Hello,

We're planning to have air duct cleaning done soon, and I've read
through some advertisements and have more questions than answers.

#1. One guy claims that they use a 200HP "Monster Vac" - a unit on
the truck of a car that stays outside the house, and is thus "mess
free". They say that they're better than others because other
companies use hand-held or indoor vacuums that are not as powerful and
might leave some dust inside the house. Is that true?? Is the
outdoor, truck-powered unit better than indoor ones?

#2. This guy (with the Monster Vac) says that in order to access the
duct system from the outside, they need to create an "access door" or
an "access panel" (for an additional charge). Could anyone explain
what this is, please? How damaging is it to the house/duct system?

#3. They offer sanitizing for additional $40. Do you know what
chemicals they use? How effective is it? Will this solution be
spread around the air in the house once the AC is turned on?

#4. This same guy also told me that there is no such license for Air
Duct Cleaning (in Nassau County, NY, anyway), and since their company
only does Air Duct Cleaning, they are not licensed. He underlined
several times that it's not because they don't want to you can't get
one, but because there is no such license. He says that other
companies have licenses because they offer other services that require
licenses. But since this guy offers no other services, he's ok
without a license. IS THAT TRUE?

Thank you so much for your replies! I greatly appreciate your help!!

Elana

I posted a similar question about a month ago and many of the posters said
is was basically a waste of money.

I had it done anyway because my house is 50+ years old and I have 2 dogs, so
I find alot of hair in the filter.

My cost was $150 for a one heater unit, all ducts and returns included. Plus
I did get the deodorizing/sanitizing done, but that was given at no
additional charge.

For my access point they just uncrimped the seal at the end of one of my
main outlets near the unit. When they were done they simply put it back on
and sealed it.
I would imagine if they couldn't do that they would have cut an access hole
in the duct and then closed it back up when finished. If they do this to
your system make sure they close AND seal it.

They also have brushes that they can put into the ducts to clean break loose
anything that may be on the walls of your ducts.

After having it done he showed me the difference in the before and after and
it was sufficient in my mind to put out the money.
I also found less dirt in my filter the first time I changed it since I had
them cleaned.


"elanamig" wrote in message
ups.com...
Hello,

We're planning to have air duct cleaning done soon, and I've read
through some advertisements and have more questions than answers.

#1. One guy claims that they use a 200HP "Monster Vac" - a unit on
the truck of a car that stays outside the house, and is thus "mess
free". They say that they're better than others because other
companies use hand-held or indoor vacuums that are not as powerful and
might leave some dust inside the house. Is that true?? Is the
outdoor, truck-powered unit better than indoor ones?

#2. This guy (with the Monster Vac) says that in order to access the
duct system from the outside, they need to create an "access door" or
an "access panel" (for an additional charge). Could anyone explain
what this is, please? How damaging is it to the house/duct system?

#3. They offer sanitizing for additional $40. Do you know what
chemicals they use? How effective is it? Will this solution be
spread around the air in the house once the AC is turned on?

#4. This same guy also told me that there is no such license for Air
Duct Cleaning (in Nassau County, NY, anyway), and since their company
only does Air Duct Cleaning, they are not licensed. He underlined
several times that it's not because they don't want to you can't get
one, but because there is no such license. He says that other
companies have licenses because they offer other services that require
licenses. But since this guy offers no other services, he's ok
without a license. IS THAT TRUE?

Thank you so much for your replies! I greatly appreciate your help!!

Elana

On May 2, 11:14 am, "Postal68" wrote:
I posted a similar question about a month ago and many of the posters said
is was basically a waste of money.

You asked if cleaning the ducts would improve the air flow, and you
were told not to expect that. As for a the cleaning itself, it is
absurd to suggest that it would be a waste of money. If the ducts have
an inch of dirt in them, is it a waste? Do you vacuum your house?

I posted about my experience, and I didn't think it was a waste of
time at all. If you did it once every year, it would be a waste.

As far as the question of disinfecting from the OP, they shouldn't
expect miracles, but the disinfectant will disinfect what it reaches.
If the cause of mold or whatever remains, then the disinfectant will
have a temporary effect.

Elana;
The company I used was Cunningham. The do residental, commercial
etc.

The price I got from them was 300.00

Cheaper than others (at least around here) but then again they were
here for about 4 - 5 hours doing
their job. The really did pull allot of dirt out of the intake
registers, more than I expected.

Overall I was happy with the job. I was thinking of doing the job
with the shopvac but
for two guys to work that long 300.00 wasnt exactly outragous.

Tom


On May 3, 10:38 am, Nexus7 wrote:
On May 2, 11:14 am, "Postal68" wrote:

I posted a similar question about a month ago and many of the posters said
is was basically a waste of money.

You asked if cleaning the ducts would improve the air flow, and you
were told not to expect that. As for a the cleaning itself, it is
absurd to suggest that it would be a waste of money. If the ducts have
an inch of dirt in them, is it a waste? Do you vacuum your house?

I posted about my experience, and I didn't think it was a waste of
time at all. If you did it once every year, it would be a waste.

As far as the question of disinfecting from the OP, they shouldn't
expect miracles, but the disinfectant will disinfect what it reaches.
If the cause of mold or whatever remains, then the disinfectant will
have a temporary effect.

Elana;
I am in Nassau County myself. Anywho I had the whole thing
done a few years ago. The guys I had used a big vacuum outside
the house on a truck. They ran big vacuum hoses to my basement
cut a hole into the duct by the furnace and made some suction.
They went all around the house removed the ducts and went in
with to them with big brushes. Areas that they couldnt do
they either removed the endcap or made a access hole. Later
on they sealed everything up and that was it.

I think it was 100 and change for it.

Tom



On May 2, 11:55 am, elanamig wrote:
Hello,

We're planning to have air duct cleaning done soon, and I've read
through some advertisements and have more questions than answers.

#1. One guy claims that they use a 200HP "Monster Vac" - a unit on
the truck of a car that stays outside the house, and is thus "mess
free". They say that they're better than others because other
companies use hand-held or indoor vacuums that are not as powerful and
might leave some dust inside the house. Is that true?? Is the
outdoor, truck-powered unit better than indoor ones?

#2. This guy (with the Monster Vac) says that in order to access the
duct system from the outside, they need to create an "access door" or
an "access panel" (for an additional charge). Could anyone explain
what this is, please? How damaging is it to the house/duct system?

#3. They offer sanitizing for additional $40. Do you know what
chemicals they use? How effective is it? Will this solution be
spread around the air in the house once the AC is turned on?

#4. This same guy also told me that there is no such license for Air
Duct Cleaning (in Nassau County, NY, anyway), and since their company
only does Air Duct Cleaning, they are not licensed. He underlined
several times that it's not because they don't want to you can't get
one, but because there is no such license. He says that other
companies have licenses because they offer other services that require
licenses. But since this guy offers no other services, he's ok
without a license. IS THAT TRUE?

Thank you so much for your replies! I greatly appreciate your help!!

Elana

On May 2, 12:47 pm, wrote:

I am in Nassau County myself.

Tom

Tom, would you, by any chance, be able to give a reference?

Thanks,
Elana

I'll check my files for the name of the company when I get home
later on today.

Some say its not worth it. To me it was. After 50 years of
never being cleaning the amount of animal hair, dust and dirt was
worth getting out of the system. In the past the house smelled bad
when the system was first used in the heating season. After the
cleaning
that all went away. I will say the returns are the most important
vents to clean. They suck in all the stuff in the air. The heating
vents
themselves are basically clean air (they pass through multiple filters
in
my home)

Tom


On May 2, 12:58 pm, elanamig wrote:
On May 2, 12:47 pm, wrote:

I am in Nassau County myself.

Tom

Tom, would you, by any chance, be able to give a reference?

Thanks,
Elana

elanamig wrote:
Hello,

We're planning to have air duct cleaning done soon

snip

Elana

Absolutely, positively, definitely a waste of money. Might possibly be
worth it if you're living in a remodeled sawmill or foundry. Sure you
can find a smidgen of dirt in all ductwork, but it is light years away
from being detrimental to your health or cleanliness.
Get the best estimate you can and instead of having the work done,
send that money to a charity of your choice. That way the $$ will
actually do some good.
Cheers,

Joe

On May 2, 3:23 pm, Joe wrote:

Absolutely, positively, definitely a waste of money.
Joe

I guess this is more of a comfort issue. It's not that terribly
expensive, and our ducts do look quite dirty from what I've seen when
opening the registers. We recently bought this house, so I have no
idea when/how the ducts were cleaned the last time. Having a "fresh"
start will give me some peace of mind.

Elana

elanamig wrote:
Hello,

We're planning to have air duct cleaning done soon, and I've read
through some advertisements and have more questions than answers.

#1. One guy claims that they use a 200HP "Monster Vac" - a unit on
the truck of a car that stays outside the house, and is thus "mess
free". They say that they're better than others because other
companies use hand-held or indoor vacuums that are not as powerful and
might leave some dust inside the house. Is that true?? Is the
outdoor, truck-powered unit better than indoor ones?

#2. This guy (with the Monster Vac) says that in order to access the
duct system from the outside, they need to create an "access door" or
an "access panel" (for an additional charge). Could anyone explain
what this is, please? How damaging is it to the house/duct system?

#3. They offer sanitizing for additional $40. Do you know what
chemicals they use? How effective is it? Will this solution be
spread around the air in the house once the AC is turned on?

#4. This same guy also told me that there is no such license for Air
Duct Cleaning (in Nassau County, NY, anyway), and since their company
only does Air Duct Cleaning, they are not licensed. He underlined
several times that it's not because they don't want to you can't get
one, but because there is no such license. He says that other
companies have licenses because they offer other services that require
licenses. But since this guy offers no other services, he's ok
without a license. IS THAT TRUE?

Thank you so much for your replies! I greatly appreciate your help!!

Elana


First answer this question "Why do I think I need the ducts cleaned?"
While it would seem logical that they would need cleaning and certainly the
duct cleaning industry makes every effort to tell everyone that they need to
have them cleaned or terrible things will happen, in reality 97.52% of the
time it is a total waste of time and money.

--
Joseph Meehan

Dia 's Muire duit

"elanamig" wrote in message
ups.com...
Hello,

We're planning to have air duct cleaning done soon, and I've read
through some advertisements and have more questions than answers.

#1. One guy claims that they use a 200HP "Monster Vac" - a unit on
the truck of a car that stays outside the house, and is thus "mess
free". They say that they're better than others because other
companies use hand-held or indoor vacuums that are not as powerful and
might leave some dust inside the house. Is that true?? Is the
outdoor, truck-powered unit better than indoor ones?

If all they do is use a vacuum, then I doubt it will do much good. When I
had mine done, they stuffed an air hose down the "house-end" of the air
vents. On the end of the hose was a swirling head with a few pieces of
rubber to spin around & loosen up the dust & dirt. At the "furnace-end"
they attached some kind of vacuum that then sucked all the dirt out kicked
up by the air hose thingy.