Second-Story Homes: Fixing Uneven Cooling

In our Oklahoma climate with its hot summer weather, cooling your two-story home evenly can be frustrating and difficult. Dialing back the thermostat's temperature setting frequently to cool your uncomfortably warm second story can make the main floor rooms too chilly, and send your energy bills skyrocketing, too. Warm air's lower density is why it naturally rises, and this is a main reason for uneven cooling in a multi-story home.However, these other issues may be contributing to the problem as well:

Incorrect equipment sizing and advancing age.

Over- or under-sized equipment can short cycle or may not have enough capacity to provide sufficient cooling. If you have older equipment, its efficiency may be in decline.

Unchecked heat gains/losses.

Ductwork leaks, air losses through your home's conditioned envelope and inadequate insulation can make cooling less effective and/or reduce how much conditioned air gets delivered.

Flawed ductwork design.

Insufficient return airflow, inadequately-sized ducts or a lack of supply and return ducts can cause airflow imbalances that result in uneven cooling.

How to Achieve More Consistent Cooling

To enjoy greater comfort on all levels of your home, it's best to have a skilled contractor assess your HVAC system. You may be advised to:

Update your HVAC equipment.

It may be time to invest in a new air conditioner or heat pump if yours has a low SEER rating or is more than 10 years old.

Fix ducting flaws.

Sealing and insulating or replacing a poorly-designed duct system may help even out temperature differences by curbing conditioned air losses and/or improving airflow to the second level.

Seal and insulate.

Air sealing around your home's exterior and attic may preserve more HVAC output, while boosting insulation levels on the attic floor may improve your home's overall efficiency.

Install zoned cooling.

Having duct dampers and individual thermostats installed to create multiple cooling zones can provide more precise temperature control and more consistent comfort on each of your home's levels.

If you're experiencing problems with uneven cooling in your multi-level or two-story Broken Arrow home, contact us at Air Assurance for expert help finding effective solutions.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in the Tulsa and Broken Arrow, Oklahoma area about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about other HVAC topics, call us at 918-217-8273.

Upgrade, Extend Or Add To Your HVAC System For A Second-Story Addition

Are you planning to construct a second-story addition on your house? Have you given thought as to how you will handle its heating and cooling needs? When developing an HVAC system for this new space in your Greater Tulsa Metropolitan home, there are three options available.Professional evaluation is neededThe first thing you must realize is that the choice might not be entirely up to you. Perhaps your current HVAC system isn't capable of delivering conditioned air efficiently to your second-story addition, or maybe the new area is too far from your ductwork. What you'll need to do is have an HVAC professional conduct an energy evaluation. Once that's finished, he'll be able to provide you with a recommendation.Three optionsOne option might be to extend the HVAC system that you already have. This is often the easiest choice, but only if your unit has the capacity to maintain the new space and isn't more than ten years old. Also keep in mind that you will need to make sure your home's ductwork is sealed and insulated throughout.Another possible choice would be to switch out your current system with an upgraded version. Although this might be a bit costly, you'll be able to utilize a more energy-efficient model. This is a common choice when the house's HVAC system is either too old or not powerful enough to handle the heating and cooling requirements of the second-story addition.And finally, you may need to install a stand-alone system, especially if this new space isn't close enough to the ductwork's main trunk. One advantage of this is being able to utilize a different type of system altogether, one that is more energy efficient. For example, you may decide on a hydronic or high-velocity system for this new area. Or you could install a ductless system, which has increased in popularity over the years.For more expert advice about your HVAC system to a second-story addition, or for questions relating to home comfort, please contact the friendly professionals at Air Assurance. We have been serving the Greater Tulsa Metropolitan area since 1985.Our goal is to help educate our customers in the Tulsa and Broken Arrow, Oklahoma area about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). Image courtesy of Shutterstock