Why is indoor air quality important?

According to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA), more than 60 million Americans suffer from asthma and/or allergies. Our homes contain all sorts of indoor allergens. Some of these can cause chronic suffering and asthma, especially for those who are more susceptible, like young children, the elderly, and anyone who suffers from respiratory problems or auto-immune disorders.

What’s hiding in your indoor air? With simple everyday activities, we generate all sorts of unseen contaminants and air pollutants like dirt, dust, pet dander, cigarette smoke, and chemicals.

Indoor air quality is an important concern in our lives. What happens to the dust and dirt that is created and circulated daily in your home or business?  It gets sucked into your HVAC system!  Just like your nose can suck up Covid 19 when uncovered, your house can suck up the muck into your ducts and heating and air conditioning units.   Those easy-to-see surfaces in your home get dirty over time and if you do not clean them, the dirt accumulates.  Duct and HVAC systems are the same way. Your property’s HVAC system pulls all those contaminants and pollutants right into your air ducts — and then recirculates that air an average of five to seven times per day!

Let’s talk about the mold. It is perhaps the most bothersome allergen for many Americans. Mold and mildew can lurk all around your home, including in your HVAC system’s ductwork. If left undetected or ignored, mold growth can turn into a serious issue, not only for the structure of your home but for the health of everyone living under its roof.

Even if you routinely replace filters, your home’s HVAC system gets dirty with regular, everyday use; and since your air ducts are a favorite hiding place for dust, dirt, and allergens to linger, those dirty ducts can contribute to larger health issues, especially for those with respiratory conditions, auto-immune disorders, or asthma and allergies. All those indoor air pollutants can also lead to irritated eyes, nose, and throat, as well as headaches, dizziness, and fatigue.

Want to improve indoor air quality?  Start with the little things.

• Open a Window. If the weather outside allows, open a window whenever possible. Do not worry about the allergens outside “getting in”, they are already in.  Opening a window allows for new air to come in and circulate out pathogens that have collected inside closed spaces.  Let your house take a big breath of fresh air as often as you can.
• Clear the Returns- make sure that all your return ducts are open to space in the room. Avoid putting furniture in front of returns.  Blocked returns mean the air cannot get into the system and the air gets trapped in your ducts and HVAC system.
• Change your HVAC filter regularly. An air filter is comparable to a door mat.  When that filter gets dirty, all the dirt gets tracked/pushed through the system.  How often you should change your filter depends upon the “stress” on the air.  How many people and pets are in the space? How many plants are decomposing inside? How much dust has been created?   Is there a smoker in the house?
• Open your registers. There is a belief that if a room is not used very much you should close the supply register to save money.  This will most likely end up backfiring and cost more money in the long run.  Think about the closed supply run.  It is dark and typically gets moist and warm, perfect conditions for mold growth.   Those supply vents (the ones with the open and close tab) need to stay open to avoid mold and dust accumulation regardless of whether or not the room is being used.

While doing the small things can help improve your indoor air quality a little, you should have your ducts and your HVAC system cleaned every 2-3 years depending upon your particular circumstances.

Call the Experts

HVAC system and duct cleaning is not a “do it yourself” task.  Reaching into the duct with a wire and a rag and swirling it around is comparable to throwing a rag on a muddy floor and spreading it around with your foot. You can go to the hardware store and possibly find a tool or a kit that says it can be used to clean vents, however, you will most likely do more harm than good.  That saying, “don’t try this at home” applies to duct cleaning.  A recent customer of ours bought a tool and tried to clean his own vent. In a few hours, after creating a mess, he finally gave up and called in the professionals, Mr. Duct Cleaner.

Mr. Duct Cleaner is an expert in ductwork and HVAC system cleaning. Mr. Duct Cleaner uses equipment designed specifically for duct and HVAC system cleaning.  We do more than just wipe down the outside and use a shop vac.   A specially trained technician arrives at your home and wears booties to protect your surfaces and keep your floors cleaned. They put down plastic to keep any dust accidentally escaping our equipment away from your furniture or belongings.  They take down vent covers, clean them, and then utilize specialized equipment to thoroughly clean your ducts and your HVAC unit.  When completed, we leave your home cleaner than when we began, including the air ducts and the HVAC system.

“Duct cleaning is like cleaning fairy dust”, said one inexperienced HVAC contractor.  I wonder if that HVAC contractor has ever opened an HVAC system and examined the coils?  Mr. Duct Cleaner has a lot of pictures of before and after that will show just how much dirt tends to hang out in the HVAC unit.

Recently a gentleman who was sensitive to mold and was unable to sleep in his bedroom comfortably called Mr. Duct Cleaner for help.   He had a mold inspection in his home and a little bit was found under the sink, but nothing significant enough to cause the sleeping problems.  In a last-ditch effort, he scheduled a duct and HVAC system cleaning.  Our experienced technician found the coils inside one of the HVAC systems covered in fungal growth.  In the process of cleaning, it was discovered that the drainage line was plugged up, creating the moisture that the fungus needed to grow.  We unplugged the line, professionally cleaned the coils, and then cleaned all the ducts in his home.  A mildewstat fog was then applied to the coils.   His system is now running much more efficiently, and he can sleep in his bedroom.  Perhaps cleaning the “fairy dust” was helpful.

Mr. Duct Cleaner gives free estimates.  There is no cost to have an assessment of your system.  We do not do a bait and switch, we try to provide you with the best-estimated price for what we intend to do to clean your property.

Install an Aerus Air Scrubber

Doing the little things and having your HVAC and duct system cleaned periodically is a great start to improved indoor air quality.  However, if you would like continuous cleaning of your indoor air, just like the astronauts at the NASA space station get, you should have Mr. Duct Cleaner install an Aerus Air Scrubber.  Installing an Aerus Air scrubber is like ripping the roof off your home and allowing the sun to brightly shine and clean your air.

The Air Scrubber by Aerus installed by a professional at Mr. Duct Cleaner is more than 99% effective at killing Covid 19.  It is installed directly into residential or commercial HVAC systems to remove surface and airborne contaminants including VOCs, odors, dust, pet dander, and other allergens.  Every time your HVAC system turns on, the honeycomb inside the Aerus Air Scrubber unit is activated.  It produces “purification warriors” (hydrogen peroxide ions) that flow through the air, attaching to the bad particles and deactivating them.

The system uses proprietary ActivePure® Technology and has been tested in independent labs and proven effective on bacteria, viruses, mold, and fungi on surfaces and in the air. The ActivePure® Technology built into each Air Scrubber by Aerus is based on a variation of the technology originally developed for use on the International Space Station and is recognized as the exclusive Certified Space Technology™ in its category.

Benefits include:

• Keeping people healthy
• Fight Covid and other Viruses
• Cleaner, healthier more comfortable living environment.
• PATENTED ActivePure® Cell destroys over 99% of all surface and airborne contaminants
• Uses light waves and a catalytic process to produce scrubber ions and hydro peroxides that destroy contaminants on surfaces and in the air
• Removes VOCs, odors, dust, pet dander, and other allergens
• Installs directly into existing ductwork
• Prevents dust build-up in heating and cooling systems
• Creates a cleaner and safer environment
• Continuously clean and protect air and surfaces 24/7
• Used every day worldwide
• Safe for Humans and Pets

Mr. Duct Cleaner has a limited supply and is installing these typically within a week of ordering.  Contact us to get a personalized quote on the Aerus Air Scrubber.

Our professional technicians can come directly to your property and give you an estimate on duct and HVAC system cleaning as well as the installation price of an Aerus Air scrubber.

The path to improved indoor air quality starts with Mr. Duct Cleaner.