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You and Your Heating Ducts by Nikki Willhite If you home was built prior to 1970, chances are your heating ducts are loose and you are wasting energy.  If you have a crawl space under your home, and it is warm under your home in the winter, you probably have at least one disconnect.  You are wasting money, and your home may have cold spots. You may also have insufficient insulation around your ducts, either from insulation that is too thin, or from people crawling around under your home over the years knocking it around. Recently my husband and I decided we had to "bite the bullet" and spend the money to fix our ductwork.  It was August, and we figured we had the best chance of getting a low bid. The crawl space under our house is difficult to access, so we didn't know how bad our ducts were until we decided to get several bids.  When HVAC estimators go into your crawl space, they take a digital camera with them.  When they come out....they can show you pictures of your duct work.  We knew it wasn't going to be pretty, but were rather shocked by how bad it was.  We had gaping holes in several places. We had decided to get 3 bids.  The first man who came gave us a bid for around $1500.  The following day we we looking at a bid for $2400.  The 3rd man wasn't scheduled to come for another week, and the $1500 was looking pretty good to us and we were tempted to "throw the trigger."  However, we decided to wait and see it through. The 3rd estimator came out of the crawl space with the same unpleasant pictures.  The difference...he said he could do it for free!  SHOCKER!  I forgot to check the website of my utility company.  I ran to my computer to look for rebates, and sure enough, there was a temporary quota for free duct work repair for homes built during the time period our home was built.  The 3rd estimator was the only one of the estimators who came that was on the preferred list of contractors of our utility company and able to offer us this service for free. I knew better than to forget this detail.  I just got busy, and overlooked it.  There is a big lesson to learn here.  We got lucky.   Had we been impatient to get the work done, we would have wasted a lot of money. Don't get sloppy when it comes to your money.  If you home needs energy improvements, keep an eye on the website of your utility company, and take the time to read any additional information stuffed into your monthly bill. About the Author: Nikki Willhite, mother of 3 and an interior design graduate, has been writing and publishing articles on the topic of frugal living for over a decade. Visit her at www.frugalhappyfamilies.com - where you will find hundreds of frugal living tips and articles. Frugal Happy Families- more than just money!

 

 

 

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