Are you one of those people who closes their air vents in unused rooms? If so, you are probably doing s to save money. Guess what…this could actually be costing you more and making you less comfortable. Let me explain why.
Why It Cost More
Closing your air vents does not cause your furnace to run less. What it does is to force the same amount of air through less exits. This in turn increases the amount of pressure that is in your air duct system. This extra air pressure forces more air out of the leaks in your duct work than normal. By the way, almost all homes have some leaks in their duct work. Energy Star estimates that the average home loses 20%-30% of the air passing through it’s duct system because of holes and leaks. Since your system isn’t allowed to deliver heated air to all of the rooms, it must run longer to reach your thermostats setting. This means higher utility bills.
Reduced Airflow
When closed vents are causing more air out of leaky ducts, this means less warmed air is being delivered to the rooms in your home. For instance, there may be a room that is cooler than the rest because very little air is moving out of the vent. This can be due to air leaks in the duct work. The other cause of this reduced airflow may be the blower slowing down because it is having a hard time working against the extra pressure caused by the closed vents.
So remember to keep your air vents open. Closing your vents will not save you money. Instead it will cost you more, put added pressure in your duct system and make you feel less comfortable in your home.
