Health Risks of Dirty Ducts – Commercial and Residential
“While dirty ducts don’t necessarily mean unhealthy air in your home, school or workplace, they may be contributing to larger health issues or harboring contaminants that could cause serious problems for people with respiratory health conditions, autoimmune disorders or some environmental allergies. This is a direct quote from a duct cleaning association.
Other People’s Cells: An average of 30,000 skin cells are shed every hour per human; circulated around multiple times per day in the vents. No matter whether at work or home, imagine how many skin cells are generated by each person inhabiting the space every day. Plus no one wants to breathe in their co-worker’s dander.
Direct quote from National Research Council: “In Canada, much of what we do in a day takes place indoors — at home, at the office, inside schools, theatres, shopping malls, restaurants and other enclosed spaces. Good indoor air quality (IAQ), besides an appropriate lighting and acoustical environment, is important to the health and well-being of Canadians. Poor indoor air quality may cause sickness like asthma, allergies and cancer, and discomfort leading to absenteeism and loss of productivity.”
Ewww… Who was in that space before you? It is one thing to be breathing in dirty air from people you know, but what or who was in there before you? In an office environment previous historical use of DDT and crazy pesticides and cleaning solutions, or other banned substances could be lurking about, as well as other dirt, debris and even dander. Eek? Now more than ever is a good time to call the health and safety hotline and ask when the last time the vents were cleaned.
Contaminated or unclean air in the home is one of the biggest issues facing homeowners in North America today. Shockingly, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) lists indoor air pollution as the fourth biggest threat to overall health. One thing is clear: this is an issue that cannot be ignored!
Allergies, coughing, sneezing, runny nose, itchy eyes etc – When air ducts are left uncleaned for long periods of time, the quality of air is affected, along with the overall health of you and your family members. In fact, there are many health problems that have been linked to unclean air. They include: constant cold-like symptoms (like coughing, sneezing, or a runny nose), allergic reactions, difficulty breathing, respiratory issues, asthma, sinus problems, along with headaches and migraines. These health problems can be serious, particularly for young children and senior citizens. Our clients often remark about how their allergy reactions have reduced significantly.
Odours in the Air (including potential dead critters) – That mystery smell isn’t from nothing; there is something, somewhere putting up a stink; whether it be a mouse, rat, bird (even skunk or racoon) – or even excrement critter, pet or believe it or not human (by kids, seniors etc).If it’s not mammal based, a musty or cheesy smell could be from mould, bacteria a nest of some sort or other blockage of a vent, duct or somewhere in the system. Oddly common on new home builds is pee in bottles from contractors who didn’t want to use the porta-potty and chucked it down the vents. While not odour related, some other blockages can be from using vents as a storage compartment for firearms, cash, contraban, jewellery, pet toys, kid toys.
Whole Facility Sanitization – Perfect for the Workplace or Home – Health Canada Approved Benefect is a great option for extra precautionary or mandatory steps. Unlike other disinfectants, Benefect is 100% natural and made in Canada! The formulators created it because of their son with environmental issues; which is now used commercially worldwide.
Benefect Botanical Disinfectant: (from their website Benefect.com)
Kills Over 99.99% of Germs
Virucidal (HIV-1)
Bactericidal (Including MRSA)
Fungicidal, Tuberculocidal (Mycobacteria)
Made From Plant Extracts
Pleasant Aromatherapeutic Vapors
No Synthetic Fragrances, Dyes or Bleach
No Cautions/Warnings on The Label or MSDS Sheets
No Rinse or Wipe Required
What would be sanitized?
Sanitization with fogging machine – walls, carpets, floors, beds
Duct work can also be sanitized as the air in the home recirculates
Note: it is recommended the ducts be cleaned first prior to this unless they have been recently cleaned.
(otherwise it would just be spraying on top of the dust and debris already in the system)
Condos and small dwellings starting at $150 – approx $550 for detached homes depending on size.
Commercial applications starting at $550+ depending on needs and size.
Safety Considerations:
Potential fire hazard: The average household produces around 40Lbs of dirt, dust, debris, dander, dust mites, mold spores and pet hair etc per year. This excess debris can not only build up on the heat exchanger and is a fire hazard, but also encourages creepy crawly critters such as dust mites, pathogens, molds, and other health and allergen triggers.
Clothes not drying? Too Much Humidity? Could be a blocked dryer vent. Clothes dryers in residential homes are responsible for approx 16,000 fires per year. Even if you clean your filter every time, particles can still build up in the hose which vents to the exterior of the house or dwelling.
Energy Consumption Considerations:
Using too much energy: Excess dust and debris can put undue stress on heating and cooling systems. If your furnace or air conditioner is working harder, it is using more energy. This increases expenses unnecessarily, and furthermore is decreasing the potential life of the heating and air units themselves. Ensure your heating and cooling systems at your home or business are operating at peak efficiency – by replacing an inefficient furnace can save up to 50% on energy bills.
Pets & Furry Companions: Pets at home and pets at work all contribute to reduced indoor air quality, they are often more sensitive than humans, so for both of your and their sake, it’s good to consider regular duct cleaning. We love our pets, but they do contribute immensely to the amount of dander, pet hair, fleas etc circulating through the system. This escalates almost exponentially by the addition of each fur baby.
Other Indoor Air Quality Considerations:
Anytime something is ripped down, pulled up, or installed, it creates dust and throws debris into the air. Even the most diligent of workers cannot clean up every bit of drywall dust, sawdust, or construction materials. These particles are then pulled into the ductwork – leading to unclean air in the home. We have seen construction materials itself (and more) that have been swept into the ductwork or vents leading to clogs and odors and worse.
Recommended by Health Canada is to “remove pollutants that are already in the air through the use of air cleaners or filtration. Filtration is most effective for pollutants such as particles and has been shown to be an effective method for reducing the risk of particle-related mortality.”
Even Health Canada states that the “second most important strategy for improving IAQ is to ensure efficient ventilation to introduce outside air into the building and exhaust polluted indoor air in order to remove or dilute it.” canada.ca – The first being minimizing the sources of indoor air contamination.
ABOUT US:
We are a Canadian Duct Cleaning Company! Based in Toronto and servicing Southern Ontario for over 20 years.
Canaduct offers fast efficient appointments for our commercial and residential clients for these services:
Commercial duct cleaning
Air vent cleaning,
Ventilation cleaning
Dryer duct cleaning
HVAC maintenance
Boiler Systems
Commercial Humidifiers
Indoor Air Quality Specialists
Odour removal Specialists (powerful yet all natural treatments)
Fire or Flood restoration
Ensure your heating and cooling systems at your home or business are operating at peak efficiency. Our air duct quality service will help you breathe clean, healthy air at work or home; saving money on energy costs and can help improve the bottom line.
Do you have multiple workplace facilities, franchises, homes or offices?
Canaduct’s broad range of coverage provides a huge duct cleaning service area in Southern Ontario including the Greater Toronto Area. No need to deal with multiple companies, technicians and locations. One call will solve it all.
Types of Buildings:
Warehouses
Offices: high rise, low rise and ground floor
Retail stores & Grocery stores
Medical buildings & Hospitals
Schools; Elementary, Secondary, Public, Private; Day-cares
Seniors homes, long term care facilities, retirement homes
Real estate buildings & holdings, high rises, rental properties
Townhouses, walk-ups, low rise, homes, condos, lofts
Call us if your building isn’t listed above, we can make arrangements.
For all your options, contact our office. For an instant free estimate, call us at 416-410-3777 fill out the form below or see our locations on our contact us page:
Get An Instant Air Duct Cleaning Quote Now!Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.
Name *
First
Last
Email *
Confirm Email
Phone Number (in case of email fail):
City: *
Name of Company (if applicable)
Approx Sq Ft of Home/Office: *
Services of Interest: (Check All That Apply)
Duct Cleaning
Sanitization Whole Home Hard Surfaces + Ducts
Commercial Sanitization (Business Warehouse Etc)
Dryer Vent, Bathroom Vents
Air Conditioner Maintenance or Repair
Furnace Cleaning
Furnace Repair
HVAC Annual Service Contract
Odour Removal
Air Quality Testing
Boiler Systems
Air Conditioner Installation
Furnace Installation
Humidifier Installation
HEPA or Air Purification Installation
Full Commercial Inspection and Evaluation HVAC & Air Quality (for Commercial and Office Properties)
Other - please describe in additional information box
Additional Information
Name
Submit
Comments