Return air vents are usually found in the lower wall of a room or hallway. Ideally, your return air vents and supply vents should be on opposite sides of the space. Otherwise, you may be pulling some of the heated or cooled air back into the system before it has a chance to circulate.
Return vents: What is a return vent? These vents suck the air from each room and send it back to the air conditioning or heating system. Return vents tend to be bigger than supply vents, and you won't feel any air coming from them. When an HVAC system delivers air to a room, it increases that room's air pressure.
To maintain an even temperature throughout the room, return air vents should ideally be positioned higher on the walls or near the ceiling to capture the rising warm air effectively.
Today, it is recommended to have one or multiple air vents in each room of your home or business to optimize air flow and reduce the cost of energy spent on cooling your home or office. So, what are air vents and how do they help your HVAC system run better?
1. Openings shall not be located less than 10 feet (3048 mm) measured in any direction from an open combustion chamber or draft hood of another appliance located in the same room or space. 2. Return air shall not be taken from a hazardous or insanitary location or a refrigeration room as defined in this code.
One per room is ideal, but placing two or three in central locations can provide enough air circulation to maximize the energy efficiency of your HVAC and optimize indoor air quality, so your family stays healthy. If your home has multiple stories, you should have at least one return air vent per floor.
A lack of return air can cause your HVAC system to overheat, leading to frequent shutdowns or overheating warnings. This overworking can also result in the air conditioner blowing warm air, especially in high temperatures.
If there's not enough return air, your living room can be 10℉+ warmer or cooler than, for example, the bedrooms. Not enough return air in summer can cause rooms close to the central unit to be cooler and those farther from it to be warmer. In winter, rooms farther from the furnace can be too cool.
You can add a vent to existing ductwork if your AC can handle it. This can provide comfort in rooms not served by your HVAC system. It can even improve indoor air quality and increase your home's resale value.
Closing the vents doesn't do it any favors. In fact, instead of helping the air conditioner cool less, closed registers force the same amount of air through other ducts. This builds pressure in the system and makes your HVAC system work harder to distribute the air where you need it.
Up High: having an air return higher up on a wall will be better at sucking in hot air that rises. Making it more efficient at transferring this hot air back into your system to repeat the cooling cycle. Down Low: if you have your air return lower on your wall it will function better as a cold air return.
Adding a return air vent will cost homeowners $350 per vent on average, depending on the vent size and duct material. A professional can assess the right duct material you need for your home and can give you an accurate estimate.
Hot air rises and cool air sinks. Therefore, opening the right return vents in the summer and winter significantly improves the distribution of air by your forced-air system. You'll also enjoy more even heating and cooling throughout your home. In the summer, open your high returns and close the low ones.
They are usually located in central, larger rooms to more efficiently pull air from the home and into the system. Return air vents are often located on a wall, rather than the floor or ceiling.
While return vents don't always require filters, adding them provides additional filtration, improving indoor air quality and keeping dirt and debris out of your system.
Return vents are usually larger than supply vents and are in large rooms in the home. The return vents in your home help equalize the pressure that changes as your HVAC system heats or cools your home. These vents should never be fully closed because closing them off restricts airflow and strains the system.
Does Every Room Need Air Return Grilles? While it is a myth that air return grilles are required in each and every room in the house, it is definitely necessary to have more than one of these grilles installed at strategic places in the house. The most important place to have these would be the bedroom.
The Secret to Comfort is Balanced Airflow
The current Supply Air vent pressurizes the room, until (in many instances) the pressure inside the room slows the airflow coming from the Supply Air vent! When we install the Return Air vent, the pressure is alleviated. The Return Air vent balances the Supply Air vent.
You can usually spot return vents on your walls, ceiling, or floors. Look for a white grille without shutters to spot an air return vent. These vents will typically integrate seamlessly into your home.
-Put a louver in the door. Not great for acoustics, and may look goofy. -Install a transfer grill. In the wall above the door, or anywhere in a wall that's between the bedroom and a room with a return duct, cut a hole and install a register grill on both sides of the wall.
Photograph 3: Closet Ventilation - The best way to provide closet ventilation is to install a small return air duct in the closet.
So why can one room in your home be colder than others? Blocked or Covered Vents: One of the most common reasons for a cold room is blocked or covered vents. Heavy furniture or objects placed in front of vents can obstruct the flow of warm or cool air.
So how much space does an air return vent need to work properly? Home Inspection Insider explains that an air return vent needs 6-12 inches of space in front of it, and recommends that you do not put large, bulky furniture like couches and bookshelves in front of an air return vent.
Provided that the cleaning is done properly, no evidence suggests that such cleaning would be detrimental. EPA does not recommend that the air ducts be cleaned routinely, but only as needed.
If they are too small, airflow will be restricted and there will not be enough air circulation to heat or cool the inside of your home. Return air ducts must be sealed and unobstructed — Sealing return air ducts is just as important as sealing supply ducts.