Why Booster Fan Cleaning Is Just as Important as Duct Cleaning?

A booster fan is a small yet vital part of your HVAC system, ensuring proper ventilation to all parts of large buildings as well as rooms far from the main ventilation system. While most people perform regular duct cleaning, they don’t understand the importance of cleaning their booster fans routinely, too. From reduced fire hazards to improved system performance and everything else in between, this article aims to help you understand why cleaning your booster fan is just as important as keeping your ducts clean.

Booster Fan Cleaning vs Duct Cleaning

While you might not think about it consciously, cleaning a booster fan and cleaning your air ducts and dryer vents are not necessarily the same thing. When you hire professionals to clean out your vents, they remove all the dust, allergens, and other forms of buildup throughout your entire ventilation system. On the other hand, a booster fan cleaning focuses specifically on the fan itself, removing lint, dander, and other debris from the fan’s blades and motor.

Why Booster Fan Cleaning Should Never Be Skipped

Now that you understand the key difference between both types of cleaning, we can move on to why it’s important to clean your booster fan along with your duct systems.

Let’s take a look at a few reasons why it’s just as important to clean your booster fan as your vents.

1. Boosting The Booster

A dirty booster fan with lots of debris, dust, and lint buildup cannot work properly to keep air moving, even if the vents are clean. This is why regularly cleaning it to eliminate all the debris is important.

2. Preventing Fire Hazards

If your booster fan is full of lint and debris and cannot work efficiently, it will cause your dryer to work harder. This could cause it to overheat, leading to dryer fires.

3. Higher Energy Bills

As we mentioned, a booster fan gives your dryer and your heating and cooling systems a boost. This means they don’t have to work as hard, and that lowers energy consumption. If your booster fan isn’t performing efficiently, despite the vents being clean, it will still raise your energy bills.

The Proper Method Of Booster Fan Cleaning

A booster fan has quite a few parts, ranging from the cover to the motor and everything else in between. Though cleaning it isn’t exactly difficult, one cannot do it successfully without a proper guideline.

Here is a quick guide on booster fan cleaning.

Step 1: Disconnect the power supply

Safety is key, so before starting anything, make sure the fan is not receiving any electricity to prevent yourself from getting electrocuted when you start cleaning it.

Step 2: Remove the Fan Cover

Next, carefully remove the fan cover to start cleaning it with warm, soapy water to get rid of all the dust.

Step 3: Cleaning the motor

Now, grab a vacuum cleaner with a brush attachment and thoroughly remove all the lint and dust from the fan blades and the motor. If you want a thorough clean, carefully disassemble the motor and, using a toothbrush, thoroughly remove all the lint and debris on the fins.

Step 4: Put It All Back Together

Finally, wait for the fan to dry completely and then put everything back together. Connect it to an outlet and you’re good to go.

Signs You Need To Clean Your Booster Fan

Alright, so how do we know that it’s time to clean our booster fans? When a booster fan gets too stuffed with debris, there are a few signs that let you know. Below is a list of clues that indicate that your booster fan is due for a cleaning.

Burning smells: Trapped lint in the fan or vent can heat up as air tries to pass, emitting an acrid, burning smell. If you smell something burning in your vents, it’s time to check on your booster fan.

Dryer shutting off before the cycle is complete: If a dryer can’t dry your clothes properly, it will overwork. This can cause it to overheat, and it will shut off even before the cycle is complete. If your dryer is overheating, it’s time to clean out your booster fan.

Excess lint near the vents: If there is too much dander and debris in your vents, you will see an excess of it near the openings. Another sign that your booster fan needs to be cleaned.

Strange noises: dirt and dander trapped in the fan’s blades and motor will cause it to make abnormal noises as it spins. When you hear these sounds from your vents, you need to schedule a booster fan cleaning.

Conclusion

To conclude, cleaning a booster fan is just as important as cleaning your air ducts. Even if the air duct is speck-free, it is the fan that helps circulate the air, and without cleaning it properly, you will not be able to reap the benefits of clean air or a dryer vent. To boost system performance, increase interior comfort, and prevent property damage, cleaning your booster fan is just as important as keeping your vents clean.

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