Have you been noticing certain rooms in your home are hotter than others? When the heat of summer reaches its full strength, homeowners want to know they can live comfortably in their rooms without being disturbed. If areas of your home feel hotter than others, it indicates a major issue with your home’s insulation, air conditioning unit, or air ducts (among other causes). Let’s dissect why some rooms in your home are hotter than others and how you can address these issues.
Check For These Common Problems First
Before you leap to larger and more expensive conclusions, rooms that are hotter than the rest of the house can sometimes be due to minor issues. If you have a dirty air filter or accidentally closed a few air vents, the proper airflow won’t travel to the different rooms in your home.
Dirty Air Filters
Air filters should be changed every 30-90 days, and if you haven’t changed yours in a while, it might be responsible for rooms feeling hotter than normal. Change out your air filter and notice how quickly the cool air returns to your rooms.
Closed Air Vents
Maybe you closed the vents to stop your kid’s toys from falling through, or you were doing some work around the house. Either way, closed vents are relatively self-explanatory and will prevent air from traveling where it needs to go.
Cracked/Open Windows
Even a slight crack in your window can let out a ton of air. Not only does this keep your rooms hotter than normal, but it forces your HVAC system to work harder to combat all that warm air.
Your Ductwork Is Damaged or Aging
If you’ve counted out these problems, it might be possible that your ductwork is aging and letting air from your air conditioning system leak out. Ductwork is responsible for getting your air to and from your rooms without being exposed to other elements or escaping to other areas it shouldn’t be. Sometimes your ductwork can come loose due to old age or even be damaged due to uneven air flow. After about 10-15 years, your ductwork is at risk of failure, so make sure you’re getting adequate maintenance that identifies problems early.
Your AC Isn’t Strong Enough
Sometimes miscalculations leave homeowners with a unit that isn’t powerful enough to handle the demands of their homes. A few factors determine the proper AC size: the square footage of your home, the number of people inside, and the number of floors you have. A miscalculation means that rooms further from the AC won’t receive enough air, and your home might also be extremely humid as the AC can’t properly flush out the humidity. Rule number one when getting a new AC is contacting a proper AC installation company like Air Temperature Professional.
Your Thermostat Is in a Bad Location
Thermostats read the temperature of a location and determine when to turn your AC system on and off. Because of this, thermostats should be located in relatively neutral locations that represent the majority of your home and aren’t influenced by sunlight or the food you cook for dinner. Sometimes, thermostats are installed near windows or in areas that receive extreme sunlight. When this is the case, it reads at a different temperature and can throw off your system enough to provide too much or too little cool air.
Your Home Isn’t Properly Insulated
Insulation is one of the biggest keys to preventing heat and natural light from entering your home. Poor insulation naturally leads to warmer rooms that don’t retain the air. This is especially true in older homes with attics as the heat rises. Some attics can reach up to 140 degrees Fahrenheit on a 90-degree day, so make sure your walls, windows, and doors are properly insulated.
Keep the Temperatures in Your Rooms Steady With a Pro!
It’s never a good sign when your master bedroom leaves you sweating profusely. Your entire home should be cool, warm, or whatever temperature you prefer. When this isn’t the case, it usually means there’s a problem with important parts of your home that need professional help.
At Air Temperature Professional, our specialty is in our name, ensuring steady temperatures throughout your house. Contact us today for an air conditioner repair, smart thermostat installation, or any other service that fixes your room temperature problems.