How long do you have to wait until you really feel the cool breeze after turning on the AC? If the wait is too long then maybe you need to look at the air duct. An average home loses up to 30% of its conditioned air before you can actually feel it. The major cause for this is leaky air ducts.

Usually the tapes and sealants used to conjoin the duct joints and pieces do not last too long, also their life span is dependent on the way they installed. Only if they remain undamaged can they perform well for a longer time. Mostly these ducts line the attic and air leak make this area cool. Now that is no place for the conditioned air to go, but you spend a fortune on the monthly bills to cool the attic. The duct can get damaged when the attic is being lined with a number of items or when the home owner installs a cable or a phone line. During such changes in the attic if the air duct gets smashed flat the flow of conditioned air is obstructed and does not reach your home. Thus leading to waste of energy and money.

Hence repairing the ducts seems the ultimate option. There are various ways of repairing the duct at your own end if you can reach the ducts. The solid type of ducts rarely get punctured in the middle but you need to check them at the joints. Also flexible ducts can get loose or tear. These ducts can be repaired by applying water-based mastic sealant to the gap and covering up mastic tape.

The air duct leakage not only wastes scarce resources and increases the bill amount per month for nothing, but it is also very harmful for health. These leaks can create a travel path for contaminants and pathogens that seek to attack your lungs unexpectedly. This is not good news for families with babies and young children as they are easily affected by such infection.

Repairing ducts will save you some money and ensure your family with good health. In case you are unsure of the problem with the ducts you can get professional help to detect it. Hiring an Energy Audit professional for this task is the ideal thing to do. They are well trained at checking areas that lead to energy loss. They will conduct the right assessment of the energy loss. Also they provide valuable advice as to what should be done to stop the air duct leaks and suggest measure for regular maintenance. On implementing the suggestion they provide you are bound to save around 20% of the energy you lose every month.

StarEnergyAudits.com is a leading service provider for professional energy audits. Our team of qualified professionals analyze your house thoroughly and propose effective measures to reduce energy wastage. We are well known for our impeccable services in New Orleans, Louisiana and surrounding area. Call (504) 383 – 3261

Tags: ac leak, air conditioner leaks, duct leakage

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 6th, 2011 at 9:30 am and is filed under Home Energy Audit, Home Weatherization. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.