Ducts are a vital aspect of almost every house. Made of fiberglass, sheet metal and other material, they are used in carrying heated and cooled air from one corner of the house to another. They carry heated air from the furnace of the house and cooled air from the air conditioners. But, the problem arises when they carry heated air to the cooling spaces, which leads to the wastage of heat and also increases your electricity consumption. Here are a few important tips that will help you to explore a better ducted heating system in your house.
Check the Ducts for Leakage
Always make sure that the pipes of your duct are free from any sort of air leakages. For this, first you have to check the joined section of the ducts to know if they have any holes or scratches that has led to any sort of leakage. If you find any such holes on your duct then use duct mastic for sealing them. Using good quality duct mastic is crucial as this will make the ducts more durable and even help them work better and in a more effective manner. But, when you have any holes that are bigger than ½ inch diameter then you must bridge it up with tape in order to seal the leaks. The reason behind this is that duct mastic does not work on gaps or holes that are bigger than ½ inch in diameter.
Never Forget to Insulate the Ducts
It’s quite important to insulate the ducts to make sure that they operate in an efficient manner. With the help of insulation there will be no loss of either heat or cold air which will help them to work in a much better way. But, while insulating the pipes, make sure that you leave a little gap as unconditioned spaces as other pipes will freeze and burst when the heat ducts are completely insulated. This happens because there will be no source of heat left for them to prevent the spaces that are left out from freezing during winters.
Monitor the Level of Carbon Monoxide (CO) and Other Poisonous Gases
One thing can be noted here, that while placing the insulation you must ensure that there is a well sealed vapor barrier present at the cross-sections of the pipes, as this will prevent condensation and formation of moisture inside the duct. Along with that, if you use the heating system for the stove, fuel burning furnace or any other similar appliance of your house then you should have a CO (carbon monoxide) monitor placed along with the ducts. This will alert you about high levels of CO so that you can check and clean the ducts. CO is a poisonous gas which can lead to various respiratory disorders, so whenever you find that the level of CO is high in your ducts just cover your nose with a cloth to protect yourself from this gas.
Use Ducted Heating System Only When Needed
The last and the most important energy saving tip on using ducted heating systems is to use them only when you need them absolutely. This means once you have optimum amount of heat in the house it is better to switch off the heating system. Moreover, you can even use them at their average heating point as this will not only increase the lifespan of the heating unit, but at the same time it will consume about 40% less energy.
So, these were some important energy saving tips which you can follow for decreasing the carbon footprint that is caused by your heating unit. After all, the more energy you are going to save, the better your ducted heating system is going to function.
