help for squashed duct

gwithrow · #1 05/10/11, 07:21 AM

this week we have realized that one of the forced air ducts that feeds into the living room is not moving air at all.....I finally called the 'heat person' who came out and after going under the house he said he could see the duct was flattened, but could not reach it....the crawl space is quite limited and there are numerous ducts in the way of this particular spot....

his diagnosis was that he didn't know how we were going to fix it...( how's that for help???)...

so I am wondering if there is some kind of angioplasty for ducts? is there some way we can open this duct from inside, going down through the vent? (the flattened spot is not near enough to reach with an arm....)without tearing the whole thing up of course...I do not intend to heat the crawl space...

we are not sure but think one of the cats squeezed under the crawl space door and climbed up on the duct work to keep warm...that problem we can fix, by repairing the door....but we need to get the air circulating again...and I can see that the 'professional' is not going to be a helper....so I am hoping that someone or ones will think outside the box and come up with an idea that we can implement to re-inflate this duct...the ducts are the 'coil' type that apparently can be mashed flat....

and we now know for sure that we should have used a different system for heat, but this is what we have and it would be super to be able to use it...thanks in advance .....

vinylguy · #2 05/10/11, 07:51 AM

Do not know where you would find one. but some kind of bladder (small inertube maybe) that you can snake down there and slowly inflate it. Might work, then again it might not. Good luck.

fishhead · #3 05/10/11, 07:55 AM

That's what I was thinking too.

Do you know if it's a straight shot to the collapsed portion of the duct? If it was I'll bet you could force a wedge shape through and open the duct again.

Or if you could possibly seal it securely enough you might be able to use air pressure to force it open like a person can do with a collapsed pop bottle.

OkieDavid · #4 05/10/11, 07:56 AM

Is your house on a slab or dirt? If it's dirt- grab a small shovel and dig you a trench under the obstacles to get where you can replace the damaged section. If it's a slab then you are just going to have to remove things in the way and make a path to it. Taking your cue and considering duct work angioplasty-secure a balloon onto a piece of wire (balloon deflated with an air hose run into the end) and insert it thru the vent into the crushed section and apply air.

oregon woodsmok · #5 05/10/11, 01:27 PM

Hate to tell you this, but what you do is start digging and dig yourself a path to the duct.

Ductwork bends really easily, but the joints don't have much of a seal and I suspect that if you aren't really careful about how you open the duct, you'll just pop the joints.

Is it possible to run a new duct to the area?

I wonder how it got crushed, because a cat sitting on it should not damage it.

Other alternative is to pull the floor up.

foxtrapper · #6 05/10/11, 02:02 PM

You got great help, for the record. He could have lied to you, instead he spoke honestly.

Its squashed most likely because it is on top or over some other duct. One squished. Fix this one, and you'll squish the other.

If it's the plastic ducting, you can force it open more easily. Create an insert from two pieces of plywood or plastic, taper the ends so it will slip into the duct, and slide it into the squashed section.

Best, dig out where there's not enough space, then let the ducts lie without being squashed.

Hopefull, you might be able to rearange the ducts in the space, and not have them lying on one another.

gwithrow · #7 05/10/11, 03:24 PM

this is an old house, dirt crawl space...and the problem started with the original heat and air contractors...who didn't want to do it the right way, once they had quoted a price, they just went with whatever was cheapest....this new guy says ducts twist and turn under there and go all over...too many turns and just not planned out...so probably the correct thing to do is have a different contractor redo all the duct work...running a couple of straight bigger lines, that branch off closer to each vent...

live and learn has been the motto out here...the house was totally remodeled 6 years ago, that was when we put this system in...and I must say I have learned a lot....mostly what not to do, but I think all of life can be a learning experience....so I guess now we will see what the installers can come up with....there is really no way to dig out now that all the floors are in.....but we could pull out at least some of it and redo .....

my advice is do it the right way the first time...if it costs a little more, well it will save later on....and it might not even cost that much more....find contractors that can do more than spell their names....

Yvonne's hubby · #8 05/10/11, 05:58 PM

Depending on how badly its squashed I have several recipes for duck that are mighty tasty.

Harry Chickpea · #9 05/10/11, 06:14 PM

There are ways around the problem, but they will cost or be labor intensive.

A flex duct that rests on the surface of the ground is not a good thing. It can harbor mold, water, rodents, insect pests and other nasties. If you can stand the pun, it might be best to disconnect them and let seeping ducts lie.

Metal duct is more secure and can be kept in better condition. A switch to a water-based heating system could be even better.

OkieDavid · #10 05/10/11, 06:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gwithrow

..there is really no way to dig out now that all the floors are in......

Actually, there is.....it isn't easy and it isn't painless but I bet I'm not the only person here who has strategically dug "half tunnels" from the crawl space entrance to the kitchen sink, bathroom toilet, bathtub etc. that were lovingly carved into the soil utilizing a variety of digging devices from hand shovels, soup ladles, claw hammers. BTW- put on your old clothes before starting this task and if you are prone to outbursts of profanity you might want to send the wife and kids to town....

TripleD · #11 05/10/11, 10:51 PM

Take that duct line loose from the main trunk line. Attach the new flex duct to the old end . Just cut into it and tie the wires together. Pull it to the floor register from inside the room. You will have to take out the floor register boot. It helps to have someone under the house to feed it as far as they can. I have done this with only 12 inches of clearance. You only get one chance this way so wrap the wires tight.