How to Balance HVAC in a Room

Maintaining a comfortable temperature in every room of your house can prove challenging, especially if you have an older HVAC system. Replacing your system can correct a heat or cold imbalance, but you can often maintain a proper balance with simple maintenance or troubleshooting. Air balance refers to how well heat and cold air flow through your ducts. You can hire a professional to check your ductwork, but before spending money, see if you can fix the problem yourself.

Replacement air filter
Screwdriver

Instructions

- 1
  Walk around the house and evaluate the temperature in each room. Rooms with an HVAC imbalance may have temperatures that are warmer or colder than the rest of the house.
- 2
  Adjust the air return. Locate the air returns or vents on the floor or ceiling. Check to see if the air return is opened or closed. Open the return in the room with the imbalance. If the return is already opened, go to nearby rooms and slightly close those air returns to encourage airflow to the room with the imbalance.
- 3
  Enter your attic or crawlspace and examine the ductwork. Look for cracks or breaks in the tubing that might reduce airflow to rooms in your house. Contact an HVAC company if you don't detect any cracks. The company will blow artificial smoke into your air ducts to check for damage. Seal or cover cracks in the ductwork with metal-foil backed tape or duct tape.
- 4
  Replace the air filter. Locate the access door to your air filter on the side or back of your unit. Unscrew and open the access door. Remove the dirty filter and insert a new filter into the slot. Air filters are available in a variety of sizes. Refer to your old filter for information on the appropriate size.

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