To find the best company providing the best duct cleaning services, check your Yellow Pages under “duct cleaning” or contact the National Air Duct Cleaners Association (NADCA) instead. Do not assume that all duct cleaning service companies are both knowledgeable and responsible. Talk to at least two different service companies and write down their estimates each and compare before deciding whether to have your ducts cleaned by who. When the service providers come to your home, ask them to show you the problem and their ways to resolve it, which would justify you if you would really have your ducts cleaned.
Do not hire cleaners for your duct who claims about the health benefits of duct cleaning, with unsupported documents. Don’t choose duct cleaners who recommend duct cleaning as a regular part of your heating and cooling system maintenance. You should also be cautious of duct cleaners who claim to be certified by EPA.
Please, do not allow the use of chemical biocides or chemical methods unless you fully understand the pros and cons.
Check sources. Check their websites online and see their reviews or testimonies by their previous customers whether they were satisfied and did not experience any problems with their heating and cooling systems after cleaning.
Contact your county or city office of consumer affairs or local Better Business Bureau to determine if complaints have been lodged against any of the companies you are considering.
Interview potential service providers to ensure:
- they are experienced in duct cleaning and have worked and serviced systems like yours;
- they will use methods to protect you, your pets and your home from any contamination; and
- they meet with NADCA’s air duct cleaning standards.
If the service provider charges an hourly rate, request for their quotes of the number of hours or days the job will take, and ask whether there will be interruptions in between their work. Make sure the duct cleaning company you choose will present a written agreement of the total cost and range of the job before the work begins.
What to Expect from an Air Duct Cleaning Service Company
If you decide to have your ducts cleaned, the service company should have:
- Open the access ports or doors to allow the entire system to be cleaned and inspected.
- Inspect the system first before cleaning to ensure that there are no concrete materials in the heating and cooling system. Concrete materials require specific methods and should not be disrupted or removed except by specially trained and skilled contractors.
- Use vacuum equipment that depletes particles outside of the home or uses only high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA).
- Protect carpet and household equipment during working and cleaning.
- Use the well-controlled brushing of duct facades in connection with contact vacuum cleaning to displace dust and other particles.
- Use only a brush to clean the fiberglass duct board.
- Take care of protecting the ductwork, including sealing and re-insulating any passage holes the service provider may have made or used so they are tightened.
- Follow and meet NADCA’s standards for air duct cleaning and NAIMA’s suggested practice for ducts containing fiberglass lining.