Close Ac Vents In Winter

After all one of the purposes of attic vents is to help release some of the heat from the attic and prevent it from becoming super heated.

Close ac vents in winter.

They need to be open in the summer. Instead of blocking the flow of air in a room closed off vents simply create additional pressure within the ductwork. In the winter you want the cold air to be drawn through the return registers leaving the hot air behind. So in a way the idea of closing those vents during the winter also makes sense because theoretically this would help prevent heat from escaping your home during the winter when you re trying to keep it in.

The warm air that s blocked from entering the closed off room will simply find other places to go through leaks and cracks in your ductwork or back. It most likely has adjustable fins that allow you to direct the flow of air in the room and you can use the adjusting level to shut off a vent almost entirely. It s not just the energy efficiency of your home that takes a hit if you close vents. Why you should never close the vents in your home look at the nearest air vent in your room.

Now most people close their crawl space vents in the wintertime to keep the cold out so that the cold air doesn t freeze the pipes under the house. Although air should circulate year round through the attic your house will probably be more comfortable if you cover the foundation vents in the winter. You probably won t notice a temperature difference but your system will be happier without the closed vents and you will be saving money. It appears set in first photo has high return grill damper closed with bottom open and the other set the opposite way.

Since cold air is heavy it will automatically flow down to the lower register. In extreme cold the lack of warm air in your duct work may cause freezing to occur. Try the following since it is still the winter heating season. By opening the lower registers and closing the top ones you keep hot air in and draw the cold air out.

Don t shorten the life of your hvac system unnecessarily by closing off your vents. Open top return grill dampers and close bottom return grill dampers on all sets like this throughout the home. The simplest way to close foundation vents for the winter is to plug them from the outside with foam blocks made specifically for this purpose. You probably already know that attic vents are important both to your roof s longevity and to keeping your energy bills down during the summer.

Just remember to remove the plugs when the weather turns mild in the spring. In winter when the air is drier the vents are closed to reduce the chance that the pipes in the crawl space might freeze. The popular notion has always been to shut off vents in rooms that you use infrequently. Adjust return registers for summer.