Most homes in the Maitland Park, FL area use forced-air furnaces to heat their homes, which is an effective means of keeping warm during our brief and mild winters. But the same ducts that distribute air from your heater do so for your air conditioner, and while they’re built to last, that year ’round effort can eventually lead to problems. Breaches, in particular, can be real trouble if you let them linger.
A breach occurs when damage to the ducts creates an opening, or sometimes when the bolts or similar bindings become worn out. Breaches are problems because they pull conditioned air out of your system or bring unconditioned air in. That lowers the efficiency of your heater (or air conditioner in the summer), which spells higher monthly bills and an increased risk of repairs.
The sooner you spot the signs of a breach, the better. It lets you schedule a repair call to fix it before the increased strain does any damage. But how can you notice it? Most ducts are tucked away in the crawlspace or the attic, where you can’t normally see them. How can you notice signs of a breach? The following symptoms are a good place to start:
- Warm or cold spots on the wall or ceiling next to the breach.
- Strange noises such as whistling or humming coming from strange places. In most cases, the noises will start and stop with the starting and stopping of your heater.
- Reduced air flow from the vents and/or air that is warmer or colder than it should be.
- Higher monthly bills, especially those that take place without any attendant upswing in heater use.
If you spot the signs of a breach in your ducts, shut off the system immediately, then call Downtown Air and Heat to perform repairs!
