your HVAC unit, about 20% to 25% of the produced air leaks through the crawl space or attics. This happens because regular air ducts have weak seals in the joints, which results in air leakage. But when you use the spiral ductwork for your HVAC unit, there will be no air leakage since spiral air ducts use industry-standard seals in the joints, which eliminates the risk of air leakage.
4. Improved Air Quality
If you’re worried about the air quality of your warehouse or commercial space, you should replace your regular air ducts with spiral ductwork. As the joints of the spiral air ducts are tightly sealed, no dust or microparticles can enter the air duct and contaminate the produced air.
Apart from these benefits, spiral air ducts are easy to clean and have a low maintenance cost. Besides, as there is no air leakage, it lowers the overall operation cost. Moreover, compared to regular air ducts, spiral air ducts are very lightweight.
2 Disadvantages of Spiral Ductwork
1. Not Widely Available
Compared to metal air ducts, spiral ductwork isn’t widely available. And sometimes, spiral ductwork will cost more than regular air ducts.
2. Installation Issue
As this spiral ductwork isn’t widely available, there are not enough HVAC professionals who know how to install this air duct into an HVAC system design. As a result, air duct installers may charge more for this type of air duct installation.
Cost of Installing Spiral Air Ducts
Before calculating the cost, you’ll have to consider the size of the spiral air ducts. If you want to use it for residential purposes, usually, spiral ducts with a smaller diameter are used. And for commercial usage, the diameter can go up to 36-inches. Apart from this, you’ll have to consider the spiral ductwork length and the shipping costs.
After adding up these factors, it can cost around $3 to $8 per linear foot.
See the summary of this content here in this infographic – Spiral Ductwork: Pros, Cons & Cost [Infographic]
