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How to Choose a Contractor to Clean Furnace & Air Ducts

If you are a home or business owner, the safety and health of your family or employees should be a top priority.

A great way to keep everyone safe is to have your air ducts cleaned every two years.

Those who choose to delay cleaning their air ducts increase the chance of:

mold growth,
vermin infestation,
and excessive dust and debris.

The best way to ensure your indoor air quality, and that your furnace is efficient. Is to hire a qualified duct cleaning contractor.

This becomes even more important for commercial air duct cleaning. Due to the knowledge required.

Below are 5 questions to be sure to ask when hiring a furnace and duct cleaning contractor.

How long have they been in business?
Do they have positive reviews?
Can the contractor provide you with references?
Can the company show proof of NADCA membership?
Will the contracting company be doing the work? Or will they subcontract?

Now that we have discussed the best process for choosing your contractor. Here’s why you should choose Klean King Furnace & Duct Cleaning for your next air duct or HVAC cleaning.

We have over 35 years of experience in the industry.
You can read our reviews.
.
We are proud members of the NADCA, and QUADCA certified.
We do not sub-contract. We are local. We hire and train local employees as our technicians.

Our certified technicians will show up on time and deliver professional cleaning. Klean King is also insured & bonded. We have state-of-the-art trucks. Equipped to clean any size of the ventilation system.

Prevent serious air quality issues and maintain healthy indoor air quality. With regular furnace and duct cleaning.

Give us a call today or book an appointment.

Air duct cleaning and the effects of indoor air pollution

Indoor air pollution is a key contributor to disease among children. Children, with developing respiratory systems are more vulnerable to dust particles, allergens and other airborne toxins that are emitted from everything from paint to plastics to household dust and mold spores that accumulate inside our homes.

Some of the most common sources of indoor air pollution include:

Secondhand smoke

Secondhand smoke is a complex mixture of chemical compounds, many of which are considered carcinogenic and are harmful to all people, but especially children. In fact, the vaporized compounds in secondhand smoke can be more harmful than those in firsthand smoke.

Heating Pollutants

In Canada, our homes are primarily heated with safe heating appliances, such as furnaces burning natural gas or propane, but these “safe” appliances are only safe if they are in proper working order. Things like cracked heat exchangers, other damaged components or improper venting can all lead to health hazards from these appliances.

Dust accumulation leads to hot spots on the heat exchanger, which can lead to cracks, damage and the release of carbon monoxide. There are a couple practices to help ensure the safety of a home’s occupants in regards to heating pollutants. The first is to have properly maintained and non-expired smoke and carbon monoxide detectors installed on each floor of a home. The second is to ensure that the furnace is regularly cleaned and inspected to ensure dust doesn’t build up and that no visible damage or stress has occurred.

Exterior sources

If you have an attached garage, it is important to ensure that the doorway between the garage and home is properly sealed. If a vehicle, heater or other combusting appliance is run in the garage, the possibility for carbon monoxide and other exhaust gases to be present is always there. A properly installed exterior door with weather stripping and double acting hinges can ensure a proper seal between the door and the inside of the house!

Interior dust and mold accumulation

The accumulation and circulation of interior dust, allergen, mold spores and other particles can also be particularly harmful for children who suffer from prolonged exposure. Increases in the development of allergies, and increased risk and frequency of asthma attacks can both be attributed to indoor air pollution caused by dust and allergens.

Paying attention to indoor air pollution causes and minimizing risk and exposure through regular household cleaning as well as regular furnace and duct cleaning is one of the best ways to minimize exposure to harmful developmental respiratory problems in a home.

To request a free furnace cleaning quote or book your cleaning and inspection.

To learn more about furnace and duct cleaning contact us today.

What are the causes of indoor air pollution?

Indoor air pollution can cause serious health problems and is often something we overlook in our lifestyle. In this article, we will explore some of the more common causes of indoor air pollution and ways to remedy them.

Almost every home has some sources that lead to indoor air pollution, and one of the best ways to maintain clean air inside your home is with a proper cleaning routine that includes furnace and duct cleaning.

This important cleaning step, combined with practical management of some of the hazards outlined below, can help make your home healthy and safe for all the occupants.

The Effects of Dampness and Mold on Indoor Air Pollution.

Dampness and mold can promote the release of mold spores into the air. These can lead to long-term health conditions, some of which could develop into chronic conditions. One common household mold is called aspergillus, which grows on dusty and powdery food items like flour. It can cause a wide variety of conditions, from mild irritation to serious chronic diseases like asthma.

If you think you have mold or moisture problems, get an expert to deal with it. If you feel your home is damp but not moldy, it is a good idea to run your bathroom fans, especially during or after shower and bath time, and to open your windows to let your home breathe and dry out if the humidity level is lower outside.

If you live in a rental property, there are rules and regulations to keep tenants safe. Consult your family doctor and local tenant board if you think you have medical concerns from your rented property.

Heating and Cooking in the Home

In Canada, we don’t cool or heat our homes with wood or coal, so we’ll skip to gas. Burning gas can create tiny particles of nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide into the air. If you use a gas burning stove, it is advisable to ensure that you are using the exhaust fan and have a well-ventilated home. When the proper precautions are taken, these stoves do not have any practical air pollution concerns.

Another precaution is to ensure that gas connections for your gas cooking appliances are properly installed and inspected.

Electric heat through traditional burners or induction is often considered the cleanest source of heat. One thing to be aware of is burned off particulate matter from burning oils. These and other burned particulates can be a source of indoor air pollution.

Candles and Incense

These common household items seem very innocent, but in reality, they release harmful particles and pollutants as they burn. Burning incense has been linked to lung disease, so try and avoid these if possible. Burning candles result in significantly lower risk, but some fragranced candles can release harmful VOCs while they are burning. It is always good to have a well-ventilated home or an open window while burning candles.

Regular Household Dust

Regular dust circulating around the home also contributes to airborne pollution. The good news about dust is it’s easy to deal with. Regular cleaning can help reduce the amount of dust in your home by over half, and combined with regular furnace and duct cleaning, you can reduce it by an additional 30%!

How to Minimize Exposure:

The best way to minimize exposure to indoor air pollutants is to have a regular cleaning routine, and avoid the obvious hazards. Not allowing secondhand smoke, reducing the amount of burning incense, reducing perfume and aerial sprays, will all help reduce the amount of airborne contaminants significantly.

A regular cleaning routine of dusting and vacuuming, combined with a regular furnace and duct cleaning, is the best way to keep everyone in your home healthy. Curious about the effects of a good clean? We are offering free air tests with every furnace and duct cleaning booking for a limited time, so you can see just how many contaminants are no longer a threat to you and your family.

Avoid Air Duct Cleaning Scams

With so many scammers out there calling it can hurt the good companies who do call.

In our industry, (furnace and duct cleaning), most people forget they need the service. So when someone calls offering the cleaning service … they often say yes without knowing more about the company.

Here are 3 things you can do to avoid a scam.

1. Hire a Certified Professional

Even if you have never had your furnace or ductwork cleaned, don’t accept the first company that calls. Do some research. Ask a friend or family member who they have used. A little online research will lead you to any number of organizations. Organizations that offer certifications for professionals in certain industries.

Earning a certification in a trade is often a sign that the person doing the work is better trained. The company has met certain requirements to prove its skills.

Certifications relating to air duct cleaning address the training. And proves the commitment to cleaning air ducts according to a standard. This ensures that the work completed is professional.

Some certifications are often required. For contractors to even bid on projects for corporate or industrial buildings. Why should your home be any different?

2. Don’t Buy Into Too-Good-To-Be-True Offers

If you’ve seen an ultra-low-price offer. For whole-house air duct cleaning services, be wary. According to NADCA, (USA-based Association) the HVAC Inspection, Cleaning, and Restoration Association. This is one way bad companies lure customers in.

Those super-low prices most likely don’t cover the cost of the services. This means that customers can expect substandard service. Or even higher-than-expected charges.

Avoid this scam by calling a certified company. Getting an estimate for the service before any work starts. That estimate should also include a scope of work or a detail of the services. So you can know what services they’ll be providing and how they’ll be cleaning your home’s air ducts.

3. Get a Second Opinion

One trick used by scammers. Is to pretend to discover a much bigger, more expensive problem during a low-cost cleaning job. They may lie, saying they found mold and scaring homeowners into paying for them to get rid of the mold.

This tactic has been well-documented by news outlets conducting hidden camera investigations. During which the contractors make false claims about finding mold in the home. Charging homeowners more than $1,000 for a service their home doesn’t need. If a contractor warns you that they discovered mold. Call for a second opinion before agreeing to have any work done in the home.

You may start your search for a certified contractor online. Look for certified companies. Contractors that display the QUADCA (Canadian-based Association) logo on their website. This will ensure they are qualified professionals.

Check references and testimonials. See what other organizations they belong to such as BBB or Home Builder Association.

Office Air Quality Can Have Significant Impacts on Employees’ Cognition and Productivity

The air quality within an office can have significant impacts on employees’ cognitive function, including response times and ability to focus, and it may also affect their productivity, according to new research led by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

The one-year study, which included participants in offices across six countries working in a variety of fields, including engineering, real estate investment, architecture, and technology, found that increased concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and lower ventilation rates (measured using carbon dioxide (CO2) levels as a proxy) were associated with slower response times and reduced accuracy on a series of cognitive tests. The researchers noted that they observed impaired cognitive function at concentrations of PM2.5 and CO2 that are common within indoor environments.

“Our study adds to the emerging evidence that air pollution has an impact on our brain. The findings show that increases in PM2.5 levels were associated with acute reductions in cognitive function. It’s the first time we’ve seen these short-term effects among younger adults,” said Jose Guillermo Cedeño Laurent, a research fellow in the Department of Environmental Health and lead author of the study. “The study also confirmed how low ventilation rates negatively impact cognitive function. Overall, the study suggests that poor indoor air quality affects health and productivity significantly more than we previously understood.”

The study will be published online in Environmental Research Letters today (September 9, 2021).

A growing body of research has shown that indoor and outdoor air pollution diminishes cognitive function. While it is well known that air pollutants such as PM2.5 can penetrate indoor environments, few studies have focused on how indoor exposures to PM2.5 and outdoor air ventilation rates affect cognition. Cedeño-Laurent noted that this is a particularly important area of research given the high percentage of time people spend indoors, especially office workers.

To better understand the issue, the research team enrolled more than 300 office workers in cities across China, India, Mexico, Thailand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. All participants were between the ages of 18 and 65, worked at least three days a week in an office building, and had a permanent workstation within the office. Each participant’s workspace was outfitted with an environmental sensor that monitored in real-time concentrations of PM2.5 and CO2, as well as temperature and relative humidity. Additionally, each participant had a custom-designed app on their phones through which cognitive tests and surveys could be administered.

Study participants were prompted to participate in tests and surveys at prescheduled times or when the environmental sensors detected levels of PM2.5 and CO2 that fell below or exceeded certain thresholds. Two types of tests were administered: One test required employees to correctly identify the color of displayed words and was used to evaluate cognitive speed and inhibitory control—the ability to focus on relevant stimuli when irrelevant stimuli are also present. The second test consisted of basic arithmetic questions and was used to assess cognitive speed and working memory.

The study found that response times on the color-based test were slower as PM2.5 and CO2 levels increased. They also found that accuracy on the color-based test was affected by PM2.5 and CO2 levels. For the arithmetic-based test, the study found that increases in CO2 but not PM2.5 were associated with slower response times. As concentrations of both pollutants increased, however, participants completed fewer questions correctly in the allotted test time.

“The world is rightly focused on COVID-19, and strategies like better ventilation and filtration are key to slowing infectious disease transmission indoors,” said Joseph Allen, associate professor of exposure assessment of science and senior author on the study. “Our research consistently finds that the value proposition of these strategies extends to cognitive function and productivity of workers, making healthy buildings foundational to public health and business strategy moving forward.”

Article and image sourced from SciTech Daily