The dangers of dryer fires and what causes them?

It's the weekend, the time to relax! It’s also time to start the weekly chores such as doing the laundry. Washers and dryers are one of the workhorse appliances in your home. Our dryers can be our best friend but could be our worst nightmare.

Over time, dryer vents become clogged with lint, hair and dust, and they have to be cleaned regularly. A clogged dryer vent can also increase the drying time for every load of laundry done. At the end of the cycle, the clothes may still be damp and if you don’t remove them and they sit for a few days, you’ll need to wash them over again to remove the odour. Your laundry may take multiple cycles to thoroughly dry your clothes, and that will your increase your electric bill, and no one wants to pay more than they should. When your dryer isn’t drying properly you should check the dryer vent for blockage. Another sign of a problem is when the dryer feels hot to the touch. It could mean that the vent is clogged and the heat is not escaping and the cool air is not coming in. When heat builds up, it could start a fire.

If the dryer is blocked and airflow is restricted, it may cause a serious fire hazard. The main causes of a dryer fire are clogged dryer vents. Dryer fires account for loss of life and millions of dollars in property damage.

Dryer fires can be avoided. To reduce the risk, we recommend a regular inspection and cleaning to the dryer vents inside your home. It should be cleaned at least once a year or more if you use it more regularly.

Our team of fully trained, certified technicians would be happy to provide any of our services in your home or commercial building. We recommend the use of the LintAlert monitoring system with annual dryer vent cleaning to reduce your risk of a dryer fire.

Georgian Duct Cleaning - Professional, Fast and Friendly service! Contact today for more information or to schedule a dryer vent cleaning!

Georgian Duct Cleaning is a family owned business in Simcoe County with over 20 years experience working with residential, commercial and industrial HVAC ducts. Call us for a free quote or for more information. (705) 722-5952 or 1-800-363-2563

How Georgian Duct Cleaning Can Help You Through The Seasons

Georgian Duct Cleaning has been in business since May 1991. Our company has grown from a one- person operation, to a family owned business with 12 people. Our team are fully trained certified technicians, and are happy to provide any of our services in your home. We use the latest equipment, custom built truck mounted and portable duct cleaning technology, to thoroughly clean your home and commercial heating and cooling air duct system top to bottom.

Our service vehicles are equipped for many different cleaning applications, such as residential, commercial and industrial duct cleaning, dryer vent cleaning, robotic video inspections, mould removal, dust collector clean outs, hi-level building cleaning, insulation removal, dry-ice blasting and many other specialized cleaning services.

Do you have allergies? Do you sneeze and cough a lot? When cleaning your home do you have a lot of dust? Are you renovating your house? If you said yes to any of these, then getting your air duct cleaning is a right move. Your air ducts could be laden with dust, dirt, mold, bacteria, construction garbage, pet hair, building materials, fungal growth, flakes of skin and hair. These are blown throughout your home when the furnace fan comes on and can create some problems. For example, allergies can be aggravated, resulting in sneezing and/or coughing. If there is a lot of dust in your house, even though you already cleaned your house, respiratory health problems can be triggered. Poor indoor air quality can inflame allergies, respiratory disorders, cause sickness, or result in occupant complaints and employee absenteeism. 

How do we inspect, clean, and sanitize obscure confined spaces? One way is with a remote control robot device. With a tiny video camera, we can look inside the ducts so you and the technician can monitor the cleaning process. Re-useable access points are sealed with a sheet metal plate with an airtight gasket and screws. We also clean the furnace fan, fan housing and accessible areas of the air conditioning coils.

Does your house have a lingering odor? Have you tried air fresheners and still can’t get your house smelling better? We also have a fresh scent herbal-based sanitizer to make your house smell better. Plus it kills any lingering molds and fungi. When getting your air ducts cleaned professionally, it will take about 2 or more hours depending on the size of the house. At the end of the service a certificate of cleaning is provided with the work.

Did you know we can provide you with a cost over the phone or you can request pricing using our web form? When our technicians arrive they will provide you with a written verification of pricing “before” we start anything. You should know exactly how much the cleaning is going to be, there are no surprises.

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GEORGIAN DUCT CLEANING - SIMPLY THE BEST THERE IS!

Georgian Duct Cleaning is a family owned business in Simcoe County with over 20 years experience working with residential, commercial and industrial HVAC ducts. Call us for a free quote or for more information. (705) 722-5952 Or 1-800-363-2563

Top 5 Contributors to Poor Indoor Air Quality

Poor indoor air quality can have a direct impact on our lives and our health. If you’re experiencing symptoms of poor indoor air quality, such as dryness and irritation of the eyes, headaches, fatigues, shortness of breath or sinus congestion, you should take some steps to make improvements. The first step in improving your home or office’s air quality, is understanding what contributes to poor indoor air quality in the first place.

There are many offenders when it comes to poor indoor air quality. Everything from dust and pollen to off-gassing furniture can contribute. We’ve narrowed down the top 5 worst offenders.

1. Dust & Dust Mites. Dust is one of the worst offenders. It seemingly comes from nowhere and covers everything if left alone for long enough. It can contribute to breathing and respiratory illnesses, allergies, skin problems, and more. Be sure to dust surfaces regularly to cut down on the amount of dust in your home. Air purifiers and vacuums with filters build in can help with this as well. Don’t forget to dust your blinds and bookshelf!
2. Off-Gassing. New household products such as furniture, countertops, cabinets, appliances, carpeting, and more can release VOCs and gases into the air including formaldehyde. When installing new furniture or other household items, you can open a window to allow for better air ventilation while the furniture off-gasses, or turn on an air purifier to help speed up the process.
3. Smoking. Cigarette smoke releases a wide range of chemicals such as formaldehyde, carbon monoxide, VOCs, and particulate matter. Avoid smoking indoors, or close to any vents, windows, or entrances, to improve your indoor air quality.
4. Pet Dander. We love our animal pals like family! But sometimes, especially certain breeds of cats dogs, and birds, can create dander and dust from skin and fur that can contribute to poor indoor air quality. If you have a furry or feathered friend, there are things you can do to mitigate this! Keep your pet’s area (crate, cage..) clean. Bathe your pet regularly - especially if they’ve spent a lot of time outdoors. Brushing dogs and cats,and keeping them groomed can also help cut down on fur and dander in the air. Vacuuming regularly also helps!
5. Garage Activities. If your home has an attached garage, the activities that take place inside of it can contribute to poor indoor air quality as well! Starting and idling a car, starting a lawn mower, operating a generator, cutting wood/carpentry, painting, etc. all release a variety of VOCs, including carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide, and more. Try to ventilate your garage well and keep doors from your home to the garage closed and well sealed.

Air duct cleaning is number one in our list of steps to improve indoor air quality. Air ducts can become clogged with contaminants including any of the items listed above! Every time your heater operates, these toxins are fed through your heating system and into the air you breathe. Regular cleaning of your air ducts will eliminate these contaminants and drastically improve your home’s air quality.

In order to eliminate the threat of mould, bacteria or viruses in your ducts, we can also use our Benefact Herbal Based Sanitizer. The sanitizer contains thyme oil, an effective germ-killing ingredients that is less toxic than vinegar. Benefact kills over 99.99% of bacteria and surpasses Health Canada’s efficacy requirements for a broad range of disinfectants.

Georgian Duct Cleaning is a family owned business in Simcoe County with over 20 years experience working with residential, commercial and industrial HVAC ducts. Call us for a free quote or for more information. (705) 722-5952 Or 1-800-363-2563

Why You Should Clean Your Air Ducts This Spring

Ahhh Spring is finally here! With the days finally warm and sunny, you’re most likely going to want to open up your windows and get some fresh air inside. During the winter months you probably stayed indoors more often, with the windows closed and the air not getting much circulation. If you read our last blog post, you’ll know that this can really have a detrimental affect on your indoor air quality.

Spring is the perfect time to get your ducts cleaned for this exact reason. Especially since spring is a popular season for allergies outdoors, as pollen fills the air and the temperature fluctuates. You don’t want to compound your seasonal allergies with poor indoor air quality! Your air ducts are home to dust, dirt, mould, bacteria, flakes of skin, and other potential allergens. These contaminants are released into the atmosphere of your home, causing indoor air pollution, and environmental sensitivity.  The air ducts require periodic cleaning to reduce these airborne contaminants and to create a cleaner, safer home for you and your family.

You can make getting your air ducts cleaned a part of your regular spring cleaning. Cleaning your air ducts can have some major benefits.

· Removes accumulated dust

· Removes debris and cobwebs

· Increases the efficiency of your system

· Removes contaminates following construction or renovation

· Reduce odours caused by pet smell or pet hair

· Allows you to identify and remove any animal infestations

But the biggest and most important benefit is a dramatic improvement in indoor air quality. You’ll be able to breathe fresh, clean air! Our powerful truck mounted or portable HEPA vacuum systems are designed to handle any size of heating, air conditioning, or exhaust ducts, in homes, hi-rise buildings, commercial buildings, schools, hospitals and factories.

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Our certified technicians are experienced in cleaning all manner of systems. Our modern tools and equipment is among the best in the industry. Robots are used to inspect, clean, sanitize or encapsulate obscure confined spaces. Our Ventri Clean system is a high volume air knife that is used to slice through the dirt in your system. Rotating silica carbide brushes eliminate stubborn pollutants, airless sprayers are used to apply anti-microbial sanitizers and encapsulants.

Georgian Duct Cleaning is a family owned business in Simcoe County with over 20 years experience working with residential, commercial and industrial HVAC ducts. Call us for a free quote or for more information. (705) 722-5952 Or 1-800-363-2563

Improve Your Indoor Air Quality for Spring

Throughout the winter, you most likely spent a lot more time indoors. You probably kept your windows and doors closed to keep the warmth in. Your pets also may have stayed inside more, and you probably had guests over during the holidays. Unfortunately, these winter behaviours can lead to a reduction in air quality.

You may not have even noticed your indoor air quality deteriorating as it would have occurred slowly over the winter months, rather than all at once. Skin cells, animal dander, and dust may have settled in your home’s duct-work. Keeping your windows closed will also have prevented the air from circulating properly, especially if you’re in an older house. And with winter comes moisture, so you may even have mould and mildew spores settling in your ductwork.

How do you know if your ducts need to be cleaned, and what are some things you can do to improve your indoor air quality as part of your spring cleaning?

Here are some questions to ask yourself.

1. Do you suffer from allergies?
2. Do you often sneeze when you are at home?
3. Do you have a lot of dust in your home?
4. Is your home new or has it had recent renovations?
5. Are you concerned about buildups of dirt and debris in your ducts?
6. Would you feel better knowing your ducts are clean when you hear the furnace fan come on?

If the answer is yes to any of these questions, you might need to take some steps to improve your air quality.

• Add some plants to your living space. Plants have been shown to improve air-quality and remove many impurities from the air.
• Avoid smoking indoors. Now that the weather is nicer, you should try to step outside for your cigarette.
• Consider replacing carpet with hardwood flooring. Carpet can be a major trap for dust and allergens. If replacing your carpet is not an option, try vacuuming more often, Many vacuums also have filters that improve air quality as well.
• Reduce humidity. Excess humidity can lead to mildew and mould in your air! Get it under control with proper ventilation or a dehumidifier.
• Bathe your pets often. This one doesn’t need an explanation!
• Keep your house tidy. Regular sweeping, dusting, and vacuuming will greatly reduce dust in the air.

The most important step in improving your air quality is to get your ducts cleaned. Your air ducts are home to dust, dirt, mould, bacteria, construction garbage, flakes of skin and hair. These contaminants are released into the atmosphere of your home, causing indoor air pollution, and environmental sensitivity.  The air ducts require periodic cleaning to reduce these airborne contaminants and to create a cleaner safer home for you and your family.

Georgian Duct Cleaning is a family owned business in Simcoe County with over 20 years experience working with residential, commercial and industrial HVAC ducts. Call us for a free quote or for more information. (705) 722-5952 Or 1-800-363-2563

5 Tips on Getting a Jumpstart on Your Spring Cleaning

As the weather starts to change, and we see longer sunnier days, it might have you thinking about starting your spring cleaning soon. Giving your home a good cleaning is important this time of year, especially for your indoor air quality.. During the winter months you most likely spent more time indoors, and less time opening windows and doors. Your furnace system was probably also running more. Dust most likely has built up on a few surfaces and the air might feel stagnant. To improve this air quality, you can get a start on your spring cleaning a bit early! Follow our 5 tips to make this daunting task a bit easier for you.

Make a plan

Knowing where and how to start tackling the chores is the hardest part of getting the ball rolling. The best thing to do is to sit down and write out everything (even the smallest tasks!) that needs to be done. This lets you break down all of your tasks. It also helps to make a guess at how long something might take, this way if you find yourself with only 10 or 20 minutes you can pick tasks that you can complete during that time.

Work from the top down

Make sure when you pick a place to start it is up higher. If you start with the floors and baseboards, you will end up needing to re-clean them at the end. Start with dusting ceiling fans, wiping walls, the tops of shelves, and countertops.. end with mopping and vacuuming.

Multitask

Multitasking will save you a lot of time on your chores. While you have a load of laundry or dishes going, dust some bookshelves. While a stain remover soaks on some upholstery or clothing, you could clean the toilet!

Blinds & curtains

Blinds and curtains hold onto a huge portion of the settled dust in our homes. Take the time to wipe these areas clean with a microfibre cloth and a vacuum. If you need something stronger, you can create a DIY solution of baking soda and warm water with your favourite essential oils to get a nice scent in your home as well.

Get your ducts cleaned

Your air ducts are home to dust, dirt, mould, bacteria, construction garbage, flakes of skin and hair. These contaminants are released into the atmosphere of your home, causing indoor air pollution, and environmental sensitivity. The air ducts require periodic cleaning to reduce these airborne contaminants and to create a cleaner safer home for you and your family. 

During the winter as you spent more time indoors, there was most likely more contaminants settling in your ducts, so spring is the perfect time to get them cleaned out so you can bring in fresh air during the warmer months. Making sure your ducts are clean will also ensure that your air conditioning system can operate efficiently.

Georgian Duct Cleaning is a family owned business in Simcoe County with over 20 years experience working with residential, commercial and industrial HVAC ducts. Call us for a free quote or for more information. (705) 722-5952 Or 1-800-363-2563

Remedy Excess Humidity In Your Home

The right amount of humidity in your home makes you comfortable and healthy… but too much humidity can cause many problems ranging from damage to your home, to damage to your health! If you notice your house has a humidity problem; condensation on the windows and walls, mould or mildew growth etc.. the first thing you should do is find the source of the humidity. Showering, doing laundry, and cooking all generate a lot of moisture that can accumulate and cause issues if not dealt with properly. Running exhaust fans while doing these activities can help reduce the humidity levels.

Humidity can lead to mould and mildew growth which can cause a slew of health problems

ranging from asthma and allergies, to mould toxicity.

If your heating system has a humidifier, the first thing to do is check the setting and make sure it is appropriate for the outside temperature. The colder the outdoor temperature, the lower the setting should be.

Below is a chart for suggested humidity settings.

OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE      RECOMMENDED RELATIVE HUMIDITY

-30C OR BELOW                         15%

-30C TO -24C                                 20%

-24C TO -18C                                 25%

-18C TO -12C                                 35%

-12C TO 0C                                    40%

You can run a dehumidifier to  reduce the humidity in your home. These are usually very effective and some models also purify and filter the air which generally improve air quality.

One of the best things you can do to improve ventilation and air quality indoors is to have your ducts cleaned.Your air ducts are home to dust, dirt, mould, bacteria, construction garbage, flakes of skin and hair. These contaminants are released into the atmosphere of your home, causing indoor air pollution, and environmental sensitivity.  The air ducts require periodic cleaning to reduce these airborne contaminants and to create a cleaner safer home for you and your family. Once they are clean and clear they will also do a better job at ventilating and therefore reducing the humidity in your home to an acceptable level.

Georgian Duct Cleaning is a family owned business in Simcoe County with over 20 years experience working with residential, commercial and industrial HVAC ducts. Call us for a free quote or for more information. (705) 722-5952 Or 1-800-363-2563