Your air conditioning vents can collect dirt, spider webs, pollen, dust, and other allergens quickly and degrade your indoor air quality. Cleaning them every few months helps improve your home’s air quality. Here’s how to go about vent cleaning.
The Tools You Need for Vent Cleaning
- Vacuum with hose
- Scrubbing brush
- Dish soap
- Gloves
- Screwdriver
- Bucket
Steps to Clean AC Vents
- Turn off your heating and air-conditioning system.
- Take the vents off. You’ll likely have to use a screwdriver to remove many of the vents.
- Let the vacuum’s hose run and suck up all the dust and dirt that you can from the ducts — specifically the area close to the vents. If you want full duct cleaning, it’s best to have HVAC professionals do that for you.
- Dust off the vents with a duster to get extra dirt and dust off them.
- Mix some dish soap with warm water in a bucket, washbasin, or bathtub and ensure it produces a good lather.
- Soak the vents in the bucket, basin, or tub for about 15 minutes. (If your vents are made of nonstainless steel or iron, they may rust if you soak them for more than 15 minutes.) Soaking helps remove the gunk or grease that lets dust accumulate on the vents.
- Dry the vents as much as possible using a towel before putting them back on.
- Check your HVAC air filter and replace it if it’s dirty. A clogged filter can result in dusty vents.
- Turn the HVAC system on.
Besides keeping your home’s air clean, vent cleaning helps improve airflow. As a result, you save on heating and cooling costs. To learn more about cleaning AC vents or any other HVAC component, contact the heating and cooling experts at Ace Hardware Home Services. We’ve provided incredible HVAC services to homeowners in the Dayton area for almost 45 years.
