Capistrano Beach is an older community on a bluff nested in between San Clemente and Dana Point. As a Heating and Air Conditioning contractor we found this city to have a few unique challenges not found in some of the newer surrounding communities like Aliso Viejo and Talega in San Clemente. One of the more serious issues is the asbestos ducting. The use of asbestos ducting in South Orange County was during the 1960’s and 1970’s. This duct is quite nasty in that it not only was used to wrap sheet metal but was also made completely of asbestos both outside and inside the duct. This duct is commonly referred to as Alumasbestos.

What makes this particular duct so nasty is that as the air blows through the duct it lifts particles of asbestos, forty year old dust and pet dander and injects it into your living space. The Envoirmental Protection Agency (EPA) has advised home owners not to have this type of duct cleaned because it will further aggravate the problem. What I find interesting about the EPA’s position on this is they feel that it is ok to leave the duct in place but not to disturb it.

The problem with that logic is every time you turn your furnace or air conditioner on it “disturbs” the ducting. Even more interesting is that they require all asbestos to be removed from government properties and public schools. The type of cancer that is caused by asbestos apparently takes many years to develop. Well all the more reason to have it removed and replaced. The particles of asbestos tend to gather on ledges and flooring where toddlers and infants spend all of there time.

If you’re not concerned about the health affects of this stuff than let us talk to your wallet. Asbestos and other thirty plus year old ducting looses at least 30% efficiency through poor insulation and leaks. We often advise our clients not to bother spending money on high efficiency furnaces and air conditioners unless they first replace their old inefficient ducting. The government has a tax credit on high efficiency equipment, 30% of installed price up to $1,500.00. They could have saved a lot more energy and money on replacing the ducting. It’s not that we're against the government offering us incentives to the right thing but just think about this, We could have significantly reduced health care cost i.e., colds flu’s, allergies, asthma, etc. and energy usage without ever replacing the heater or air conditioner. Which leads us to another thought; the new electrostatic filters use less than two watts of energy and will keep your new ducting healthy and clean. With the old electronic filters you will have to lift the furnace to install and they are costly. The new electrostatic filters will fit right where the old filter fits and are very affordable. The other concern we have for some of these older communities like Laguna Beach, Laguna Niguel, and Newport Beach are the return air ducting. We can’t tell you how often we find an older home getting its return air from under a house.

Return air is simply the air used in the heating or cooling process and distributed through the supply air duct. Most homes recycle the air in the house which is very clean and efficient. But some homes actually pull the return air from under the house. Not only is this very inefficient but that is where all the chemicals are sprayed to kill bugs and poisons are laid out for rats. Of course when the rats die…need we say more?

You’re probably thinking at this point that maybe I should have my heating and air conditioning system checked out. Not a bad thought. A tune up and safety inspection is very affordable and would most likely pay for itself in utility savings alone. If you would like to schedule a safety inspection and tune up or would like to chat with a qualified HVAC professional you can contact Kevin Kalka Heating and Air Conditioning.