An air duct with a fiberglass insulation liner. The liner is old and dry rotted. It rips and crumbles when touched. The insulation was blowing into the air in large quanities in the form of small particles that one cannot see with the naked-eye. The tiny hairs called cilia in the lungs, which are used to stop particles, have a hard time stopping the smallest of particles, which often go through the lungs to the bloodstream.
An air duct with a fiberglass insulation liner. Lined ducts such as these cannot be properly cleaned. As the liner ages the air quality in the building or home deteriorates.
Some of the worst offenders of these types of duct are US Post offices and other government buildings, including schools. When my three dogs ran over to the mail truck to say hello to the mail lady and all three of them sneezed repeatedly as soon as they got a whiff of the truck, it only confirmed why I would have a reaction to the mail that was delivered. Every post office I have personally walked into has had some of the worst air quality. When I receive mail and other packages from the United States post office I let it air out outside before I bring it into my house.
An air duct with a fiberglass insulation liner.
An air duct with a fiberglass insulation liner, which was removed from a HVAC system. Notice how the liner is ripped and dry rotted.
An air duct with a fiberglass insulation liner which was removed from a building. Lining the inside of an air duct was a very popular practice in the 1970s. The older the systems get, the more they break down and become airborne. The smaller particles often pass through the filter. On top of that, some of these lined ducts were located after the air filter, taking away any chance of it being stopped. The practice of lining the inside of a duct with fiberglass insulation is still being done today.
An air duct with a cloth-like fiberglass duct board. This duct cannot be properly cleaned. Like the ducts above it was releasing large amounts of small invisible fiberglass particles into the air.
The air getting sucked into this air return vent blows past this 15 year old fiberglass duct board, travels through the vents and HVAC system and blows on the people inside of the building. Some of the people have been having sinus issues and the culprit is the ventilation system blowing fiberglass into the air.
A return air vent in an office that sucks air past fiberglass.
Close up of the vent with fiberglass on the other side of the grate in an office.
These air vents were lined with fiberglass insulation even though they led from one inside room to another inside room. It is unclear why the liner was even there, but the fiberglass was breaking down and becoming airborne.
A fiberglass lined duct
A dirty fiberglass lined duct
A fiberglass lined duct that cannot be cleaned
A fiberglass lined duct
An insulation lined duct return
An insulation lined duct return
An insulation lined duct return
Does your child's school have fiberglass lined ductwork?
Does your grocery store have fiberglass lined ductwork?
Sharon Maguire - Updated 6-8-2017
