If you discover that you have hot and cold spots throughout your Macon home, you’re not alone. This is a relatively common problem. While it may seem like a major concern, the good news is that the common causes of hot and cold spots are normally easy to fix with a straightforward air conditioning service. The most common causes for hot and cold spots are:
- Lack of zoning or improper zoning
- Poorly designed or ineffectively sized duct systems
- Leaky or inefficiently insulated air ducts
- HVAC equipment that is too big or too small
Lack of Zoning or Improper Zoning
A zoning system breaks up your home into separate areas, known as “zones,” and means you can determine the air temperature in each zone. The system is composed of multiple thermostats that run dampers in the ductwork of your forced-air system. The thermostats are always reading the temperature of their assigned zone, then open or close the dampers to match up with the thermostat's settings. This may be the key to keeping that one cold bedroom warm in the winter, or that hot box sunroom comfortable all summer. Plus, when you utilize it with a programmable thermostat, zoning may mean home energy savings of up to 35 percent.*
Poorly Designed or Ineffectively Sized Duct Systems
Some homeowners have hot and cold spots simply because their home’s duct system isn’t sized correctly for the space that needs heated and cooled, or it’s improperly designed. We find this is especially commonplace in homes that were built before many of today’s tools and training were around. Unfortunately, even the most energy-efficient HVAC equipment can’t match homeowners’ expectations if the duct system isn’t permitting it to do its job. In fact, a shoddy duct system could actually cause new equipment to work more frequently than needed and shorten its life cycle. The experts at Air Temperature Control can help you decide if your duct work is working for your home.
Leaky or Inadequately Insulated Air Ducts
Even if your duct system is designed and sized appropriately for your home, it could still be the source of your home’s hot and cold spots. It’s common for the ducts in a home to leak a bit over time. Experts like Air Temperature Control can look at your ducts and let you know if they should be sealed. They might also find that your ducts aren’t leaking, but they’re not adequately insulated. Fortunately, this is also a generally simple fix.
Improperly Sized HVAC Equipment
So possibly your air duct system is just fine and you have a good zoning system, but you’re still feeling hot and cold spots through your home. Improperly sized HVAC equipment might be the issue. A system that is too small has to operate harder to heat or cool your home, which leaves hot and cold spots because it can’t keep up with the amount of space it needs to condition. Even a system that’s too big can cause problems because it’ll cycle on and off too often to do its job correctly.
No matter what’s the cause of the hot and cold spots in your home, Air Temperature Control can help. Just give us a call at 478-202-3170 and we’ll help you decide what the issue is and determine if you need air conditioning service, or any other types of HVAC service that could help you keep your home comfy.
*Source: U.S. Department of Energy statistics