Cold winters and global pandemics mean all of us are spending a lot of time at home lately. This makes having adequate airflow a bigger concern than ever before. If you’re stuck inside, you might as well do everything you can to ensure that you and your family are comfortable in the home.
What Does Adequate Air Flow Mean?
Just because your HVAC unit is doing its job, doesn’t mean other appliances or components of the system are working at their full potential. The air that is dispersed throughout the home is not always fresh, rather it is circulated over and over again until a new intake is necessary. That being said, there are things you can do to maximize the efficiency of your heating and cooling systems, thereby increasing overall comfort and airflow.
What Can I Do?
Here are a few things you can do to improve air flow throughout your household while stuck at home:
1. Put those ceiling fans to good use: Turning on a ceiling fan (or two, or three!) keeps air constantly moving throughout the home. That being said, the direction your fan turns makes a big difference as well. Make sure your fans are spinning counterclockwise in the summers, pushing colder air down and cooling you off. In the winters, switch the direction to clockwise. This will push warm air down and keep the entire home feeling warm and cozy (not to mention saving you money on those energy bills)!
2. Check and change out air filters: It’s recommended to change AC filters once every 3 months, at least. Dirty air filters can impede airflow throughout the home, but so can air filters with higher ratings. Higher rated air filters are woven tighter, and catch more allergens, dust, and pollen. However, they can also block airflow, so finding the right balance between air quality and airflow is crucial.
3. Make sure you have enough return vents to maximize airflow: Most HVAC systems are closed loop systems. This means all of the air coming into the home is evenly distributed, and an equal amount of air returns to the unit to be reconditioned and redistributed. When there is a location within the home that is not producing adequate returns for the HVAC unit, the room can experience a reduction in airflow. To drastically improve airflow throughout the entire home, check to make sure your home has enough open and functioning return vents.
4. Schedule a duct cleaning service: The purpose of filters is to purify air that enters the home through AC ducts. But what happens when there is an excessive amount of particles coming into the ducts in the first place? This can cause air filters to wear out quicker, meaning they need to be changed out sooner, and even reduce airflow throughout the entire home. These problems may be occurring due to compromised ducts. Cracked or leaking ducts often invite excess particles into the system, causing these problems. Scheduling a duct cleaning and repair service is a great solution to this.
5. Invest in a ventilator: Ventilators are designed to continuously bring fresh air into the system while flushing out air that is stale, effectively lowering the humidity in your home. Ventilators can also increase the efficiency of your entire HVAC system by using energy from air that is being pushed out to begin the process of cooling air that is coming in.
6. Perform regular maintenance: Investing in regular maintenance is the best preventative measure you can take to ensure that the airflow in your home is constant.
Need more help?
TemperaturePro is ready to lend a hand! To book a maintenance appointment or an inspection, give us a call today.
