You may have spent time and money this fall caulking windows, weatherstripping doors and adding insulation to your attic, but you may have overlooked a potential money drain that could be wasting energy and making it hard to keep all the rooms in your home comfortable: leaky ductwork. A well-sealed duct system is as important to your home’s energy efficiency as having good insulation and a modern high-efficiency furnace. If your ducts leak, your expensive heated air may get lost before it reaches the rooms it is intended to heat.
You may be able to examine most of your ductwork and make simple repairs yourself, but it pays to have a professional inspection and repair of hard-to-reach ducts in a tight crawlspace or attic. If you are having your ducts cleaned, that is an ideal time to have your heating contractor look for leaks or other problems.
Here is a list of common duct problems that may be wasting energy and keeping parts of your home chilly on cold winter days:
- Leaky duct connections. Duct seams and junctions between ducts should be fastened with sheet metal screws or clamps and sealed with mastic. You should not use the “duct tape” you can buy at your local grocery store for duct sealing.
- Ducts that go nowhere. Look for ducts that have come loose due to structural shifting or vibration, or maybe even ducts that were intended to serve a room that were never hooked up, but left hanging open in your attic or crawlspace.
- Leaky filter slots and vent connections. Be sure the filter slot in your furnace is sealed and that connections between registers and ducts are tight. Air leaking out of and into the system at these points can be big sources of heat loss.
- Kinks in flexible ducts. Flexible ducts can get kinked in sharp turns. Smooth bends allow smooth airflow.
Call us at Aladdin Heating & Cooling for duct inspection and repairs in your home in Grosse Pointe, Rochester Hills and the surrounding communities. We can help you keep your home comfortable and energy efficient all winter.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Warren, Michigan about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about ductwork and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.
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