Potential Causes Of HVAC Airflow Problems

Efficient airflow is integral to your air conditioners efficient operation. You need efficient airflow to enable heat exchange to take place so that your home can be cooled and also to enable all parts of your house to receive heated or conditioned air. Here are some of the common causes of inefficient airflow for HVAC systems:

Leaking Air Ducts

Both the supply and return air ducts can cause airflow problems for your HVAC system. The air ducts can leak if they have been damaged by regular wear and tear, accidental damage or loosening of joints or connections. Leaking supply air ducts will leave your home with uneven heating and cooling because conditioned or heated air will escape the air ducts and leave some rooms unserviced. Return air ducts, on the other hand, will suck in dirty and moisture-laden air and overwork your HVAC system. The lack of return air will also decrease the volume of air circulating within the house.

Blocked Air Vents and Registers

The vents and registers are the spaces through which air enters and leaves the rooms in your house. Just like the air ducts, there are both supply and return registers for supplying the rooms with fresh air and taking stale air back to the system for conditioning, respectively. This means blockage of these vents and registers will create inefficient airflow in the home. Different things can block the registers, but the most common cause is poor placement of furniture.

Dirty Coils      

A typical HVAC system has two types of coils – the evaporator and condenser coils. The evaporator coil picks up heat inside your house, and when the condensed refrigerant flows through, it vaporizes. The condenser coil gets rid of the heat when the vaporized refrigerant flows through it and exchanges heat with the outside air. In both cases, heat exchange takes place between the refrigerant (in the respective coils) and the air flowing over the coils. The accumulation of dirt or debris over the coils will hamper this airflow, leading to inefficient heating and cooling.

Dirty Filter

Lastly, your HVAC system can also suffer inefficient airflow if its filter is dirty. As you know, the filter cleans the air in your house by trapping contaminants or particles in its tiny holes. If the filter gets too dirty and the holes get blocked, the airflow is also hampered because the diameter of the holes through which it is meant to pass is reduced.

Even the best HVAC system won't help you much if it can't move air around your home. This is why airflow problems should never be ignored.Contact an HVAC service for more info. 

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