How to Clean In-Home Air Ducts

Clean your air ducts to improve your home's air quality.

Cleaning the air ducts in your home is an essential part of maintaining good air quality throughout your living space. It rids your air of a large amount of irritants such as smoke, pollen and mold spores. If you do not clean your air ducts it allows the pollutants to stay in the ducts and transfer along with the air that is moving through your house, whether it is new air or stale air. Some professional air duct cleaners use a disinfectant to run through the ducts to destroy all bacteria. Although it is best to hire a professional, you can clean some of the particles from your air ducts yourself.

Things You'll Need

• Screwdriver
• Rag
• Cleaning brush
• Vacuum cleaner with attachment hose

Instructions

1. Clear the area on the floor surrounding the air ducts so that small objects do not fall in once you remove the covers.

2. Remove the return-air grille plates, or air duct covers, using a screwdriver to unscrew the screws, and place to the side. These are necessary in order to help the air get back to the furnace for proper balancing and circulation.

3. Wipe the inside walls of the air duct using a rag and a cleaning brush to remove the dirt. Be careful not to use a vacuum cleaner or vacuum cleaner attachment directly on the walls because the pressure can be too strong and may damage the walls.

4. Reach inside the duct with a vacuum cleaner hose, reaching as far as you can go, and suck the dust, dirt and other particles as best and as close as you can without touching the walls.

5. Vacuum the plates before attaching them back onto the ducts to ensure that any particles that may have escaped during the cleaning process are caught and removed from the grille plates. Replace the return-air grille plates and screw in the screws.

References

• Repair Home: Do It Yourself Air Duct Cleaning
• Ask the Builder: HVAC Return Air Ducting