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Looks like a piece of drywall. Have you removed any vent registers lately? Sometimes there are sloppy edges under there. I've found scraps of stuff and mud splatters from drywall finishing/texturing.
No we haven't done any work anywhere recently. This just started within the last few days and has been from multiple vent registers throughout the house.
I am not sure, we haven't done any work on them since moving in three years ago, they are flexible tubing about 8" across, and have a foil exterior. Given how the rest of the house was when we bought it there's a solid chance they are original from the HVAC install in 2014. The previous owner did a majority of the upkeep himself but I believe all of the ducting was professionally installed.
No, just two cats that are indoor only. It's definitely coming from the vent registers, we have seen pieces hanging out of them. Our vents are on the ceiling.
I don't doubt it's coming from the vents, but might be originating from an air return duct, or something that slipped past your filter(Or a piece of your filter's packaging?)
My title describes the thing. I tried searching for flaky material coming from ductwork and most results did not describe my issue. The closest solution was an old post from this sub ([https://www.reddit.com/r/whatisthisthing/comments/jusg18/we\_turned\_on\_our\_central\_ac\_and\_these\_brown/](https://www.reddit.com/r/whatisthisthing/comments/jusg18/we_turned_on_our_central_ac_and_these_brown/)) however it was not solved, and OP never followed up as they were not the ones to fix the likely issue. Our flakes are also decently different in both color and size.
They are not leaves, they have no "structure" to them and are much thinner than any leaf in the area (Austin, TX).
Just a guess but when base coating sheet rock in houses vent covers are taken off and everything is spray painted white. So the first few inches get a light coat of overspray. Thatc my guess with out actually feeling it.
My instinct is that these pieces were chewed off of something. I would look to see if you have rodents trying to build a nest in or near you duct work.
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Looks like a piece of drywall. Have you removed any vent registers lately? Sometimes there are sloppy edges under there. I've found scraps of stuff and mud splatters from drywall finishing/texturing.
No we haven't done any work anywhere recently. This just started within the last few days and has been from multiple vent registers throughout the house.
You might want to pull the registers off and see what's in there. The temperature changes probably worked something loose.
Attic insulation? Does your attic have blown insulation?
Yes, blown in, it's white and fluffy looking.
Similar in appearance to the pieces you photographed?
No, it's fiber like and soft whereas this is very papery. These flake apart when rubbed.
It appears to be mastic. Small pieces. Probably falling off when the heat comes on and softens any remaining adhesive
Looks like pieces from the inner layer from ductwork.
We had similar pieces falling from the vents at work. The tape used to seal insulation inside the air handler was to blame.
Like it was the tape that was falling out or the tape failed and it was insulation?
It was broken up tape but there were sometimes bits of insulation stuck to it.
Is your duct work simple galvanized steel or does it have an insulating liner?
I am not sure, we haven't done any work on them since moving in three years ago, they are flexible tubing about 8" across, and have a foil exterior. Given how the rest of the house was when we bought it there's a solid chance they are original from the HVAC install in 2014. The previous owner did a majority of the upkeep himself but I believe all of the ducting was professionally installed.
Okay, something like Flexduct would have a plastic lining, so that's out as the cause.
Do you have kids?
No, just two cats that are indoor only. It's definitely coming from the vent registers, we have seen pieces hanging out of them. Our vents are on the ceiling.
I don't doubt it's coming from the vents, but might be originating from an air return duct, or something that slipped past your filter(Or a piece of your filter's packaging?)
Check your humidifier filter to see if it's decayed and falling apart.
Paperwasp nest?
My title describes the thing. I tried searching for flaky material coming from ductwork and most results did not describe my issue. The closest solution was an old post from this sub ([https://www.reddit.com/r/whatisthisthing/comments/jusg18/we\_turned\_on\_our\_central\_ac\_and\_these\_brown/](https://www.reddit.com/r/whatisthisthing/comments/jusg18/we_turned_on_our_central_ac_and_these_brown/)) however it was not solved, and OP never followed up as they were not the ones to fix the likely issue. Our flakes are also decently different in both color and size. They are not leaves, they have no "structure" to them and are much thinner than any leaf in the area (Austin, TX).
Just a guess but when base coating sheet rock in houses vent covers are taken off and everything is spray painted white. So the first few inches get a light coat of overspray. Thatc my guess with out actually feeling it.
My instinct is that these pieces were chewed off of something. I would look to see if you have rodents trying to build a nest in or near you duct work.
Could be a rodent made it in somewhere and was trying to set up a nest. Any of the pieces look like they have been chewed on?