Increased Benefits and Performance of Duct Sealing

One of top priorities in any home efficiency project is duct sealing. On average, HVAC ducts in a house circulate about 1,400 cubic feet per minute of heated or cooled air.

Leaky duct joints and deteriorating ductwork are a major energy drain in homes. Building codes in many localities today require leak testing ducts and sealing, if necessary, to reduce the amount of leakage to below 15 percent of total airflow. Duct sealing is a win-win scenario for most aspects of your indoor environment:

• Lower operating costs. Eliminating heating and cooling loss due to duct leakage means your furnace and A/C run shorter “on” cycles to achieve thermostat settings. This reduces energy consumption and lowers monthly utilities.
• More comfort. Because conditioned air is delivered in the proper volume to every supply vent in every room, household heating and cooling is more consistent.
• Better air quality. Faulty ducts not only allow conditioned air to escape, but they may also draw unfiltered air from contaminated zones and distribute it throughout your entire home.
• Backdraft prevention. Leaky ducts can unbalance air pressure in interior environments, triggering “backdrafting,” which draws combustion exhaust gases, including carbon monoxide, from the furnace, water heater or other appliances into your household.

The first step of duct sealing is performing a pressure test to determine the extent of leakage and pinpoint the location of leaks. Your HVAC contractor will then seal all duct joints with mastic and foil-backed tape. Collapsed or deteriorated sections will be replaced. If duct spans have too many pinhole leaks to individually repair, the contractor will discuss coating the interior of the duct surfaces with an aerosol sealant.

At Sobieski Services, Inc., our goal is to help our customers in Delaware, Pennsylvania, Maryland and New Jersey learn more about energy and home comfort issues – especially HVAC and plumbing issues – so that they can save money and live in healthier, more comfortable homes.

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