When Enrique Quesada enters a building, the first thing he does is look above his head.
As the owner of Vernon’s Modern PURAIR — a company that provides cleaning for heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems and indoor air quality testing — it doesn’t take long for Quesada to spot a dirty air duct.
“I can tell you right away if an HVAC system is too dirty,” he says.
The demand for Modern PURAIR’s services has risen since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic as clean indoor air becomes more top of mind for many. The Vernon franchise has seen a 48 per cent increase in its servicing of residential homes this year.
“I think our service is more needed than ever before,” Quesada said. “and COVID has actually created an opportunity for us to reach more people or explain why our services are necessary.”
Beyond residential buildings, Quesada says there’s been greater concern among parents and teachers regarding air quality at schools this year, and as a result his company has cleaned more school HVAC systems than in any past year.
Quesada says few people take care of their HVAC system regularly, “because they don’t see it.”
“People don’t realize that they are breathing all this fine dust every single day.”
And with remote working now more common, he believes having clean air at home is even more important.
“Before, you were sitting for eight hours at home. Now you’re there for 16 hours.”
If you find yourself cleaning dust off your furniture daily or experiencing, or if allergy-like symptoms increase when indoors, Quesada says it might be time to consider an HVAC cleaning.
Quesada says awareness around indoor air quality has improved in some respects; he knows of doctors who now recommend people with asthma to call an HVAC cleaner.
“We never got that reaction before, but now people are getting more educated in that aspect.”
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