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A residential attic with exposed wooden rafters, a flexible silver HVAC duct running along the floor, and an air handler unit lit by a beam of light from a small window.

Duct Cleaning in Champaign, IL

Tell us about your home, and a licensed contractor who covers Champaign County will get in touch.

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Step 1 of 3: Equipment
A metal HVAC air handler with attached flexible and rigid ductwork installed in an unfinished attic with exposed wooden rafters and fiberglass insulation.

Eight months of heat means eight months pulling dust through your ducts

Your furnace runs October through May here, close to 21°F on a winter night. That is eight months of air moving through the same ductwork, picking up dust and pet hair and whatever settled in the vents over summer, and pushing it right back into the rooms you live in.

Champaign County sees its share of wind and winter storms, 223 damaging wind events and 11 winter storms over the last ten years. When storms knock out power, furnaces and blowers stop and start again, and that push of air can stir up whatever has settled in the ducts since the last time they ran clean.

8 months
October through May, your furnace pushes air through your ducts
4 months
June through September, your air conditioner does the same
Isometric cutaway illustration of a house interior showing round metal ductwork, air vents, mechanical units, and fixtures including a toilet and sink, under a shingled gable roof.
Your ducts carry heat October through May and cooled air June through September.

NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals

How often should air ducts be cleaned?
There is no set schedule that fits every home. If anyone in the house has allergies, if you have pets, or if you have had renovation work that left dust behind, that is reason to clean sooner rather than later. If you can see dust coming out of the vents when the furnace kicks on, that is your sign, regardless of when the last cleaning was. A contractor can look inside your ducts and tell you what they actually need.
Is air duct cleaning worth it?
It is worth it when there is a real problem to fix, like heavy dust buildup, a pest issue in the ducts, or a musty smell when the air runs. It will not lower your heating bill or fix an allergy on its own. What it does is remove what has settled inside the ducts so the air moving through your house is not carrying it into every room. A contractor can look at your ducts and tell you whether cleaning will actually help your situation.
What does air duct cleaning involve?
A technician connects a vacuum system to your ductwork, then uses brushes or air tools to loosen dust and debris from inside the ducts while the vacuum pulls it out. Each vent gets opened and cleaned along with the main trunk lines. The furnace or air handler itself, including the blower and coil, usually gets cleaned as part of the same visit since it is all one system. Afterward the vents get sealed back up so nothing works its way back in before the system runs again.
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