Duct Leakage Can Greatly Increase Operating Costs
Duct
Leakage Testing... one of the keys to performance of
duct systems
Performance testing of air distribution systems is beginning to work its way into the mainstream of quality contractors. Many people think this is a newly developed method of performance testing, but actually, Sunbelt has been doing infiltration and duct leakage testing since the 1980's.
In the Shawnee area we routinely find homes that have duct leakage that is more than 30%...even on new homes. If you are trying to achieve the maximum amount of energy efficiency you need to look at your heating and cooling units as a "system" instead of individual components. It doesn't make much sense to spend your hard earned money to buy the most efficient air conditioner or heater made and then install it on a duct system that leaks. Combine this with a poorly insulated structure and with poor infiltration performance and you still have a mechanical system that is not going to perform well when compared to a structure that has a mechanical system that is designed in conjunction with performance standards for the envelope, windows and ductwork.
This article was written by Dean Akin,
President and Founder of Sunbelt Heating and Air
Conditioning, Inc.