We've got central AC with the blower in a closet in the house. Recently
we noticed that where the ductwork heads up into the attic it's all
turning black and looks like it may be mold. We had one AC guy tell us
it would cost over $1000 to clean up.

Is this correct? I don't want to fall victim to a scam. Can we take
care of this ourselves?

Thanks for the input.

Is the black on the inside of the duct or on the outside? And is this sheet
metal duct?

wrote in message
ups.com...
We've got central AC with the blower in a closet in the house. Recently
we noticed that where the ductwork heads up into the attic it's all
turning black and looks like it may be mold. We had one AC guy tell us
it would cost over $1000 to clean up.

Is this correct? I don't want to fall victim to a scam. Can we take
care of this ourselves?

Thanks for the input.

It's on the outside. Runs from the top of the blower to the ceiling.
I'm guessing sheet. It's like a stiff insulation blanket. Thanks.




Hi Ho Silver wrote:
Is the black on the inside of the duct or on the outside? And is this sheet
metal duct?

wrote in message
ups.com...
We've got central AC with the blower in a closet in the house. Recently
we noticed that where the ductwork heads up into the attic it's all
turning black and looks like it may be mold. We had one AC guy tell us
it would cost over $1000 to clean up.

Is this correct? I don't want to fall victim to a scam. Can we take
care of this ourselves?

Thanks for the input.

To clarify, it's not sheet metal (at least what's visible). It's on
something like an insulation blanket aroung the duct.

wrote in message
oups.com...
To clarify, it's not sheet metal (at least what's visible). It's on
something like an insulation blanket aroung the duct.


This is Turtle.

If it is on the ouitside of the duct work. You being scammed. If this Mold is on
the inside of the duct it could cost to get it out.

TURTLE

So I need to pull apart the duct work to check?

Use liquid detergent in water to wash the outside of the duct
(insulation). If it is less than 10 square feet that is all you need
to do. You can add a little clorox if no one in your house is
sensitive to the smell.

The real problem is that mold is a moisture problem. Why is there
moisture on the outside of the duct? Is there air leakage around where
the duct goes through the ceiling? Do you have a roof leak dripping
down on the duct in the attic? Is your blower speed set too low? Do
you have a dirty air filter restricting air flow. Do you have a
restrictive h(high efficiency) air filter? Are you running exhaust
fans constantly, which pulls humid outside air into the house to
replace the air you exhaust out? Are you running your indoor blower on
continuous - that will increase your indoor relative humidity 10 to
15%. Do you have an oversized AC? Do you have a plumbing leak? Do
you have a damp crawlspace or basement?

Finding out where the moisture is coming from requires answers to these
questions and more and requires a compentent tech. You have to look
for one of those, most techs have no clue when it comes to humidity!
If you clean up the mold and don't fix the moisture problem, the mold
will just come back!

Good luck

Stretch

Can we take care of this ourselves?

What's to take care of? Do you have any evidence that this is harming you
in any way? The planet is covered in mold.