Before                          After

Why Should I Clean My Ducts?

Dirty air ducts have been identified as a major source of indoor air pollution. Your air duct

system is an ideal breeding ground for bacteria, mold mildew,  fungi, and other health

threatening organisms.

I Live In a New Home, Do I Still Need Your Services?

Absolutely! Almost half of our work is done in homes that are less than 5 years old.

During construction, the duct work is wide open and the air handler is running many times

without a filter. During this time construction debris such as plaster,  drywall, wood dust,

insects, and insulation are accumulated in the duct work.

Dirty Ducts Can Make a Home Environmentally Unsafe

A faint odor permeates the house, but the source cannot be found; the children’s allergies

are a bit worse this year;  an elderly relative’s respiratory problems seem to flare after

visiting.

It’s not a noxious gas or a perilous pathogen, but what may be causing any of  the above

scenarios is dirty duct work. 

More precisely, a buildup of dust, mold, building material particles, or even an abandoned

sandwich may be the problem.  Fortunately, air duct cleaning services exist.  “You’d be

surprised at what we see “ said Sam Hughes who works for Cherokee Carpet & Air Duct

Cleaning. “Especially in newer homes, we find potato salad or sandwiches that the

workmen had left.”

With the proliferation of central heating and air condition systems in today’s homes and

businesses, there are fewer reasons and opportunities to open the windows and let the

air circulate.  Fibers, dust, gases, pet dander, and air just stay there.  This all goes back

to the energy crunch of the ‘70s, when they built houses tightly sealed with insulated

windows to cut down on heating and cooling costs, but then you don’t have the turnover

of fresh outdoor air.  Your home is efficient, but you pay a price in your health.  Allergists

agree that central heat and air are good systems but they need to be maintained and

people don’t understand that is part of moving into a nice new home.  There is a lot more

maintenance involved.  There has been a rise in the number of  allergy-related respiratory

cases in the past decade.  Duct cleaning can be done while the family is at home or

employees are in the office.  Cherokee uses a cleaning system that involves a high

pressure air wash that loosens debris, combined with a high volume vacuum that sucks

the dirty air into a filter.  The Abatement Technologies HEPA Air 2500 Portable vacuum

used operates at 2500 cubic feet per minute and sends the debris laden air from the ducts

through a High Efficiency Particulate Air HEPA Filter. 

The history of the HEPA filter goes back to the making and testing of the atomic bomb. 

They needed a filter that would prevent dangerous particles from getting to people.  HEPA

filters are also used for asbestos removal. 

The fine filter makes eradicating pet dander, dust, and anything else that may be

inhabiting the duct work easy to do.  The benefits are unbelievable.  Odors are gone and

you notice you are sneezing less.  Customers have the opportunity of examining the

contents of the filter pouch in hopes of finding lost treasures or at least gawk at the

former residents of their air ducts.  What are the signs that the duct work needs to be

cleaned?  Well, one is visible dirt at the register returns and another is simply the age of

the duct work.  If the house is over 3 to 4 years old there is a need.   Another reason to

have duct work cleaned is if recently there has been extensive remodeling  or painting

which cause an increased burden of particles in the air system.  Duct cleaning can be done

any time of the year for people with allergies.  The normal cleaning and sanitizing process

can be done in one day in most cases.  The size of the house or the building would, of

course, impact cleaning time.  After the initial cleaning, the process should be repeated

every five years to minimize the contaminants in the air system, thus allowing everyone

to breathe easier.

The Process

1. Cherokee will perform an on-site evaluation and an estimate is given based on the

amount of duct work in the structure.

2. A one or  two-man cleaning crew will come to your home or business and cut an access

panel in the duct work where the vacuum will be attached.  “We attach the vacuum to the

air-handling side of the unit, seal off the registers in the immediate area and pull each

register and push debris into the main trunk lines” says Allen Etue of Cherokee Carpet &

Air Duct Cleaning.

3. Next, the cleaning of the duct work begins.  High pressure air

wash that moves debris with 165 to 190 pounds per square inch

(psi) blasts is used.  If the dirt is really stuck on, brushes will be run

through to loosen it first. 

4. The debris-laden air is sucked into the vacuum at 2,500 cubic feet

per minute (cfm) which contains a HEPA filter.  Caught in the filter

will be the mold, dust, dander and treasures that have been residing

in the air system. 

You have to have someone who is very compulsive about what they are doing, making

sure all of the routes of the system are cleaned.  Allergists say that the cleaning process

shouldn’t pose any problems for people with respiratory problems. 

After the cleaning, the duct work is sanitized with a Conditioner Biocide.  The compound

is sprayed into the duct work.  It is used to kill bacteria and mold which may have been

growing undetected.  When we do sanitizing it is contained within the duct work.