About Duct Systems

At Star Quality Air Conditioning, Inc., we understand how to perfect your duct system to better promote energy savings. If you have a leaky duct you paying extra to keep the parts of your home that you don’t occupy heated during the winter and cooled during the summer months.

With ducts that aren’t sealed properly you making you air conditioner and heater work harder and you never get the benefits from it. To keep the extra cool and heated air flowing your systems are being forced to pump out more air than the normally, would which will cause additional wear and tear resulting in early failure. Nothing is worst than being stuck in the middle of the winter without an operational heater.

By preformed a leak check on your ducts you can insure that your family and reap the benefits of your air conditioner and heater, instead of your unoccupied attic or the space in your walls.

To find out if your ducts need cleaning, pull off some supply and return registers and take a look. If a new furnace is being installed, you should probably invest in a duct cleaning at the same time, because chances are the new blower will be more powerful than the old one and will stir up a lot of dust.

Professional duct cleaners tout such benefits as cleaner indoor air, longer equipment life and lower energy costs. Clean HVAC systems can also perform more efficiently, which may decrease energy costs, and last longer, reducing the need for costly replacement or repairs. Cleaning has little effect on air quality, primarily because most indoor dust drifts in from the outdoors. But it does get rid of the stuff that mold and bacteria grow on, and that means less of it gets airborne, a boon to allergy sufferers.

Learn More About Duct Sealing

Learn More About Benefits of Duct Sealing

Some Information provided by www.energystar.gov

Seal your heating and cooling ducts

Ducts that move air to-and-from a forced air furnace, central air conditioner, or heat pump are often big energy wasters. Sealing and insulating ducts can improve the efficiency of your heating and cooling system by as much as 20 percent — and sometimes much more.

Focus first on sealing ducts that run through the attic, crawlspace, unheated basement, or garage. Use duct sealant (mastic) or metal-backed (foil) tape to seal the seams and connections of ducts. After sealing the ducts in those spaces, wrap the ducts in insulation to keep them from getting hot in the summer or cold in the winter. Next, seal ducts that you can access in the heated or cooled part of the house.

See our Duct Sealing brochure (1.13MB) for more information.

Consider installing ENERGY STAR qualified heating and cooling equipment

If your HVAC equipment is more than 10 years old or not keeping your house comfortable, you should have it looked at by a professional HVAC contractor. If it is not performing efficiently or needs upgrading, consider replacing it with a unit that has earned the ENERGY STAR. Depending on where you live, replacing your old heating and cooling equipment with ENERGY STAR qualified equipment can cut your annual energy bill by nearly $200. But before you invest in a new HVAC system, make sure that you have addressed the big air leaks in your house and the duct system. Sometimes, these are the real sources of problems rather than your HVAC equipment.

Remember that getting the proper size and a quality installation is essential to getting the most from your new equipment. When replacing HVAC equipment, bigger doesn't always mean better. If the unit is too large for your home, you will be less comfortable and might actually have higher utility bills. Oversized equipment will operate in short run cycles, not allowing the unit to reach efficient operation and remove humidity from the air — resulting in an uncomfortable home. Your contractor should determine the right size for your HVAC equipment by using ACCA/ANSI Manual J or an equivalent sizing calculation tool that takes into account specific information about your home.

Learn More About ENERGY STAR Products

Learn More about ENERGY STAR and Home Improvement

Some Information provided by www.energystar.gov