You might always want to Xpost in the Heating and Air Conditioning forum -- good luck.

Thank you!

BTW, make sure to double check her air filters to make sure those are clean and regularly replaced.

I had it done, and it was a throw away of money. I've since had others tell me they felt the same way

My mom had hers done about 10 years ago, and you should have seen the gunk that came out of the ducts. Gross! The stuff in the vents is the stuff that has bypassed the filter over the years, filters are not hermetically sealed and there is always some leakage of air that gets pulled around the filter rather than through it. Plus, if she isn't the first owner of the home, previous owners might have run the HVAC with a damaged filter.

If your furnace filter doesn't fill the allotted space for it perfectly (like mine), try putting a little strip of foam in the crack to minimize the air bypassing the filter. Air follows the path of least resistance.

Just my opinion. Hope this helps!

In a house I lived in for a while, the P.O. had never changed the furnace filter in probably 10 years. The filter had disintegrated and we were constantly pulling little bits of blue fiberglass out of the vents. It's amazing the way people will neglect a place. :/

jln5:

I have been living in my house for the last 20 years and we are the original owners of the house.

I am a neat freak by nature. I get my entire house duct cleaning done every 2 years. My husband and my son suffer from allergies and duct cleaning keeps duct cleaned. My husband also changes the furnace filter whenever the thermostat shows a reminder for filter change. Dryer duct cleaning gets done every year.

Personally I think duct cleaning should be done every 2-3 years.

I am asthmatic. We completely remodeled the house before moving in and also had the ducts cleaned and sanitized. This house had been smoked in so it was a huge concern. I could not believe the buckets of gross stuff that came out. It makes a huge difference in cleaning. It was some of the best money spent. However be sure you get a reputable team.

Who did you hire Shirley? I have a condo that smoked in, a lot of smoke. I would get them cleaned, but vacuuming would not help with the smokey residue. What method did they use and what was the cost? I am in NJ and don't know how to tell who is good vs. Waste of $.

Cindy:

If you are a member of Angie List, you can read the reviews and hire a local duct cleaning company. Some HVAC contractors also do duct cleaning, but they are usually more expensive. I have been getting my ducts cleaned for the last 15 years. First 2 duct cleaning companies were a rip off. They were interested more in selling more services. Now I am happy with the third company which I hired a few years back. This company does my primary home as well as my 4 rental properties.

I hired a local service run by a father son. I asked specifically what they do and listened for things like the pier used to vacuum, how do they reach each duct, sanitizing, work guarantee. I got their name from Angie's list and went from there. Then we checked frequently tly as they worked and watched what was being done. Very happy with results.