Most homeowners don’t think twice about cleaning their HVAC ducts. In fact, most homeowners don’t even think once about it — huge mistake. At the same time, hiring a company to do this for you can be risky. There are a lot of scams going on out there right now, so here’s how to protect yourself and get the maintenance your system needs.
When to Clean
It’s a good idea to clean when you have never done it before and when you know that it wasn’t done by the homeowner after a renovation, after an animal has been living with you for more than a year or when there is suspected or confirmed infestation of rats or other vermin, when there is mold, contaminants, or someone in your family suffers from an unexplained illness.
These licensed and insured technicians, for example, are experts in cleaning systems where there is a suspected problem involving contaminates or animals. Always ask about the technician’s experience as well as company certifications or special overall experience cleaning up the type of problem you’re experiencing.
Get Full Service Cleaning
Don’t settle for duct cleaning only. Make sure the company is cleaning everything in the HVAC system. Cleaning just the ducts leaves other important parts of the system dirty, which can fail to solve the problem, make the ducts prematurely dirty again, and can ultimately just cost you more money down the road in cleaning fees.
Welcoming Morning by Erin Nekervis, on Flickr. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 2.0 Generic License.
Get References
Always get references for the company you’re about to let into your home. Most companies will gladly hand you a list of satisfied customers — ditch that list. A company will never give you unsatisfied customers, and what you’re looking for is whether people are, overall, happy with the service detail of the company.
So, get a personal referral from a trusted friend or hop onto Angie’s List and check reviews for the company you’re thinking of hiring.
You want an objective accounting of the type of service performed and an evaluation of what was done, the thoroughness of the job, the professionalism of the company and staff, the price charged for the service, and the number of successful jobs. A ratio of satisfied to unsatisfied customers is also a good piece of information to have.
Get at Least 5 Estimates
Most people tell you to get 3 estimates. Wrong. Get at least 5. Market prices can vary pretty wildly, and the more estimates you get, the better (within reason). Of course, you don’t have to get 100 estimates, but between 10 and 20 will give you an objective estimation of what you get for the money.
Avoid Gimmicks and Marketing
Most companies’ marketing today is gimmick-driven. Ads for $79 “whole house cleaning” are usually scams or at least very misleading. At most, you’ll get a perfunctory cleaning of the duct system. At worse, you’ll get the old bait and switch, where a company tries to upsell you on other services or leaves you stranded half-way through the job, demanding more money to do a proper cleaning.
Make Sure Your Company is Certified
Your company should be certified by the National Air Duct Cleaners Association (NADCA) which sets standards for HVAC cleaning.
Beware of some cleaners making claims about EPA certification. The EPA doesn’t certify duct cleaners. Finally, ask about relevant licensing and insurance in your state and make sure the company you’re hiring is legal and compliant.
Cindy R. Odell works as an HVAC repair person. She enjoys writing about living comfortably no matter what the weather. Her posts appear on many homeowner and DIY blog sites.
