Duct leakage isn’t everything. It used to be worse — really. That shouldn’t lull HVAC contractors into a false sense of complacency when it comes to fighting the problem, but context can help professionals direct their attention to where it is likely needed the most.
Code changes and more knowledgeable homebuilders have driven the new residential market toward much tighter duct systems, said Wes Davis, ACCA’s technical services director. The other side of that coin: the older the home, the better chance of leaky ducts due to sporadic adoption of duct sealing practices and enforcement of code requirements.