Inside: Help your family breathe better with these simple tips for air vent cleaning. It's easy to do and helps the air around you. Check out how to clean your air vents like a pro!
Want to improve air quality and reduce dust in your home? Regular air vent cleaning is key.
As a new homeowner, I had no clue that air vent cleaning was even a thing! I found an air vent in our home that wasn't putting out much air and I removed it to find dog hair, dirt, and debris in the air vents. I realized I had neglected a simple, but important household cleaning task.
Simple Tips For Air Vent Cleaning
Here are some simple tips to help you keep your air vents clean and functioning properly.
Why Air Vent Cleaning Is Important
Air vent cleaning is an easy task and also important to do to help maintain a clean home. Dog hair, food, and dust can get in the air vents and then get recirculated into the air. By cleaning your air vents regularly you help with these things.
- Extend the life of HVAC systems
- Cut down on dust in your home
- Helps with allergies
- Improves home air quality
- Odor reduction and more!
Tools You Will Need
You will need a few things to clean your air vents and registers. Don't worry, you probably already have everything you need at home.
- Vacuum
- Microfiber Cloth (I love these microfiber cloths!)
- Dish soap
- Old Towel
Step By Step Guide To Cleaning Air Vents
Step 1: Remove the register from the air vent and wash it off with warm soapy water. The soapy water will help remove any dust, grime, and grease that is on the register.
Note
If you are doing a few registers it is easiest to fill up a sink with some warm soapy water and let them soak for a while.
Step 2: Once your registers have soaked, rinse them under warm water to remove any dirt, pet dander, etc.
Step 3: Use the microfiber cloth to dry the vent off. You will want to make sure you dry it 100 percent because if not a metal vent could rust.
Step 4: After drying I lay my vents out on an old towel.
Step 5: Once you have dried off the vents it is time to move on to cleaning the air vents. Use a vacuum wand to vacuum out the air vents.
Tip
Because we have dogs I often see tons of dog hair in our vents. Make sure you vacuum as far down as the vacuum will reach. I have found that most of the dirt gathers at the turn of the vent. I like to use the brush attachment for my vacuum on the air vents.
Step 6: After vacuuming all the vents I like to use a wet microfiber cloth to wipe down the vent.
Step 7: Finally, put the registers back on the vents and you are done! It is easy and quick to do.
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How Often Should You Clean Your Air Vents?
I recommend cleaning the air vents regularly. It's more of a deep cleaning project so twice a year is a good schedule to get on.
By cleaning the air vents twice a year you can help with the dust in your home, and keep your furnace and AC unit lasting longer. If you have a family member with asthma or allergies you may want to clean every 3 months.
It doesn't take a lot of time and it will improve the air quality in your home. It also helps control dust in your home.
Signs Your Air Vents Need Cleaning
No matter the last time you cleaned your air vents it may be time to clean them again if you notice these issues.
- Low airflow coming through the air vent
- Lots of dust in the home
- Animal hair in the vents
Other Ways To Improve Air Quality In Your Home
While you are cleaning your vents I highly recommend you change your furnace filter.
If you are like me and tend to forget when you change your filters I recommend Amazon. You can request that Amazon sends you a new filter every few months. Ours needs to be changed every 3 months, so every 3 months we get a new one in the mail and I know it's time to change it.
You can also get furnace filters delivered monthly from Second Nature. Your first filter is free and you can cancel at any time. Just head over here to sign up!
You only have to do this once or twice a year but it really makes a difference in your air quality. Plus, you can eliminate some of the dust in your home so you can dust less often. It's a win-win. This is a great task to do in the spring and fall to keep your home in top shape!
Want some other easy cleaning tips?
- How to clean a dryer vent like a pro
- Easy tips to reduce dust at home
- DIY mattress spray for dust mites
No, your ducts don't usually need to be cleaned. This would only be necessary if you had a problem with mold, mildew, or insects.
Yes! It is a simple job that is easy to do. It doesn't require a professional cleaner. Just grab the items listed in the article above and get started.
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