Your entire home should be a sanctuary that’s warm and toasty in the winter and cool and comfortable in the summer. However, residents in some two-story homes find the upper floor is stubbornly hotter or colder than the first floor.
This could just be because most thermostats in a house are on the ground floor, which is where people spend the greatest amount 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 differences between the upstairs and downstairs could also be due to issues with your HVAC system. Some of these difficulties can be resolved fairly quickly while others might require more extensive and costly fixes. Here, the team at Enertek Air Conditioning & Heating will help you figure out why the upstairs of your home is hotter than downstairs, or vice versa.
Why Is It Hot Upstairs?
The phenomenon of the upstairs of a two-story home getting hotter than the downstairs can be traced to several factors. First, heat rises, so it’s natural for the second floor of a home to get hotter than the main floor. Not enough insulation in the attic or roof can worsen this problem by permitting 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 fight to cool the upstairs effectively.
To tackle these issues, homeowners could install more 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 Enertek Air Conditioning & Heating inspect the unit. A skilled professional also can help find a unit that's better suited for your home if you require air conditioning installation or replacement.
Why Is My Upstairs So Cold/Not Heating?
When the downstairs of your home is warm, but it’s freezing upstairs, that makes for a frosty night for anyone whose bedrooms are on the upper floor. The most frequent explanations for an upstairs not heating like it ought to are the insulation levels and the ductwork.
Inadequate insulation permits cold air to leak through the home’s attic or walls and contribute to heat loss, resulting in colder temperatures on the upper levels. It’s important to make sure your home has a deep, 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 very important role in disseminating conditioned air throughout different rooms of the building. However, problems with the ductwork can cause the upstairs being colder than the main level. A common explanation for this is improper airflow balance. The ducts may not be the correct size or design, which results in an uneven distribution of air between the floors. This can cause more warm air to go downstairs, leaving insufficient airflow—which is the heated air—on the higher floors.
Another factor with ductwork is the location of the supply and return vents. If there are fewer vents on the upper level or they are poorly installed, it can restrict air circulation and cause inferior heating or cooling. In addition, leaks or gaps in the ductwork can cause air loss, reducing the overall efficiency of the HVAC system and exacerbating the temperature difference.
To determine why the upstairs is colder than the downstairs, homeowners should hve their ductwork checked by skilled HVAC pros like the team at Enertek Air Conditioning & Heating to identify any imbalances, leaks or inadequacies. Sealing leaks and adding more vents or adjusting existing ones can help enhance airflow and ensure a better temperature balance between the upstairs and downstairs.
What Do I Do to Fix a Hot/Cold Upstairs?
If your upstairs is hotter or colder than the lower floors of your home, an HVAC zoning system could be a useful solution.
An HVAC zoning system breaks the home into different zones, which each have their own thermostat and damper system so the homeowner can customize the heating or cooling of each zone.
This system can be particularly useful in scenarios where the upstairs of a multi-story home is very hot or really cold while the main floor is comfortable. By installing a zoning system, homeowners can regulate the temperature independently in each zone, allowing them to address specific hot or cold spots easily.
To find out more about an HVAC zoning system in Northridge, call Enertek Air Conditioning & Heating. We’ve developed 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 the Humidity So High Upstairs?
In addition to the upper story being hotter or colder than the rest of the house, another challenge in multi-floor homes is when the upper floors are more humid than the first floor.
A frequent reason for excess upper floor humidity is poor ventilation on the upper floor, which can result in greater humidity levels. As is often the case with temperature differences between floors, insufficient 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 problems on the upper floor, that can also cause excessive moisture in that area of a home.
To deal with humidity problems, homeowners can increase ventilation by getting fans or opening windows to promote airflow. Proper 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 extremely important.
Depending on the levels of moisture found in the home, a whole-home dehumidifier could be another worthwhile tool to control humidity in the residence.
