Every floor in your home should be a refuge that’s warm and toasty in the winter season and cool and comfortable in the summer. However, families who live in some multi-level residences find the upper floor is stubbornly hotter or colder than the main floor.
This could merely be due to the fact most thermostats in a house are on the ground floor, which is where people spend the the majority of time—in the living room, kitchen, etc.—so as a result they tend to set the temperature according to how it feels on the first floor.
However, temperature variations between the upstairs and downstairs could also be because of trouble with your HVAC system. Some of these issues can be solved relatively quickly while others might call for more extensive and costly fixes. Here, the professionals at Assured Appliance & Heating & Air will help you determine why the upstairs of your home is hotter than downstairs, or vice versa.
Why Is My Upstairs So Hot?
The phenomenon of the upstairs of a two-story home becoming hotter than the downstairs can be traced to several factors. For starters, heat rises, so it’s common for the second floor of a home to get hotter than the ground floor. Not enough insulation in the attic or roof can make this worse by letting heat transfer from the roof into the upstairs rooms.
Another common reason is that the air conditioning is not powerful enough to cool the entire home, causing it to have difficulty cooling the upstairs effectively.
To fix these issues, homeowners could add additional insulation in the attic and make sure their home has proper ventilation. If there’s a possibility the air conditioner is the ideal size for the home, call an experienced HVAC company like Assured Appliance & Heating & Air inspect the unit. A skilled professional also can help locate a unit that's better suited for your home if you want air conditioning installation or replacement.
Why Is My Upstairs So Cold/Not Heating?
When the downstairs of your home is warm, but it’s very cold upstairs, that can cause a very chilly night for anyone whose bedrooms are on the upper floor. The most prevalent causes of an upstairs not heating like it should are the insulation levels and the ductwork.
Inadequate insulation allows cold air to filter through the home’s attic or walls and contribute to heat loss, creating colder temperatures upstairs. It’s crucial to make sure your home has a thick, level layer of insulation in the attic and proper insulation in the walls to keep the cold out and the heat inside.
The ductwork in a home plays a critical role in disseminating conditioned air throughout different rooms of the building. However, problems with the ductwork can cause the upstairs being colder than the lower floor. A frequently reported reason for this is improper airflow balance. The ducts may not be the proper size or configuration, which results in an uneven distribution of air between the floors. This can cause more warm air to flow downstairs, causing insufficient airflow—which is the heated air—on the upper story.
Another potential problem area in the ductwork is the location of the supply and return vents. If there are fewer vents on the upper floor or they are poorly placed, it can restrict air circulation and cause inferior heating or cooling. Additionally, leaks or gaps in the ductwork can lead to air loss, lowering the overall efficiency of the HVAC system and actually making the temperature difference worse.
To figure out why the upstairs is colder than the downstairs, homeowners should hve their ductwork examined by trusted professionals like the team at Assured Appliance & Heating & Air to identify any imbalances, leaks or inadequacies. Sealing leaks and adding additional vents or adjusting existing ones can help improve airflow and ensure a more even temperature balance between the upstairs and downstairs.
How You Can Fix a Hot or Cold Upstairs?
If your upstairs is hotter or colder than the ground level of your residence, an HVAC zoning system could be a highly effective solution.
An HVAC zoning system divides the household into different zones, which each have their own thermostat and damper system so the homeowner can control the heating or cooling of each zone.
This system can be very helpful in situations where the upstairs of a multi-story home is quite hot or too cold while the main floor is comfortable. By setting up a zoning system, homeowners can regulate the temperature independently in each zone, enabling them to address specific hot or cold spots effortlessly.
To discover more about an HVAC zoning system in Genoa, call Assured Appliance & Heating & Air. We’ve designed and installed customized home comfort plans for many community members and are happy to show how an HVAC zoning system could work in your home.
Why Is My Upstairs So Humid?
In addition to the upper story being hotter or colder than the rest of the house, another problem in multi-floor homes is when the upper floors are more humid than the lower level.
A typical explanation for excess upper floor humidity is poor ventilation on the upper floor, which can produce greater humidity levels. As is often the case with temperature differences between floors, poor insulation or sealing in the attic or walls may permit warm, humid air from outside the house infiltrate the upstairs rooms. In addition, if there are any leaks or plumbing issues on the upper floor, that can also create excessive moisture in that level of a home.
To fix humidity problems, homeowners can add more ventilation by installing fans or opening windows to promote airflow. Adding more insulation in the attic and better sealing the attic and walls can help prevent external moisture from entering the upstairs. Finding and repairing any leaks or plumbing issues is also imperative.
Depending on the levels of moisture found in the home, a whole-home dehumidifier could be another worthwhile tool to reduce humidity on the upper and lower floors.
