If you have noticed uneven heating or cooling in your home, you may be afraid that there is an issue with your HVAC system. While this may sometimes be the case, you may just need a bit of air balancing to combat those pesky hot and cold spots in your home.
Air balancing can help return your HVAC to more energy-efficient operation, thus reducing cost, wear and tear to your equipment, and discomfort in your home caused by temperature variances.
Combined with additional measures to improve the air quality in your home, you can ensure the comfort and health of your entire family. You can also read more about home air quality here: https://americanhomewater.com/poor-air-quality-in-phoenix/
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What is Air Balancing?
Air balancing can be performed yourself or by an HVAC professional. It is recommended that you have it done for you by a certified HVAC expert who will have the right equipment to complete the task with more precision. DIY air balancing usually involves more guesswork and may not always be fully effective.
During the air balancing process, your HVAC technician will examine your air intake and output and then modify the airflow being sent into each room accordingly. This modifies your airflow to be more evenly distributed throughout your entire house, removing the hot and cold spots that created discomfort. This kind of work involves precise measurements taken with equipment designed for the task at hand.
10 Ways to Avoid Hot and Cold Spots in Your House
If you prefer to tackle the problem of hot and cold spots in your home on your own, you can take some DIY measures for balancing the air inside your home. You will not likely be able to achieve the results as can be accomplished with more precise adjustments made by a professional, but you can achieve a better distribution of airflow with some success.
1. Adjusting Registers
The air registers in your home have a small damper blade that allows you to adjust how much air is flowing into a room. You should never close these off completely, but you can adjust them to change the level of heating and cooling that reaches individual rooms.
A good rule of thumb is to further open any upstairs registers and to partly close downstairs registers during the warm months and do the opposite during the cold months. The reason for this is that heat rises. By limiting how much heating is coming through the registers, you are offsetting the natural rise of heat outside your system during cold weather. In summer, you are allowing the air conditioning to reach the naturally warmer part of your home more than the cooler area downstairs.
2. Temperature Offset
If you live in a multi-story home with separate thermostats, you can try adjusting your air balance by creating a slight temperature offset between floors. Set each thermostat 2-3 degrees differently, depending on what you want warmer or cooler.
For instance, you might set the upstairs thermostat to 70 degrees and the downstairs thermostat to 72 degrees to create a slight offset in temperatures. This adjustment will accommodate the natural rise of heat in your home.
3. Filter Maintenance
Keeping your filters clean will prevent any buildups of dirt, dust, or debris that might interfere with airflow in your home that creates inefficient heating and cooling. Proper filter maintenance will also prevent system issues that increase operating costs or that may require repair, reduce the life of your HVAC system or even cause a system failure due to overheating. Filters should be changed at least every three months and as often as monthly if your warranty calls for it or during periods of heavy use.
4. Window Treatments
Blinds, curtains, shutters, and such all work to keep your home at a standard temperature. Windows with some sort of covering keep out any air leaks that might let cool and warm air escape or enter. In the summer, they can keep out added heat created by the sun hitting window panes by deflecting it with a white or light-colored backing.
5. Electronics Placement
Electronics like computer equipment and large televisions can put out a great deal of heat that affects the temperature of a room. You may need to adjust your registers to offset the added heat in this area. Also, avoid placing electronics that generate heat near your thermostat. The heat from them can prevent the sensors from registering the proper temperature of a room.
6. Stop Drafts
Seal any windows or doors where drafts are detected to prevent cold air from entering and creating cold spots. Draft excluders, heavy curtains, or even plastic weathering are all useful solutions if you cannot do proper sealing such as in rental properties.
7. Ceiling Fans
If you have ceiling fans in your home, you should change the direction of their movement when starting up heating or cooling for the season. During the warmer seasons, fans should revolve counterclockwise so that cool air is pushed downward. During the cooler months, the fan should revolve clockwise at a low setting to help circulate warmth.
8. Restricted Airflow
You should never obstruct vents or registers with anything. Sofas, beds, tables, or other objects placed over a point of airflow will diminish their effectiveness and make your system work harder to heat and cool your home. Always keep at least a foot and a half of space around your vents. If you are unable to do so, consider picking up an air deflector from your local hardware store to redirect airflow away from nearby objects.
9. Leaking Ducts
If your ductwork becomes damaged or develops cracks, air will be unevenly distributed. This will cause hot or cold spots depending on the season. In some cases, you may be able to temporarily seal the problem with duct tape or similar measures. This situation is best addressed by an HVAC professional who can inspect and seal your ducts properly.
10. Insulation
The amount of insulation in your home can affect how well the heating and cooling system works. If you have areas that are not well insulated, you will lose heat and air. You can install more insulation where you can or have a professional evaluate your situation and install more insulation where needed.
If you have taken measures to eliminate hot and cold spots in your home and they persist, you should contact an HVAC expert to do a full inspection.