Duct Cleaning: Is it Worth It?

LESLIE: Sherry in Iowa, you’ve got The Money Pit. How can we help you today?

SHERRY: Been living in my house for 20 years and the house is probably 50 years old. Is it worthwhile to have the air ducts or the furnace ducts cleaned?

TOM: Unless you’re having a problem. I mean what most people drop the ball is that they don’t replace their filters soon enough. And so, if you’ve not done that, if you’ve not replaced your filter recently, then that would be the first step. But I don’t think you necessarily have to get your ducts cleaned. There’s so – such a wide variety of quality when it comes to air filters for heating-and-cooling systems. And I would just tell you to invest in a very good-quality filter and make sure you change that on a regular basis.

SHERRY: The furnace guy comes in the spring and the fall and he changes it then.

TOM: Yeah. But that’s not enough. Depending on the type of filter you have, you probably are going to be changing that filter at least every couple of months. So probably at least, the minimum, four times a year and probably maybe even more frequently than that.

And the other part of this is making sure you use the exact right-size filter and that it’s situated properly in the ducts. Because if not, air and dust is going to go around it. But if you put the right kind of filter in your system, the air is going to be cleaner as a result.

SHERRY: OK. Thank you.