The Ductwork in Your Kansas City Home: Little Leaks Make for Big Problems

The Ductwork in Your Kansas City Home: Little Leaks Make for Big ProblemsLiving in the Greater Kansas City area, you’ll want to make sure that your home is as energy efficient as possible as colder weather moves in. There are many ways to do this, from installing a programmable thermostat to adding attic insulation. However, no matter how efficient your heating system might be, you could be losing a lot of your conditioned air because of leaks or other problems in your ductwork. The federal government estimates that ductwork leaks can cost homes as much as 20 percent of their heating energy dollars.

Where You Get Duct Problems

Ductwork problems can be caused in a number of ways.

Leaky connections: Make sure that all the connections in your ductwork are as tight as they can be. A little tightening with a screwdriver can make a world of difference.

Leaky ducts: Your ducts may be leaking in a number of places. Use mastic sealant or metal tape to seal accessible ductwork. Hire a professional to do a more comprehensive job of duct sealing.

Blocked registers: Check to ensure that none of the registers are blocked by furniture, pictures, rugs or other objects. Blocked registers make your system less efficient and force it to work harder.

Furnace leaks: Check duct connections near the furnace. Inspect the air filter to make sure that it fits tightly in its housing, and that it’s not in danger of collapsing and falling into the ducts, creating an obstruction.

Damaged duct insulation: While not technically an “air leak,” if you have damaged or missing duct insulation, you can be losing heat directly through the thin metal walls of the ducts. This is particularly important for ductwork that goes through unconditioned areas.

Ductwork kinks: If your ductwork is compressed or twisted, airflow can be obstructed, causing issues with the delivery of conditioned air.

In many cases, ductwork leaks are located in difficult to access areas, such as crawlspaces and wall cavities. To get professional help in dealing with ductwork leaks and obstructions, please contact us at Overland Park Heating & Cooling. We provide superior HVAC services to the greater Kansas City area.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in Overland Park, Kansas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). 

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