Cold Spots in Your Home? Here are 4 Ways to Fix this Issue

1. The 2-Stage Furnace

With the capability to switch between two speeds as needed, automatically, a 2-stage heating system delivers heat over a longer period—providing more consistent temperatures throughout you home. Two-stage heating equipment also offers another major advantage: it can save you energy and money on operating costs long term. This isn’t true you’re still using the same amount of energy to heat as a single stage model. The 2-stage really only improves comfort.

Two-stage furnaces provide these benefits because they allow gradual stepping up and down of the home’s heating as needed—although it runs on “low” speed most of the time. In contrast, a standard furnace has just one speed–essentially running on “high” all the time, otherwise it’s off. All of the “on-and-off” cycling that single-stage heating systems must do tends to produce the cold spots and cold blasts of air that you’re noticing in your home. Cycling the heat on and off constantly also wears components out. A running furnace is easy on the furnace. It’s the stopping and starting that increases failures and breakdowns. A 2-stage furnace may even make your home quieter as a standard one-speed furnace is noisy.

2. Zoning Systems

A zoned heating system, or zoning system, divides your home into a number of distinct climate zones. This allows you to set unique temperatures in each zone of your house. You’ll be able to control your home’s cooling in exactly the same way, come summer, if you have central air conditioning.

To create a zoning system, an experienced Denver-area HVAC contractor will divide your home into zones according to your needs and the home’s layout. This is done by strategically placing a set of dampers in your duct system. The dampers route the conditioned air to each climate zone as needed to maintain your preferred temperature. By using energy wisely and only where needed, the system becomes more intelligent and saves you energy dollars.

3. Variable Speed Blower

This is an advanced design feature to look for when choosing your next heating system–or it can be added to your existing system as an upgrade. Ultra-efficient variable speed blower motors use just a fraction of the power that a typical blower requires. Variable speeds enable the blower to better mix the air inside your home–and to efficiently continue working even when the furnace is not on. This continued air circulation evens out heat distribution and provides healthier IAQ (indoor air quality) as air passes through the filter more times. You also get consistent temperatures, greater home comfort and energy savings–all at the same time.

4. Duct Sealing and Balancing Airflow

The duct system may be largely out of sight and out of mind in your house, but this allows hidden leaks to go unnoticed. Over time, leaks enlarge and can cost homeowners and extra one-third on their monthly home heating and cooling bills, as EnergyStar.gov points out. Get a duct inspection and your local home comfort contractor can seal the duct system to drastically limit heat loss—and get the warmed (or cooled) air from your HVAC equipment to all the areas of your home. Your HVAC contractor may also recommend minor duct retrofitting, like adding supply or (more commonly) return registers to certain rooms, so that air flows evenly in and out for consistent comfort.

Self-Service Air Flow Testing in your Denver Home

To determine whether air is circulating throughout your home properly, just turn on your blower, switching it from the normal “auto” position to the continuously “on” setting. If you notice a difference in comfort level simply by running the fan continuously, you could benefit greatly by one or more of these four fixes. Note: Using this shortcut as a long-term fix can increase your electric bill by about $40 per month—so talk to your local home comfort expert to help you with one of the above permanent solutions.

For expert HVAC advice, contact Indoor Air Quality, Inc. We can evaluate your home’s airflow problems and find the best solution to eliminate those cold spots! We’ve been the leading provider of complete home comfort solutions and expert advice to homeowners here in the Denver area since 2001–and we can’t wait to meet you. We offer same-day appointments if needed. Contact us today to schedule your appointment!