Before the Ohio winter sets in, there are a few things you need to do to prepare your home. One of the most important tasks is to seal leaky ducts. Your HVAC system loses energy if ducts aren't sealed properly. And that's not the only reason your ducts should be sealed. Here are five reasons to seal leaky ducts this winter, that will benefit you year round:
- Saving money. Duct sealing can improve your HVAC system's efficiency by 20 percent or more. When you seal leaky ducts, more air will make it from your heating and cooling equipment into your home. This means your furnace, heat pump or A/C doesn't have to run as long to heat or cool your home to your desired temperature, resulting in significantly reduced energy bills. In addition, when your system works more efficiently, there's less stress on the unit, which can save you money on repairs and extend the life of your equipment.
- Improving comfort. When you seal leaky ducts, it improves your airflow, giving you a more even temperature across the entire house.
- Improving indoor air quality. Your HVAC system filters dust and other contaminants out of your air. But if your ducts leak, impurities can seep in through the holes and be blown back into your house, leading to allergies, asthma and other illnesses. Duct sealing helps keep your air clean and healthy.
- Improving safety. Duct leaks can cause pressure changes in the air around them, leading to an occurrence called backdrafting. Harmful carbon monoxide gases from your furnace, water heater or other gas-burning appliances, are drawn back into your home, rather than being vented safely outside. Duct sealing helps prevent this from happening.
- Saving the planet. When your HVAC system uses less energy, fewer fossil fuels are burned to produce that energy, reducing your carbon footprint and resulting in fewer greenhouse gases. The more households that seal leaky ducts, the more we can reduce pollution, prevent global warming and breathe easier.
For more tips on saving energy and improving home comfort, contact our experts at Joe Behr Plumbing & Heating, Inc. We've been committed to total customer satisfaction in the Mid-Ohio area since 1965.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in the Mid-Ohio area about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about sealing leaky ducts and other HVAC topics, visit our website.
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