Duct Sealing 101: What Is Duct Sealing?
Not to be confused with ducks or seals (the animal), duct sealing is a way to improve the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) in homes and buildings. It’s a process of sealing visible and invisible air leaks in air duct systems.
Why Duct Sealing Matters
Short answer: Duct sealing makes homes and buildings more comfortable, saves energy, and improves indoor air quality (IAQ).
To fully understand why duct sealing matters, it’s important to understand the purpose of air ducts. Nearly every home and building has ductwork that’s used to transport conditioned air from a central air conditioning unit or forced air furnace to desired rooms and spaces in a home or building.
Sealing ductwork improves airflow between the HVAC equipment and the desired room/space you are wanting to either heat or cool. If ductwork is not properly sealed, then conditioned air actually leaks through visible and invisible holes that naturally in ductwork. This phenomenon is called DUCT LEAKAGE (it’s not a good thing).
Why Duct Leakage is Bad
Not many people know about duct leakage, and that’s not good. Duct leakage causes significant issues for homeowners and building owners. Here are some common problems associated with duct leakage in homes and buildings:
- High summer and winter utility/energy bills
- Uncomfortable/uneven room temperatures (e.g. hot/cold spots)
- Stuffy rooms or humidity issues
- Excessive dust or allergies of occupants
- Compliance issues with meeting certain codes or regulations for ductwork design, installation, and maintenance
For more information about duct leakage, read the Duct Leakage 101.
How to Fix Duct Leakage
Call your local Aeroseal/HVAC contractor to assess your ductwork. There are special tests that can be performed to check if duct leakage is present and contributing to poor HVAC performance in your home or building.
Want to Learn More? Ask the HVAC Expert
Vice President of Training, Aeroseal
Call: 360.201.1467
Email: ken.summers@aeroseal.com
Connect on LinkedIn
About Ken Summers
Ken Summers has more than 30 years of experience in the HVAC industry. Starting in 1980, he did residential service, in-home sales, and commercial design/build. In 1995, he joined Retrotec, a manufacturer of test instruments used in performance contracting such as blower doors and duct air tightness testers, where he trained contractors how to use test instruments to understand better on how houses worked from a comfort and indoor air quality (IAQ) basis. In 1998, he co-founded Comfort Institute (CI), a leading home performance training organization. For the past 20+ years, he has been with CI helping progressive HVAC contractors adopt whole-house and air distribution system diagnostics and repair. In 2014, CI joined Aeroseal where Ken is the Vice President of Training. Ken specializes in helping contractors avoid common issues related to HVAC load calculation and duct design mistakes, duct leakage problems, thermal envelope repair, and mold related issues across the country. He has spoken at many industry leading events including ACCA, PHCC, RSES, EPA, EGI as well as being brought in to speak with local utility and code officials across the country about how the house works as an interactive system.
