Blocking Heating Vents With Furniture

When warm air is pumped into the room through the heat register the cool air must be forced out through the air return vent to be reheated by the furnace.

Blocking heating vents with furniture.

At wahl family heating cooling or plumbing we love giving our customers tips and tricks to keeping their homes comfortable. It uses them to pull air into the system which it then conditions to your preferred temperature. Make enough space so that there is at least a consistent flow of heat and that it doesn t damage the furniture in the long run. Blocking an air vent with a sofa or entertainment center can reduce the air flow by 30 percent or more.

The first and simplest is to place a solid piece of furniture over or in front of the opening. Put the furniture over the vent in summertime and you decrease the overall air flow from a central air conditioning system. Check if drapes rugs or furniture are blocking any air ducts in your home and move them to allow air to flow freely. Because these vents are more likely to be on or near the floor they often get blocked by rugs or furniture.

If you are still not satisfied with the reduction in airflow it is time to block the vent off totally. Most homes don t have enough return air vents. When it comes to furniture placement in the home most people do what s necessary to avoid blocking heat registers. Drapes blinds and furniture that block the heaters from above create a number of problems.

That s because most homeowners do not understand how these return vents work or how important they are to the overall heating of a home. There are several ways to accomplish this. Heating vents should not be blocked permanently or semi permanently with furniture as it adds a lot of stress to the system. Blocking a vent or vents creates a pressure imbalance that causes the system to work harder produce less cool air use more expensive energy and potentially results in a frozen coil a very expensive repair and replacement job.

For more pro tips and advice give us a call 412 265 2662. Yet the same diligence is rarely applied to air return vents in the home. This can have a significant impact on the way your system is operating. They prevent hot air from circulating they cause the heaters to overheat and they can catch fire.

If this option does not suffice measure the dimensions of the opening. Furniture especially upholstered furniture rugs and curtains are typically what block vents in the home. When you block a vent with a textile the entire ac has to work harder to pull air into the system and to push it out again. Furniture and carpets can restrict air flow.