Restored with Premier Restoration of the Carolinas

Clean Ducts, Clear Lungs: A 3-Hour Solution for Healthier Indoor Air

• Tim Rhoades • Episode 5

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When's The Last Time Your Had Your Airducts Cleaned?

Your home's air ducts are the unseen circulation system affecting everything from your allergies to your energy bills. Tim Rhoades dives deep into this often-overlooked aspect of home maintenance, revealing why what lurks behind your vents matters more than you might think.

Most homeowners are shocked to discover that their HVAC system acts like a giant vacuum, pulling in everything that enters your home—pet dander, dust, construction debris, and allergens—and depositing it throughout your ductwork. Over time, this buildup not only recirculates through your living spaces but can potentially create conditions for mold growth and respiratory issues.

Tim breaks down the essential cleaning timeline based on your lifestyle: every 3-4 years for most homes, but more frequently (every 1-2 years) for households with pets. He shares the telltale signs your ducts need attention—excessive dust accumulation, increased sneezing, and allergy flare-ups that seem to have no other cause. The professional cleaning process itself is surprisingly efficient, typically taking just three hours for an average home, with specialized HEPA vacuum systems ensuring all contaminants are completely removed rather than redistributed.

Beyond improving your health and comfort, clean ducts can enhance your HVAC efficiency and potentially reduce energy costs. Many customers report noticeable improvements in breathing and reduced dust after service. Curious about what might be hiding in your home's ventilation system? Call Premier Restoration of the Carolinas at 888-847-2241 or visit premierrestorationofthecarolinas.com to schedule an assessment and breathe easier knowing your home's "lungs" are clean and functioning properly.

To learn more about Premier Restoration of the Carolinas visit:
https://www.PremierRestorationoftheCarolinas.com
Premier Restoration of the Carolinas
888-847-2214

Speaker 1:

Welcome to Restored with Premier Restoration of the Carolinas, where we turn floods, fires and moldy mayhem into clean slates and fresh starts, hosted by Tim Rhodes, the guy who's been knee-deep in disaster, so you don't have to be. If your home or business has been through it, don't panic, tim's here to talk recovery, restoration and everything in between. Let's get things restored.

Speaker 2:

Out of sight, out of mind, but your air ducts could be hiding dust, allergens and even mold. Tim Rhodes explains why regular air duct cleaning matters and how often to schedule it and what signs mean it's time to call in the pros. Welcome back everybody. Skip Monty, co-host slash producer, back in the studio with Mr Tim Rhodes, owner of Premier Restoration of the Carolinas. Tim, how's it going?

Speaker 3:

It's going good. How are you Skip?

Speaker 2:

Doing good. Doing good. I know this is something that you're an expert with, because you've been doing it a long time, and it's something that I've never done, but today we're going to get into the guts of the house, because clean air starts with clean ducts. So tell us when's the last time. When should you get your air ducts cleaned, and why? How often? When should you get your air ducts cleaned, and why?

Speaker 3:

How often. So it kind of depends on your lifestyle. You know if you have animals, dogs, cats. You know if you have kids, depending on where you live, live in the country live in, you know everything makes a variable for air ducts. Your system pulls everything that comes through that front door into the system which goes into the lines. You know if you have cats and dogs, all their fur, pet dander, everything goes into that system. You know most people try to clean their air ducts. You, you know, every three to four. You know three, four years People with pets. They do it every one to two. And then, you know, if you start seeing a lot of dust, start sneezing a lot, that's normally a time that you know you might want to have us come out and check it out.

Speaker 2:

Very good One to two years. With pets I get that Well. What are some of the most common contaminants that you find in residential air ducts?

Speaker 3:

You know it's pretty common when people get construction done, when they do remodels, we get a lot of construction dust and then you just get a lot of dust from living. You know, you know, people don't, people don't maybe they do realize it. You know, just everyday life creates a lot of dust and you're, you're heating an air, you're it pulls it all into the system and it settles in the lines and then you know that's where you get pet down in there and you, you know it'll start molding eventually. If, if the conditions, conditions are right, you know you start seeing dust on your furniture. It's, it's a good sign. And you start sneezing. Probably have to have somebody check it out.

Speaker 2:

Wow. Well what symptoms or signs might indicate dirty or clogged duct work Seeing dust?

Speaker 3:

Well seeing dust is one. Uh, you know sneezing allergy is going to start. You know flaring up, that's another good sign. And you know your dog walking to your front door that's another great sign dogs dogs and cats are rough on it. So, uh, if you, if you've never had it done, it's, it's worth it to get it done oh, I, I believe that.

Speaker 2:

Well, uh, what about? Uh, my wife likes to burn a lot of candles. Can that put soot in the system?

Speaker 3:

I mean I'd she she'd probably have to burn a lot of them Skip. Uh for the most part, I I don't think so, uh, but you never know. You always see stuff, so you always learn stuff every time you go out, right?

Speaker 2:

Oh well, I was hoping you'd say oh yeah, it's terrible, so I could tell her to stop burning so many candles.

Speaker 3:

But no, but you know, if you think back, a couple episodes ago we talked about soot. You know, if you, if you, if your fireplaces or your furnace soots, you know know you definitely have to have your air ducts clean then because it will get in your system then for sure now.

Speaker 3:

Can dirty ducts affect an hvac efficiency or increase your power bill well, you know it may clog up some of the internal parts of the system and you know when you do your yearly maintenance with your heating and air system, you know the guys that come out and do it. They'll tell you if they're dirty and they'll tell you if they need to be cleaned. Depending on where you are you're heating an AC, people may clean them themselves. They can take care of that for you right there. But they'll normally tell you if they're bad, because they take it apart and they see the inside of it.

Speaker 2:

Well, I would imagine, making sure that you change your filters out pretty regularly is pretty important too, I would think.

Speaker 3:

Oh, it does help. Yes, sir, it sure does.

Speaker 2:

How often should you do that?

Speaker 3:

Once a month.

Speaker 2:

Once a month, very good. How does duct cleaning tie into allergy relief or respiratory health? I guess it just cleans the air.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, I mean when we clean the air ducts we go through the lines and we scrub them and then we vacuum everything into a HEPA vac. So anything that's in that line we take it with us. It don't come back into your house. Everything goes through a HEPA filter. So we take all that dirt and dust with us and pet dander and all that stuff it goes with us. So you know, once we come in and clean your air ducts, you know it's going to be clean air coming through your system again and blowing back through your house. And you know again and blowing back through your house and and you know I've had a lot of customers tell me you know they could tell a difference after we done it breathing. You know it's, it does, it does help.

Speaker 2:

Wow, so you take, you take all the stuff you clean out and you take it with you.

Speaker 3:

Oh yes, sir, it all goes through a HEPA system. Nothing goes back in your house, wow.

Speaker 2:

Very good to know. Well, let's say, uh, I, somebody watching says, hey, you know what, I need to get my ducks cleaned. And they call you and say, please, you know, come on out. What should people expect during a duck cleaning service, like how long it takes and what to expect?

Speaker 3:

An average house which is 10 vents, two returns. That takes about three hours. We just have to go into each room and get to each vent and we, we take our machine and we run down each vent and run it back to the, down to the trunk line, and we clean the trunk lines and and we go to each one takes, you know, about three hours and and our piece of equipment's about the size of a shopping cart in a grocery store. So we just have to be able to get that thing around through your house. But other than that, so we just have to be able to get that thing around through your house.

Speaker 2:

But other than that, wow, three hours is not bad. Going to do an entire house Very good to know. Well, tim, once again, thanks for helping us breathe easier. Always good to know what's lurking behind the vents. And we'll catch you in the next episode of Restored with the Premier Restoration of the Carolinas.

Speaker 3:

All right, Thank you.

Speaker 2:

Skip, all right, thank you, tim. Have a good one you too. We'll see you next time.

Speaker 1:

Thanks for tuning in to Restored with Premier Restoration of the Carolinas. If disaster strikes, don't Google, call the pros. You can reach Tim at 888-847-2241 or visit us online at premierrestorationofthecarolinascom. We'll bring the tools, the team and maybe even the shop vac, because when things go wrong, we make it right.