How to fix uneven heating in house

Do you have some rooms in your home that are always perfectly comfortable, but others that never seem to heat up properly? You’re not alone! Uneven heating is a common issue in many Bay Area homes, and it can be caused by a number of different factors. Today we’re going to talk about what can cause uneven heating in your house and some of the best ways to deal with it!

What can cause uneven heating in your house?

• Blocked or closed air vents. One of the first things you’ll want to check if your home is heating unevenly is your air vents. If any of your vents are closed or blocked by furniture, the rooms where those vents are located will not receive enough warm air and your home’s temperatures will feel uneven.
• Lack of furnace maintenance. Many problems can develop with a furnace that’s not maintained properly, including uneven heating. If your furnace has gone a year or more without a professional tune-up, it will not heat your home as effectively as a well-maintained furnace.
• Wrong furnace size. If your heating system was not sized properly when it was installed, or if you recently added an addition to your home, your furnace might not be powerful enough to deliver adequate heat to ever y room in your home.
• Your home’s structure. Some homes are structured in a way that certain rooms or floors have different heating requirements than others.  This can make it very difficult for a furnace with a single thermostat to heat your home evenly.
• Dirty air filter. A dirty air filter slows down your home’s airflow, which restricts the amount of warm air that is delivered to your living spaces. When this happens, rooms that are far away from your furnace might receive less warm air than the rest of your house.
• Duct leaks. If your ductwork has any cracks or openings, warm air will leak out before it gets to its destination. That means that any rooms that receive conditioned air that passes those leaks will receive an inadequate amount of warm air.

How can you deal with uneven heating in your house?

Keeping your furnace well-maintained is the first step toward avoiding uneven heating. Scheduling a tune-up once per year and checking and/or changing your air filter every month will help avoid many of the problems above. In addition, ask a heating contractor like Cabrillo to inspect your ducts for leaks.

The best way to avoid uneven heating, especially when structural problems come into play, is to install azoning system in your home. With a zoning system, you can install multiple thermostats throughout your home and give your furnace the power to heat each space according to its particular needs at any given time.

If you have any questions about uneven heating in your house, or if you’d like a heating system serviced or installed, contact Cabrillo, your Bay Area plumbing, heating and air conditioning contractor.

Table of Contents

• 1 What Causes Uneven Heat In Rooms?
  • 1.1 Heating Furnace Sizing
  • 1.2 Furnace Maintenance
  • 1.3 Uneven Heating Requirements
  • 1.4 Air Leaks
  • 1.5 HVAC Air Filters
  • 1.6 HVAC Air Vents
  • 1.7 HVAC Air Duct Leaks
  • 1.8 Thermostat Fan Settings
  • 1.9 Conclusion
• 2 Call Hart Home Comfort For All Of Your Home Heating Requirements

To keep your home comfortable and safe in winter, the U.S. DOE (Department of Energy) recommends a thermostat setting of 68°F. At this temperature, you will be able to avoid hypothermia and frozen pipes. In winter, it is critical that your heating system remains reliable and capable of producing constant and even temperature throughout the house. Uneven heating in house will seriously affect home comfort. If the HVAC system produces uneven heat, you may have to make up for it by cranking up the temperature of the thermostat – a solution that will result in higher heating costs. Knowing what causes uneven temperatures will help you determine the problem and solve it before it gets worse.

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What Causes Uneven Heat In Rooms?

There are several possible reasons why certain rooms experience uneven heat. Let’s take a look at these issues.

Heating Furnace Sizing

If the furnace is too small, it will have to work harder to heat the room for a longer period. This demand on the system will stress it out and ultimately cause the system to generate uneven heat. If, on the other hand, the system is oversized, it will produce more heat than required and will shut down prematurely. Over the long term, both circumstances lead to system failure.

Getting the correct size for your heating system is important to ensure home comfort, even heating, and reasonable energy costs. To achieve this, the NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory) recommends installing a properly-sized furnace for your home. As an example, if your home has an area of 1,000 sq.ft., it will require a furnace that has an output of 30,000 BTUs. This, however, is merely figuring the area of the home. There are other factors that must be considered to find the correct size for your home. Make sure to talk to a licensed and experienced HVAC contractor about performing a Manual J calculation that will help determine the correct furnace size for your requirements.

Furnace Maintenance

The ASHRAE (American Society of Heating, refrigeration, and Air Conditioning Engineers) recommends getting a furnace that has 78% AFUE or Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency (or higher) for optimum performance. A unit that does not receive regular maintenance will have reduced efficiency, which in turn in will cause uneven heating. Regular and timely maintenance will help identify potential problems early and rectify them when needed. To prevent potentially serious issues with your furnace, schedule an annual checkup, and tune-up with your local HVAC professional, particularly before the cold months.

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Uneven Heating Requirements

Warm air rises, which means that rooms on the upper levels of your home will feel warmer compared to rooms on the lower levels. This means that rooms on the lower levels will often require increased temperatures. Uneven heating usually occurs in homes with a single-thermostat furnace. If you have a multi-level home or have different heating/cooling requirements for different rooms, consider getting a zoning system. A zoning system allows you to create “zones” or independent areas that can be serviced by different thermostats. Each of these thermostats can be set at different temperatures independent of each other. This means that one room can have a different temperature from another room, so different home comfort needs are met.

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Air Leaks

Air leaks are notorious for causing a drop in your home comfort. Every crack, joint gap, and hole in your home allows warm air indoors to escape. As a result, you will experience uneven heating, especially during the colder months. To keep warm air indoors and maintain the proper temperature, make sure that all windows, doors, and spaces are closed. This will help trap warm air and prevent cold air from entering. Keeping air leaks at bay will also help save energy since the furnace does not have to work harder to keep the rooms heated.

To prevent leaks, you might consider using:

• Caulk
• Door sweeps
• Weatherstrips
• Window film
• Foam tape
• Insulated windows
• IGUs (Insulated glass units)
• Door snake

Keeping your home sealed will help keep temperatures even indoors.

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HVAC Air Filters

Air filters perform a very important job in keeping indoor air clean and safe to breathe by trapping dirt and other particulates. Over time, the air filters become clogged. This obstructs proper airflow and prevents warm air from being released efficiently through the return ducts. If your furnace cannot push warm air properly, rooms that are far from the vents will not be heated properly. To keep heating constant, make sure that the furnace filter is cleaned or replaced every three months or so. Keep in mind that the frequency with which the air filter has to be replaced will depend on your use and specific home. To keep yourself on top of things, check your air filter monthly. If it is clogged, have it replaced.

HVAC Air Vents

Air vents must be open and unobstructed to ensure that air flows properly. If air vents are blocked or clogged, warm air will become trapped within the vents. This will cause the pressure to build up, which could increase the likelihood that your system will break down prematurely. To prevent this, check your air vents to ensure that they are clear and unobstructed.

HVAC Air Duct Leaks

If air ducts are reliable and efficient, they can deliver warm air effectively throughout the house. They can bring air even to the farthest rooms or spaces. If there are cracks, holes, gaps, or damage along the HVAC ductwork, air will leak. Damage to the ducts is usually caused by:

• Structural deterioration due to aging
• Damage due to rodents and other vermin
• Structural work damage
• Poor installation

Duct leaks can be prevented by regular maintenance and checkups. Small issues can also be resolved using caulk and sealants.

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Thermostat Fan Settings

If you put the furnace fan on auto, it will automatically distribute warm air when the furnace system is on, then stop when the heating stops. The cycle will then begin again. When the furnace fan is on auto, it will continue to cycle on and cycle off. This could result in the uneven distribution of air while frequent cycling could result in the premature wear-and-tear of the fan. To fix this, use the “On” option for the fan, especially during winter. There is a drawback to this, however. Keeping the setting on “On” will increase energy consumption. You can help this process along by turning the ceiling fan on a low setting and ensuring that it turns clockwise. This will help you save on energy.

Conclusion

There are many reasons why you may experience uneven heating and similar problems with home comfort. To optimize the functions of your furnace system and save on cost and energy, make sure to hire only a professional HVAC technician or contractor. Qualified professionals are trained and knowledgeable in ensuring that your HVAC system is maintained and checked. A system that receives regular tune-ups will last longer and will not likely break down prematurely. A licensed contractor will also be able to recommend the best practices that will optimize your system and keep it efficient and working properly.

Call Hart Home Comfort For All Of Your Home Heating Requirements

When you need heating system repair or replacement, you can feel confident that you are in good hands with Hart Home Comfort. We offer one of the affordable HVAC services in the area. Need a replacement system? No worries. We can help you find the make and model most suitable for your needs while keeping your budget in mind. Your home comfort, efficiency, and indoor air quality are our priority. Book an appointment, and give us a call today for a free, in-home consultation.

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For any questions about what Hart Home Comfort can do for you, give us a call today. Click here to contact us now or call us at (631) 667-3200 to find out more!

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