LESLIE: Earl in Wisconsin finds The Money Pit on WCLO and you’re already thinking air conditioning, huh? How can we help?
EARL: I have air conditioning installed through the attic of the house. Had an energy audit done. They told me the pipes – they’re flexible pipes – in the attic were leaking. They’re wrapped with insulation. They’re covered with insulation. How do I go about finding it?
TOM: Well, the energy audit should have pinpointed this. It sounds to me like what you’re talking about here is flex duct. And the flex duct, where it attaches to the solid duct, is probably not sealed very, very well. Now, the best way to find this is by physically doing an inspection. Can you access the attic? Is it big enough for you to walk around or crawl around in, Earl?
EARL: Absolutely.
TOM: Well, what you’re looking for are the connections between the flex duct and the solid duct. I would turn the air conditioning system on or, you know, if it’s still a little too chilly, just turn the fan on full blast. Go up there and inspect the connections between the flex duct and the solid duct. They’re usually attached with what kind of looks like a long zip tie around it. And that’s going to probably be leaking in some of the areas and you may have to cut the tie off and then put a new one on. You can buy those at an HVAC supply heating, heating supply, air conditioning supply place or at a home center. You want to get a good, solid connection between the flex duct and the solid duct. And that’s most likely what’s causing this issue. And it’s pretty easy to fix once you see the area that’s leaking and it’s easy to feel this area with your hand as you get into that space.
Earl, thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT.
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