DIY Air Duct Cleaning Tools, part 6 - Making Brushes for Drills to clean Air Vents - With Testing

Here's how I made and tested 3 kinds of air duct cleaning brushes for drills. These brushes will need to be used with a negative air machine, just like the other DIY air duct cleaning tools in this series. The brush I made during part 5 worked well for cleaning dirt and moldy crud stuck onto part of the ductwork. But that brush was too harsh for most of the remaining ductwork. Especially the flexible plastic ducting. So now in part 6 of the series, I'll make some softer brushes. They will be used with the flexible rods of a drill powered dryer vent cleaning kit. Broom bristles, zip ties, and 1/4 inch rope will be experimented with to build 3 different types of brushes. The soft bristles can clean off dust and debris without scratching the inside of the metal HVAC ducts. The broom brush might be able to clean some kinds of plastic ducting, if used carefully. Below are some links to the parts needed for the project. I receive a commission from some of the links in the description. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Parts for the Brushes :
- Dryer Vent Cleaning Kit used in the video, 24 foot : amzn.to/3vtumn2
- Broom, cheapest I could find : amzn.to/3TL9phw
- Cordless Drill used in the video, 1/2 inch chuck : amzn.to/3NTdPPD
- Aluminum tube for the brush hub, 12mm O.D. x 10mm I.D. : amzn.to/47xNk9b
(this is the updated size that fits the male connectors much better, not the size used in the video)
- Cable Ties, 11 inch : amzn.to/3SR55MS
- Hot Glue : amzn.to/3SO5jEl
- Rope, 1/4 inch dia. : amzn.to/3HQulMZ
- Gloves I wear: amzn.to/3xDggRd
Links to my Do it Yourself Air Duct Cleaning Tools series:
Link to part 1, My First Time Cleaning HVAC Ducts - • DIY Air Duct Cleaning ...
Link to part 2, Making Air Whips for Duct Cleaning - • DIY Air Duct Cleaning ...
Link to part 3, DIY Negative Air Machines - • DIY Air Duct Cleaning ...
Link to part 4, DIY Skipper Hose for Whips - • DIY Air Duct Cleaning ...
Link to part 5, DIY Wire Duct Brush for a Drill - • DIY Air Duct Cleaning ...
Link to part 7, Air Whips with Brush Tips - • DIY Air Duct Cleaning ...
Links to how I made individual DIY Air Whips for Duct Cleaning :
DIY Air Whip, with Dual Whip Hoses - • DIY Air Whip for Duct ...
Small DIY Air Whip for Delicate Flex Duct - • DIY Air Whip for Flexi...
Making an Air Whip with Brush Tips - • DIY Air Whip with Brus...
Large DIY Rubber Air Whip - • Large DIY Air Whip for...
Simple DIY Air Whip, Assembles Quickly - • Simple DIY Air Whip fo...
Links for how I made individual DIY Air Duct Cleaning Brushes :
DIY Broom Bristle Brush for Drill - • DIY Air Duct Cleaning ...
Wire Brush for Drill - • DIY Air Duct Cleaning ...
Hand Operated Duct Cleaning Brush - • How I made a Duct Clea...
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This video and the channel may contain links to affiliate websites, and I may receive an affiliate commission for any purchases made by you on the affiliate website using such links. My affiliates include the Amazon Associates. I am a participant in affiliate advertising programs designed to provide a means for me to earn advertising fees by linking to affiliated websites.
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Any information and all content including video, audio, or text provided by the Budget Phil KZbin channel and it’s creator/producer (“I" or "me") is for general informational and educational purposes only. All information provided by me on this channel is provided in good faith, however I make no representation or warranty of any kind, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, adequacy, validity, reliability, availability, or completeness of any information on the channel. This channel does not contain any professional advice on how to design, purchase, make, use, maintain, repair, or clean anything and may not be suitable for all ages and skill sets. Accordingly, before taking any actions based upon information found on this channel, I encourage you to consult with the appropriate professionals. Under no circumstances shall I have any liability to you for any loss or damage of any kind incurred as a result of the use of this channel or the reliance on any information provided by me or the channel. Your use of this channel and your reliance on any information on the channel is solely at your own risk.

[@nobuckle40]

It's cool to see what you come up with. Looks like you are getting closer to a good solution.

[@BudgetPhil]

Thank you. I'm making progress slowly but surely. These rotary brushes were a big help. I have high hopes for the air powered whip brushes, but we'll see. The early tests look promising.

[@chulada03]

WOW! I love this video series! I have learned so much! Thank you so much for sharing

[@BudgetPhil]

Your welcome. I've enjoyed sharing my experiments in do it yourself air duct cleaning with you.

[@emf786]

A syphon canister containing some sort of liquid disinfectant with a metering orifice could be incorporated with your air whip tools. A safe for humans plant based insecticide might also be effective at discouraging spiders and other creepy crawlies from having a party in the ducts. A little goes a long way and even though you cant smell it after a day or two,the spiders can for months and will avoid the area. All of your trial and error methods were clearly explained and demonstrated with proof of concept to achieve the desired results . Getting there with what was on hand economically is the way to go for sure! You set a good example for others who might not be as resourceful as yourself. All in all your applications are top shelf. Looking forward to your next vid whatever needs to be fixed, you can do it.

[@BudgetPhil]

Thank you for your kind words and advice.

[@jeffcole1914]

Your best bet is to fog the duct work with safe chemicals with enzymes drys and it’s all dead germ and even mouse urine smells fresh

[@thomastthai]

Enjoyed your duct cleaning series! The various experiments were fun to watch and helped me narrow down my options for a DIY duct cleaning choices. The broom brush seemed most effective overall since the firmness of the bristles help hold up the end while spinning. Looking forward to part 7. Thanks for sharing!

[@BudgetPhil]

Your welcome. I also think the broom bristle brush was the most effective overall of the bunch. Seems to make a good general cleaning brush. That cable brush was only needed in a couple of spots where there was stuck-on crud. I bet the broom brush would work well in most situations. The rope brush just coiled up in the lower corners on the sides of the rectangle duct, but it managed to clean out those corners better than the other brushes. I'll keep playing with these and other DIY duct cleaning tools and sharing what I learn. Thank you for your feedback.

[@leelemon3373]

Thank you, Phil, for saving us a lot of time. watching you do all the testing was a big help. I bought the same dryer vent brush and long rods from any home improvement store. they are located in the dryer section of the store I went to. I liked and subscribed.

[@BudgetPhil]

You're welcome. And thank you

[@TheJenkins124]

Another great video, looking forward to trying some of your ideas myself next spring.

[@BudgetPhil]

Thank you

[@jeffcole1914]

I watched your videos and I loved them 😅 you are very precise and articulate but? My ducts weren’t metal and the house was built in 1937 so I went to Lowe’s and replaced the ducts completely but definitely learned so much I needed to blow out my blower which was not on my radar until I saw the dust on yours. Very good advice. I’m now thinking about putting in a UV light to avoid any future mold or contamination Thanks

[@BudgetPhil]

I sure wanted to replace the ductwork when I saw how bad it was, even though it was metal and mostly cleanable. There is some flexible ducting in the system and it's very hard to clean because of how fragile it is. I'll try to clean it more, but that segment will probably get replaced. I plan to make some more DIY air duct cleaning tools specifically designed for flex duct cleaning. Thank you for the kind words and sharing your experience with ductwork

[@jeffcole1914]

@@BudgetPhil definitely some cool design concepts are you considering maybe taking it farther like increasing knowledge and opening a duct cleaning business

[@BudgetPhil]

Thank you. I doubt I'll be opening a duct cleaning service, but the subject of air duct cleaning tools and equipment does interest me. I'll probably just keep learning about it and sharing what I learn.

[@scottoldham7459]

Thank you for #6 and looking forward #7

[@BudgetPhil]

You're welcome

[@aaudain1]

Great idea 💡

[@BudgetPhil]

Thank you

[@seansysig]

FYI just remember your brush size can easily be tailored to your duct size by using this formula: radius= diameter divided by 2. So if your duct height is 4” then a bristle length of 2” is more than enough as the hub takes up about 1/4- 1/2” of distance.

[@BudgetPhil]

Thank you for the info. Having the bristles a little longer helps to get further into the corners of square ducts but the bristles need to be fairly flexible for it to work. I had a lot of trouble getting the brushes to clean out the corners. Some air whips I recently made that have brushes attached to the ends seem pretty good at cleaning out those corners. I'll talk about them in part 7.

[@samziggy3]

How about adding smaller broom brushes to the long ones to more surface clearing?

[@BudgetPhil]

Seems like a good idea to me. Could maybe make the brush more versatile. Thank you for the suggestion.

[@bert4384]

Where I can buy this rod Please

[@BudgetPhil]

It can be purchased from a few different places online. Just search for Morinoli dryer vent cleaning kit

[@mairaviles]

where is part 7

[@BudgetPhil]

I'm sorry, part 7 isn't ready yet. I needed to complete some other obligations which caused a delay, but I'm currently working on that video again. I hope to finish it and post it later this month.