Airflow in the home helps your HVAC system operate at its most efficient and effective. It spreads the hot or cool air throughout your home and gets it into the areas that need it the most. If your home furnishings are in the way of the airflow, the hot or cool air pools and doesn’t spread, it’s time to evaluate how the air flows in your home so you can get the most out of your HVAC.
Is it Time to Rearrange Furniture?
You’ve spent a lot of time figuring out how to layout your furniture in a pleasing configuration, but did you take into consideration what you put in front of the air vents? Maybe you didn’t want them visible or tried to camouflage them and put a piece of furniture in front of the vents. What you may not have realized is that you blocked the airflow that comes from those vents by placing a chair or table in front of them. The style of furniture doesn’t matter so much as placement. Even the smallest chair can block the air. Pull back the furnishings and let the airflow. You can still disguise the vents with furniture, but make sure a majority of the air gets out and into the room.
Open Up Those Drapes
Draperies are lovely for completing the look of a room and excellent at trapping air if they’re above a vent, even sheers. For example: If you open up your windows, but keep your drapes closed to some degree, you will find that there’s far less air coming in. While you can’t get around the fact that you need and want draperies, you can install them so they won’t trap air.
For drapes above a vent, hem them up a few inches higher, so they don’t create a conduit between them and the vent. About the only thing you can do for the rest of the windows is to open the draperies as much as possible to allow air to flow through when you want to catch a breeze. It’s fine to keep them closed in winter, as trapping the heat in the home is what they do best.
Install More Fans
Fans make for great ceiling decor, and they do a marvelous job of keeping air circulating in the home. They also lower the temperature a few degrees and can offset their energy use by allowing you to reduce the amount of gas or electricity needed to operate the HVAC. Try to pick fans that won’t overpower the room with their size. If you’re concerned about a fan being too obvious or showy, buy one that comes in a color that matches with the ceiling, so it blends in better.
These are some of the ways you can change up your home decor, so air flows through. It’s an effort well worth making to keep your home comfortable and your energy costs low.
