The Trouble With Residential Airflow

When’s the last time you thought about residential airflow?

What? Not something you consider much at all?

Don’t worry, not a lot of people do. Yet it’s one of the most critical components of home comfort. How your HVAC system operates will control how well you heat and cool your home, as well as keeping the air supply clean and healthy for you and your family to breathe.

If you have trouble with airflow, you’ll have an uncomfortable living environment.

Poor residential airflow can lead to:

• Poor efficiency in the way your HVAC system operates
• Weaker airflow, meaning you’ll have trouble keeping your home at your desired temperature
• Poor indoor air quality
• Higher utility bills
• More money spent on utility bills each month

What causes poor residential airflow? It can be a variety of things, including:

A dirty furnace filter. An HVAC technician will tell you that it’s best to change the furnace filter at a minimum once per season. This year, with most of us staying in place all day every day, it’s wise to change it out more frequently, as much as once per month.

Closing vents and registers. Many people do this, assuming it’s a great way to save money by not heating or cooling rooms not in use. But your system was designed as a complete system, to work effectively for your entire floorplan. By shutting part of it down, it’s putting stress on the rest of the system. In the long run, it can cause more repairs, and shorten the lifespan of your equipment.

Faulty ductwork. While people know to maintain and replace furnaces and air conditioners, many never consider the ductwork. Ducts work hard over the years, bringing conditioned air throughout your home. Joints can wiggle loose, parts can disconnect or even collapse. And because a lot of it is behind wallboards and in ceilings, you don’t know it until it causes a bigger problem.

What can you do?

Maintain your equipment regularly. At a minimum, have a technician inspect your equipment at the start of each season. That way you know everything is working at peak performance, and you’ll be alerted to problems before they become bigger.

Give us a call today!