The effectiveness of closing too many HVAC registers to save energy is a myth that many homeowners fall prey to. In reality, shutting multiple rooms won’t lower your household energy consumption and doing so can cause a host of other problems, including:
- Reduced comfort. Shutting too many registers restricts airflow in your ductwork, which raises pressure in the HVAC system. In a system with a single-speed blower, the fan slows down when pressure rises. This means less air is distributed so it’s harder to keep your home comfortable.
- Ductwork leaks. When the pressure in the HVAC system increases, the air being pushed by the blower will find other routes to escape the ductwork. When existing leaks get worse and new ones are created, more of your conditioned air gets wasted.
- Equipment damage. Another repercussion from a drop in airflow is an iced-up coil in your air conditioner or heat pump. If this isn’t addressed and correctly quickly, you’re at risk of a compressor failure, which is the most costly component to replace.
- Safety risks. When an airflow restriction creates high system pressure during the heating season, your furnace’s heat exchanger can develop cracks that let deadly carbon monoxide leak into your home’s air supply.
- Higher energy usage. If your HVAC system is equipped with a variable-speed blower for greater efficiency, you’ll negate any potential energy savings if the fan is forced to operate at a higher speed to offset an increase in pressure.
Zoning: A Beneficial Alternative to Shutting Air Registers
If there are rooms or areas of your home that aren’t used often, having a zoning system installed may be a viable alternative to shutting registers. Zoning can improve your home’s heating and cooling efficiency, especially if it’s paired with a variable-speed air handler and multi-stage components. Zoning is done by installing motorized ductwork dampers and dedicated thermostats. These are connected to a centrally-located control panel where you can program in energy savings.
To learn real energy-savings alternatives to shutting a room, such as installing a zoning system in your Dayton home, contact us today at Ace Hardware Home Services.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Dayton, Ohio about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).
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