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AC Infinity AIRTAP T4, Quiet Register Booster Fan with Thermostat Control. Heating Cooling AC Vent. Fits 4” x 10” Register Holes.?
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That's not atypical. The forced air is seeking the path of least resistance, so more of it will come out of the vents closer to the A/C unit. There is only so much you can do, unfortunately, without having the HVAC company redo some things, but there are a couple of tricks you can try.
One is to partially shut/cover the vents closer to the A/C, in the hope that more cold air will be diverted to the back of the house. Another is to use some fans inside the house, to move the air around.
You can also try installing some register fans, in the back of the house, in the hope of pulling more of the cold air back there. I've never used them, personally, but some people love them; ultimately, I think it depends on the setup of the house and the HVAC system, but for the cost, it might be worth trying. Here's an example, on Amazon:
One thing I didn't see in the comments(or missed), be cautious about closing to many vents. It can cause too much back pressure on the blower fan and prematurely wear out the fan. Also, it is not recommended to run your fan 100% of the time. It doesn't allow the condensate to drain off the EVAP coil when the AC is running. Which can cause mold and will only put the humidity back in the air. I turned that function off and have saved money and been more comfortable during the summer. What I did to help with temp differences was install a vent fan. It replaces the register cover with a programmable fan to help pull conditioned air in the room. It help a lot. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0792QR5YT/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_glt_fabc_X6ME3G3VC1B93YM5M80F
Try this for your daughters room: works very well
AC Infinity AIRTAP T4, Quiet Register Booster Fan with Thermostat Control. Heating Cooling AC Vent. Fits 4” x 10” Register Holes. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0792QR5YT/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_s2HeGbFEHXYBN?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
Look into a register cover with a built in fan to increase pressure/airflow, I'll put a link below. I almost bought one but our home builder agreed to send an HVAC company to evaluate and they were able to remove two 90 degree turns in the basement which alleviated air flow to our newborn's room.
https://www.amazon.com/AC-Infinity-Register-Thermostat-Control/dp/B0792QR5YT
Maybe try something like this and close the vents partially in the other room.
"balance the air but still not really where we want it"
What do you mean? You A/C should not need any regular maintenance other than being cleaned which you can do yourself.
I'd check the temps coming out the vent and see if that is the issue.
I've been using air infinity fan booster registers and they help a lot.
Aside from this I'm not sure what else to try. My upstairs is always a good 5 or more degrees hotter then my bottom two levels.
Fair enough. Last thought since fan is max'd. Install these register's everywhere they are cold (probably the whole perimeter). These will ensure they get their share of the air being pumped in. They can also mitigate the air sealing aspect by making the plenum more neutral.
Also, if the heat pump has enough capacity for the house ducted, then it has enough capacity for it to be a plenum. You just got to work around the situation.
At the end of the day, if the plenum is insulated as good as the walls, it isn't a problem and can be worked around easier than retrofitting in ductwork at this point. Would I have ducted it day 1, yes. But that doesn't mean we have to duct it now.
I had almost the exact same issue on a new construction home. We solved it by using this:
AC Infinity AIRTAP T4, Quiet Register Booster Fan with Thermostat Control. Heating Cooling AC Vent. Fits 4” x 10” Register Holes. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0792QR5YT/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_i_S6K0ZYVHZY5V98C83Q27?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
I didn't want to cut into the ductwork for a booster, as well as disrupting the balance that comes with that. This was quiet, as well as easy to reverse if it didn't help the problem. It detects heat/cold and only activates when your furnace/ac is running. It has made a world of difference in our daughter's room. I cannot recommend it highly enough.
So I had a similar situation. Nursery in new (40+ year old house) routinely 2-3° cooler than other rooms (according to Nest sensors). I got one of these guys:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0792QR5YT?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
Problem solved. It literally evened the whole house out. When I woke up, every sensor in the house was reading 69°.
I love the diagrams. Excellent job. I bet return air is a problem; air behaves as a fluid, and if nothing is draining from the room then nothing will want to flow into that room. Transom vents are awesome, or you can trim some of the bottom off your door to get a larger airflow gap.
Or replace your door with a screen door 😅
There is also this product https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0792QR5YT/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_W80ZBJ6DPJDRKDTFYT4C
It's a little booster fan right in the air register.
I would 100% start by improving return air ventilation in that room, and then maybe insulate the first few registers on the trunk line... I've slid a piece of foam board insulation in a register to block it off before, maybe if you block off your daughter's room the house will equalize a bit better.
Then the little booster fan might be worth a shot, too.
I installed a thermostatic vent fan in our nursery. Since it's the furthest room from the furnace, hardly any air makes it. The fan boosts the air when it senses the temperature change from the furnace. vent fan
If a/c is cold get a fan mounted on the register to pull in more cold air similar to this
AC Infinity AIRTAP T4, Quiet Register Booster Fan with Thermostat Control. Heating Cooling AC Vent. Fits 4” x 10” Register Holes. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0792QR5YT/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_TTN7SYP0Q7AQK8QHF84G?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
What you're experiencing is a very common issue. Many HVAC systems--including some brand-new systems--are not well designed to provide even airflow and temperature control throughout the house. There are various ways to remedy it, but none of them are really cheap or easy. One is to move the system to the attic, but that is a major project and can have many drawbacks, especially if the home is in an area that gets very cold in winter. Another is to change the ducting throughout the house. A third option is to have multiple zones, but again, that can be costly. You can also have a supplemental A/C system of some sort installed in the attic, which would help to cool the upstairs while leaving the existing system intact; but, again, that can cost a bit. So, be warned--there is no perfect, one-size-fits-all, inexpensive solution.
However, I will recommend something you can try, to possibly make things a little bit better, and that's to install register booster fans in the areas receiving less air flow. They do work, but it depends on a lot of factors, particularly the design of the home and the design of the HVAC system. In some homes, they virtually solve the problem. In other homes, they don't seem to have much effect at all. But, considering the minimal cost and effort involved in installing them, you might consider it worth a try. There are many types available, but here's just one I found quickly on Amazon, so you understand what I mean:
The master bedroom in my house was always 3-6 degrees warmer than the rest of my house. Replaced the AC and furnace shortly after moving in three years ago. The back of my houses faces due west and spikes to 76-80 degrees in the afternoon sun.
I bought this AC Infinity AIRTAP T4, Quiet Register Booster Fan for the master bedroom which has kept the temperature equal to or a few degrees cooler than the downstairs temps. Currently waiting on a second one to arrive. Could be worth a shot. I wasn’t convinced it would be a major help, but wanted to try something before picking up an expensive portable AC.
I ordered this for our upstairs bedroom to help cool it down. AC Infinity AIRTAP T4, Quiet Register Booster Fan with Thermostat Control. Heating Cooling AC Vent. Fits 4” x 10” Register Holes. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0792QR5YT/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_301KKQ4X0E06EY92P6RD
However, when I unscrewed the ceiling vent/return I am not able to pull it out, the floor vents are easy to remove. What am I doing wrong or what do I need to remove the ceiling vent?
Same issue in my master bedroom on a south wall. Not sure what the actual problem is but I purchased 2 of these vents and my room is nice and cool. They pump up the airflow coming out of the vents and are fairly inexpensive (compared to potential thousands in insulation or other larger issues).
Another option is to install a register booster fan like this to pull in more air into the bedroom. That way there is no risk of building up positive air pressure within the duct work and effecting the blower.
https://www.amazon.com/AC-Infinity-Register-Thermostat-Control/dp/B0792QR5YT
I would recommend trying a vent/ register booster fan, generally you just remove the vent cover and replace it with one of them. It’s not a permanent swap or anything and they aren’t too terribly expensive. I’ve attached a link to one easily found on amazon, but anything similar should help.
What about something like this: AC Infinity AIRTAP T4, Quiet Register Booster Fan with Thermostat Control. Heating Cooling AC Vent. Fits 4" x 10" Register Holes. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0792QR5YT/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_ostcDb5B3Q73G
Anyone tried this? It won’t exhaust the hot air but it would get more hvac air in.
Some people have had great results with simple secondary booster fans registers, like this one:
Might be worth give it a try, before attempting a major overhaul of your system.
Register booster my dude. They are "dumb" but they work. https://www.amazon.com/AC-Infinity-Register-Thermostat-Control/dp/B0792QR5YT/
I would much rather have smart vents but I'm in the same scenario as you and don't want to spend the money to deploy them in the whole house.
That's not atypical, and there is only so much you can practically do about it, but I'll offer a couple of suggestions.
- If you have a return duct both upstairs and downstairs, try covering (or mostly covering) the downstairs duct. That will force the system to draw more of the hot air from upstairs and cool it down.
- When it gets really hot, try switching your blower fan from "Auto" to "On." (Usually a switch on your thermostat, but not always.) That way, even when the downstairs cools off enough to turn off the A/C, you'll keep circulating the air in the home, making the temp more even.
- I've never personally tried the vent booster fans, but some people have great success with them, in your situation. It might be worth buying a couple and trying them out. Here's a link to one on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/AC-Infinity-Register-Thermostat-Control/dp/B0792QR5YT/ref=sr_1_5?dchild=1&qid=1622895005&sr=8-5
PV for an off grid A/C system is not cheap and not small.
You might try a simpler solution: https://www.amazon.com/AC-Infinity-Register-Thermostat-Control/dp/B0792QR5YT/
I had this issue and a register booster helped out a decent amount, something like this, just need to make sure you get a correctly sized one.
There are various types and sizes of register booster fans. They can make a big difference, with some systems--but not with all. It just depends on how the system is set up. But, you could consider trying them out. Here's one example, but you can easily find others:
https://www.amazon.com/AC-Infinity-Register-Thermostat-Control/dp/B0792QR5YT
I use something similar in my kids rooms to help with heat in the winter and AC in the summer. It's integrated into the floor register: https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B0792QR5YT/
Very often, it's just a matter of air pressure. The pressurized air in the HVAC ducts tends to come out the closest vents to the air handler, and those farthest away don't get much air. You could try installing some register vent fans, similar to the one linked below. They don't work well in every home, but they work great in other homes.
https://www.amazon.com/AC-Infinity-Register-Thermostat-Control/dp/B0792QR5YT
I'm not sure if links are allowed, but since you asked, this was the one I got: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0792QR5YT/
But, make sure you get one that fits your vents. This one may not be the right size for yours.
a register fan is a fan in the grill in the room you want more flow one of those: https://www.amazon.com/AC-Infinity-Register-Thermostat-Control/dp/B0792QR5YT/
A in line duct fan is also possible and is one of these: https://www.homedepot.com/b/Heating-Venting-Cooling-HVAC-Supplies/Inline-Duct-Fan/N-5yc1vZc4nlZ1z198mh
Just make sure you get the right size for your place.
So we got one of these for the furthest room from the air handler (nursery) in our house. It made a HUGE difference over the winter (2-3° at night). Highly recommend.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0792QR5YT?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
I have a similar issue and ended up getting a few of these fellers: https://www.amazon.com/AC-Infinity-Register-Thermostat-Control/dp/B0792QR5YT/
Look into getting these. One for each of your kids’ rooms. No, they are not HomeKit compatible. You don’t need them to be. They will help to get heat into hard to reach rooms.
There's this vent thing we got it, it helps boost the cool air in the ducts. With the fan it helped us cool down.
You can try a register booster fan, like this one:
https://www.amazon.com/AC-Infinity-Register-Thermostat-Control/dp/B0792QR5YT
They do work and do help--but not for every house and every system. But for the cost, it's often a simple and fairly inexpensive first thing to try.
There are some good suggestions throughout. It's definitely a combination of SW facing and being the longest run of ducting from the A/C.
I will try to put a few together here, in order of ease and cost.
Assuming you've triple checked the ducts and there are no kinks or leaks, get one of those register booster fans a couple people have mentioned. $70.
Take that tinting off the windows (as someone else pointed out, it can cause damage to the window seals long-term), and install the cellular/honeycomb shades. <$100 (not sure how many windows you have there)
I would start with those things first and you're only in at <$200.
If those don't do the trick, if you're looking for a quick fix, just pick up one of those stand alone A/C units that need to be vented outside. <$400.
On to more advanced (and more expensive) permanent solutions.
If you're onto this stage, definitely start by getting the IR camera for your phone and a laser temp gun. $220 total. I would say that any homeowner should have these and you'll probably end up using them for other things way more than you'd think. If anything they can tell you things that otherwise you're just trusting the tradesperson to tell you about. With these you'll be able to tell major things like if the builder forgot to put insulation in those walls, which is a huge mistake. Also if there are any air seal failures around the windows. If they didn't put expanding foam around the window frame, that would be a problem.
The sun is beating down on the roof over that room. Install some radiant barrier on the underside of the rafters. Attic Foil makes a good product and has a ton of great videos explaining how beneficial it is and how it works, and how to install it. As the video says, the sun's heat energy is transferred through the roof and the insulation over the ceiling in that room is getting baked (you'll be able to tell this by using the laser gun on the ceiling in that room vs other upstairs rooms). Stapling that foil to the underside of the rafters, and/or against the studs if it's a gable end (or even just laying it on top of the insulation), even just in that corner of the house, would be a big improvement. (Ideally do this throughout the attic. It is the best bang for your buck for energy cost savings.) Don't be tempted to have someone spray aluminum paint onto the underside of your roof decking, this does absolutely nothing.
Also, it's relatively cheap and easy to just put more insulation just over that room. You can just go buy a few rolls of R30 batt insulation and roll 'em out. Ideally though, if you have blown in insulation, you'd have more blown in. If you were to put the batts on top of the blown-in, it would press the blown-in down and reduce it's effectiveness. But having someone come to blow more in is messy and expensive.
Try the attic foil first, then more insulation. After trying those, if still no improvement, have the attic vent fan installed.
The sun is also beating down on that corner of the house. Unfortunately there's not much you can do to the walls unless you start tearing out the drywall and adding more R-value insulation between the studs (or make the wall thicker by sistering 2x6's to the studs which allows for more insulation). Or start tearing off the siding on the outside and adding rigid foam insulation and a radiant barrier under the siding. But either of those would be very costly and essentially a "fuck it, I have to re-do all of it" solution. Before I did either of those, I would just get the mini-split A/C unit installed and call it done.
The attic vent fan and the mini-split are probably the most expensive options. Depending how comparable the costs would be for either of those, the mini-split would definitely do the trick, but the attic fan may not.
We had the same issue in our bedroom. We got a couple of these, one for each floor vent in the room. And it's made a massive difference!
I was talking about something like this. It goes on your existing AC vent.
As added context, furnace is Rheem Corsaire Model CAPF3642C5DB. The "pinch" looks like it's two slot vents on top of each other because the round venting definitely won't fit between the floor and support beam.
Would love to solve by getting rid of all the 90 degree turns, but worried the pinch means it won't matter. Have also considered a register booster fan like this one, but I know their actual use cases are few and far between: https://www.amazon.com/AC-Infinity-Register-Thermostat-Control/dp/B0792QR5YT/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=Vent+Blower+Fan&qid=1613237152&sr=8-2
Or maybe an inline duct fan? https://www.amazon.com/AC-Infinity-CLOUDLINE-S6-Controller/dp/B07FPFVZTZ/ref=sr_1_6?dchild=1&keywords=inline+duct+fan&qid=1613237499&sr=8-6
I already have a booster fan installed but its a pretty large bedroom with high lofted ceilings and only a single 4x10 register. This is the booster fan I have installed.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0792QR5YT/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
They're not very attractive but you could try a register booster fan: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0792QR5YT/
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