What Weird Stuff Is In Your Ducts?

It’s time for another look at the things we find in people’s air ducts around Logan, Utah. It’s been a while since we found anything truly weird, but boy have we got one for you today. But first, let’s take a look at some of the more common items.

Kids Playing In the Air Ducts

One of the most common reasons we find stuff in the ducts is because kids like to play in them. Then they drop things down beyond their reach and there’s nothing they can do to get them back. It’s very common to find toys in the ducts. In this one house, we found lots of art related items, such as pens and drawing paper, as well as coins, candy wrappers, plastic straws, and hair ties, all typical evidence of children at play. There was also a ruler and necklace of beads.

Is this art?

Then we found something we really weren’t expecting. Some kids must have dropped a bunch of crayons into the ducts, because we found a huge lump of melted wax, along with a pencil stuck in it. Wax melts even if you just leave it in the sun, so it’s no surprise that the heat from the furnace would melt them. I guess this is why the household was paying a fortune for art supplies.

Don’t Taste This Rainbow

Candy wrappers aren’t super uncommon, and candy is also a fairly regular find. This is especially true of small candies with round shapes that roll when you drop them. Kids don’t intentionally drop them down the ducts (we hope), but if they hit the floor, there’s a good chance they’ll roll into the vents and fall into the duct work. M&Ms and skittles are pretty common, though most M&Ms are melted if we ever find them. They might not melt in your hand, but the candy shell doesn’t protect them from the heat of your furnace. Skittles and other hard candies are usually found intact, though we wouldn’t recommend eating them.

Bad Duct Designs

Sometimes our cameras find weird spots where the ducts are just badly designed. Sometimes, they’ll blow out into an open area, like an attic or basement crawlspace with no proper covering. You see this more in old homes and it’s a bad idea because it just opens the ducts to all kinds of things getting in. In these cases, duct cleanings become more necessary, but it’s a good idea to have these issues corrected by installing a filter over them, or sealing them off.

It’s fairly common for ducts to not all be a uniform size, but in one odd case, we found that whoever built the house hadn’t properly sealed it. Instead, they’d stuffed it full of what seemed to be carpet, possibly held together with foam insulation. We couldn’t make it out clearly with our camera and the way it was put in meant we couldn’t remove it without completely pulling out the ducts, which is outside our expertise. Stuff like this is why having filters on your vents is a good idea. Whatever was stuffed in that gap was probably being blown out bit by bit over time, and it’s probably not something you’d want to breathe.

Snake Invader!

Now, this one was completely new to us. At some point, a snake made its way into this person’s ducts. It must have been living there for a long time, because we found a lot of shed skin in there. A reptile would be drawn to the ducts because of the warm air blowing through it. Modern ducts are usually built with filters and sealed covers to make it impossible for animals to get in, but we find so many homes that don’t have those installed because of how old they are.

Fortunately, you can install new filters and covers to prevent this from happening in the future. If we clean out the ducts and find stuff like this, that’s what we recommend. If you’ve got an old house, especially one built before the 90s, it might be a good idea to check and make sure your duct system doesn’t have any invaders like this one. Even in new homes, this can sometimes be a problem, as construction companies may cut corners where they think you won’t look.

Clean Your Ducts

The reason why you want to clean your ducts is because things like this can block the air flow. Efficient air flow is important to any HVAC system, as it minimizes the amount of energy it takes to heat and cool your home. When things like this fill up the air ducts, it blocks the air flow and your system has to run longer to get the same effects. This is one of many reasons why regular duct cleaning is a good idea.

Here at Easy Breezy Pros, we recommend getting your air ducts cleaned once every three to five years for best results. Given that most people can’t remember the last time they had their ducts cleaned, if they even have at all, it’s probably time for you. You’ll be glad you did. Get in touch with us today to set up an appointment.