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Closing Supply and Return Registers Search Results Page
Every day more and more people are visiting this page...
Many of them want to save some money on their heating and cooling bills, but do not know how. They have reasonable thoughts that if they would close a few heats and cold air returns they will save some money on their utility bills!???
So here is a question - Are they right or wrong on this issue? So let’s take a close look at it.
The most obvious answer is – They are right! Because if you would heat or cool only part of your house your HVAC system will work less and you can save!
On the second thought the answer is – They are wrong! Because your equipment is designed to move a certain amount of air and it will fail prematurely if you starve it for air!
Then here is another question – Why is it working for me, why am I able to save about 20% on my utility bill but it doesn’t work for others? Because I have designed and built the entire system of the ductwork in my house by myself!
But what can you do to save on your utility bill and down the road do not destroy your equipment? – You have to make some important changes to your ductwork system!
If you scroll down you will read some comments where people stand on the both ends of this issue. Some of them for and some of them against it, but unfortunately all of them wrong because their advices based on presumption that system of ductwork is something that can’t be touched and changed. Believe me it can be changed and you can do it!
Hundreds and hundreds of people are buying my books and many of them aren’t the professional installers. The vast majority of them are DIY-rs who do not afraid to install the entire system to their new houses, finish their basements, replace their furnaces or do their kitchen remodeling! And even you are not one of them you always can hire an HVAC Contractor, which will do this job for you.
However, from my experience I know that you still have some doubts if this will work for you or not!
So let me make this process for you as smooth as possible. Let’s divide it into three steps:
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First step:
Visit these two free pages - Page 1, Page 2 and if after that you’ll have some question please proceed to the second step below.
Second step:
Send me an email from this page; describe what kind of house and what kind of equipment do you have. Describe its location in your house; count how many heat runs and cold air returns you have and their locations. Is your basement finished or not and so on.
This step is free of charge and at the end I’ll tell you if you can improve your system of ductwork or not. |
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Third step:
For the price of only $10.00 I will explain WHAT should be done in order to save money on your heating/cooling bill.
After you pay $10.00, PayPal will send you to the page above where you can type your request and send it to me. |
Many people who are looking for ways to save on their gas/electrical bills are visiting my website, but some of them express doubts if this is actually working...
Here is just one example:
"Hi Ed,
As everyone else visiting your web pages, I would like to save on heating and cooling costs :-) (no surprise, eh?)
I have a couple of questions for you, and even with the fact that I would have to pay you double or triple what you ask for, this will not be a problem! What it is important to me is to understand the RATIONAL behind your answers... I am a technical person in nature, so understanding what is going on under the hood is what makes me feel comfortable to do any changes.
Anyway, let me know if you can answer me the following:
- Do you really save energy controlling the vents in unused rooms or not?
- If it is true, then when closing too many vents, can I damage my heater/AC unit? How do I know my unit will be safe with any changes you propose?
- So what are the magic changes I have to perform to my system in order to save $$?
My house is ~2700sq feet with finished basement, and from what I can gather from information on your web site, it seems that I own a "high efficiency condensing furnace"..
Let me know how to proceed... Waiting to hear from you soon!
Cheers
EB"
So, before I go any further let’s take a look at what on the web the others are telling you about this issue:
associatedcontent.com
Save Energy and Money by Closing Unused Rooms
Close Up Unused Rooms – Registers.
All registers in an unused room should be closed and covered to reduce energy costs and reduce waste. Be sure to do the same thing to air vents or registers that both push air into the room and take it out. Baseboard heaters can also be turned off and covered, though this is a bit more difficult.
To safely cover registers and air vents, first be sure to close them completely. There are commercial register covers that can be used. Some are more complex things you screw into the wall, but there are also magnetic sheets that can be attached directly to the metal fixture.
ehow.com
Close all registers and heating ducts in the room. Close both intake and outflow vents. Cover these registers with purchased covers that screw into the wall, magnetic sheets made especially for this purpose, or any non-flammable material that can block any air leakage more effectively.
So, these two websites are recommending you to close vents and save!
However, at the same time the other two are telling you otherwise:
gardenweb.com
Question:
Does it save money on your utility bill, if you close the vents & doors on rooms that you don't use when using central gas heating?
Answer# 1:
I would say no because the furnace is turned off & on by thermostat which also control how long it runs. Which means it runs until satisfied at the location it mount (where hangs).
Answer# 2:
If you close a supply vent, and room has leak windows or air infiltration problem. This could create (not say it will) a negative pressure in room- allowing the return to suck threw cold air threw leak windows, walls , ceilings which if was real bad cold increase heat cost a little.
It is better to have air return and supply open in all rooms not be block by furniture to be balanced in positive and negative air pressure.
In my opinion it bad to block off vents, it will not make the furnace run any less.
Every furnace instruction book will tell you what the temperature rise across the heat exchanger should be.
If you turn off to many heat runs then you could get too much temperature rise and damage your furnace by over heating it.
If your temperature on return is 70 then the hot air coming out should not be more then about 140 degrees on most furnaces.
Feedback:
Thank you so much for answering my question. I have read & heard that in order to lower your electric bill; one should close off unused rooms, as well as close the vents to those rooms. Your answers have helped me to understand why this is not such a good idea.
Well, it is a very common practice: you are thinking that you are getting some good professional advice, but instead it is just a narrow-versioned opinion from the people who never looked into this issue at all.
consumerenergycenter.org
CLOSING OFF VENTS AND ROOMS TO SAVE ENERGY
Years ago, people would save energy use by closing off portions of their homes that were not being used. This occurred usually in the winter when people would huddle around a fireplace or wood stove and close off other non-heated rooms.
Some people still think that by closing off an unused room and its register saves energy. Some people close off all registers except for the one in the living room.
While this may have worked with older, non-insulated homes, it doesn't work with today's energy systems - forced air heating and cooling systems.
According to a 2003 study by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory:
"Closing registers in forced-air heating systems and leaving some rooms in a house unconditioned has been suggested as a method of quickly saving energy for California consumers. This study combined laboratory measurements of the changes in duct leakage as registers are closed together with modeling techniques to estimate the changes in energy use attributed to closing registers.
"The results of this study showed that register closing led to increased energy use for a typical California house over a wide combination of climate, duct leakage, and number of closed registers. The reduction in building thermal loads due to conditioning only a part of the house was offset by increased duct system losses, mostly due to increased duct leakage. Therefore, the register closing technique is not recommended as a viable energy saving strategy for California houses with ducts located outside conditioned space.
"The energy penalty associated with the register closing technique was found to be minimized if registers farthest from the air handler are closed first because this tends to only affect the pressures and air leakage for the closed off branch. Closing registers nearer the air handler tends to increase the pressures and air leakage for the whole system.
"Closing too many registers (more than 60%) is not recommended because the added flow resistance severely restricts the air flow though the system leading to safety concerns. For example, furnaces may operate on the high-limit switch and cooling systems may suffer from frozen coils."
My God! Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory study! How f-g scary it sounds to anyone – I just shit my pants!
This so-called study only enforces American people’s opinion how ineffective and wasteful government subsidized studies could be…
“The reduction in building thermal loads due to conditioning only a part of the house was offset by increased duct system losses, mostly due to increased duct leakage” – idiots! Read the code – ductwork must be sealed! Seal the ductwork properly and get a different result… Even monkey would understand that…
What you just read above are two diametrically different opinions, in one case supported by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory study and the opposite opinion supported by very good professional websites!
So, who is right or who is wrong in this debate? Ironically both! One is telling you: close everything you can think of and save! Another: do not touch anything!!!
However, the truth, as usual, lies somewhere in the middle:
- Yes, you cannot close all the supply registers you want to and save, without destroying your furnace and/or AC, unless you do it somehow different!
- Yes, you cannot close all the return grills you want and save, unless you do it the other way!
When a few years ago I’ve conducted a test in my house, I’ve found out that as a result instead of 18 minutes my furnace was working only 15 that gave me a 16.7% of saving (the outside temperature at the time was 29*F, Ambient temperature was 68*F). Since then I have improved my system of air distribution even more and got solid 20% of saving! My furnace and A/C are Carrier brand 14 years old, and they are working just like Swiss watches! (Sorry I know it's not patriotic). Learn more on this and on this pages.
If you would like to find out how I did it you can purchase an instant access to both pages at the discount price of only $4.43. |
| Instant Access:
After you have purchased a paid page; PayPal is going to bring you back to my website. In order to see the paid page you have to click on the “Register” button, fill out the form, choose your own Username and Password and click on the “Register” button at the bottom of the form – congratulation, you are now on the page you have paid for!
Important: After you have purchased any Paid page or Download page and PayPal brought you back to my website, the first thing that you should do is to save that page to your Favorites. Then if something goes wrong you always can come back to re-register yourself on my website again.
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Here is just one more example on how people are getting an idea of saving some money on their utility bills, but looking for an advice on the so-called Forum websites where so-called experts happy to help them out:
Question
Saving money on AC?
We're trying to save money on our air conditioning bill. One thing that we've done that's helped significantly is changing the (4) air filters on our return vents from MERV 10 to MERV 6.
Another thing we've been doing is closing off rooms that aren't in use, like our guest room. My question is does closing off room (shutting the vents) really save money? Also, what happens if that room has a return? Should we close that too?
Thanks,
Kelly
Answer 1
It saves no money closing vents & rooms off. The system is designed for X amount of airflow. If the HVAC Company did not calculate in those other rooms, it would not have put a system designed for the size of your home into service. Do yourself a favor, and just keep those rooms open to allow the whole house to stay cool. Basically saying, you are actually causing more problems than it is worth, and no money is being saved.
Does this guy right? Yes, he is right, because if you just close a few vents here and there you will choke the system and save nothing!
Does this guy wrong? Of course, he is wrong because he doesn't see beyond his nose! If everyone around were just like him, we still would be riding horses!
Answer 2
If turn off your AC you'll save a lot money.
Follow-up
I'd love to, but at 95 degrees, with 70% humidity I'll keep the AC on.
Answer 3
You could always run an extension cord to your neighbors!
Answer 4
I have the best suggestion: move to North Pole!
Above is just a bunch of idiots happy that they just can read and write...
Answer 5
I have tried the vent closing before, and as mentioned, it doesn't work. The new thermostat I bought has helped. I keep it at 79 during the day.
I limit using the stove as much as possible and have sun filtering blinds & curtains in most of my windows.
At least the last one has already tried something, but with the negative result! Does it mean that he did it right? Of course not!
In order to save, you have to modify your ductwork and you have to add some heat runs and returns. If you are willing to do that, if you want to know how it may work for you, info on the paid pages will lead you trough step-by-step instructions to the saving you are looking for!
So, if you would like to save money on your utility bill please contact me from this page, describe your house and HVAC system and I'll tell you if I'm able to help you or not.
It's amazing how many people are looking for answers to the questions below on the web and on my website:
Is closing vents bad for your heating system?
Yes, unless you do it the right way.
Does closing heating vents in one part of the house increase heating in another part?
Yes.
Does closing the vents off in unused rooms save on hydro?
Yes it might, but you have to do it the right way.
Can the closing of heating registers cause loud bang?
Yes, if you do it wrong.
Does closing off air intakes in a forced air heating system cause furnace problems?
Yes, it might if you will do it on your own without my instructions.
Should I close off vents and rooms to save energy?
Yes.
Placing aluminum foil over a heat register to close it off.
No, I would not do that.
Does closing off the vents in unused rooms ruin the ductwork?
No.
Does furnace function good if you close the bedroom vents?
No, if you will do it on your own without my instructions.
Is closing vent in rooms you don't use good for utility bill and system?
Yes.
What is the result of closing heat registers?
You are going to save on your utility bill.
Can I insulate or block off the A/C returns in my home for the winter?
Yes, but you have to know how to do that.
Close vents in unused rooms geothermal.
It doesn't matter what kind of source of heat you have, if you will follow my instructions you are going to save on your energy bill anyway.
Heat with forced hot air, how many vents can I close?
I cannot answer this question; you will make a decision yourself after reading on the paid pages.
Can covering air vent damage the heater?
Yes, it can if you do it wrong.
Can you damage an air conditioner by closing the vents?
Yes, it can if you do it on your own.
Are there effects on the furnace if you close all heat vents?
It's going to overheat it.
What happens if I block my cold air intake to the furnace?
You are going to overheat it.
If you have 4 cold air returns going to your furnace is it ok to block off one?
No.
Closing vent in unused room to save gas?
Yes, it will save you some gas, but you have to do it the right way.
Is it cost effective to close vents in unused rooms?
Yes.
Closing cold air return on residential furnace.
Read on the paid pages and learn how to do it the right way.
What is the best way to block off air registers?
Find the answer on the paid pages.
Effect of blocking air register.
It will save you some money.
Will closing vents save on gas bill?
Yes.
Is it harmful to your heating cooling system to close vents in rooms not being uses?
Yes, if you will do it on your own without my instructions.
Does shutting air conditioning vents in a room reduce power bill?
Yes.
Does closing some vents save money?
Yes.
Is it ok to close the air supply register in furnace system?
Yes, if you will do it with my instructions.
Should I block vents in rooms I don't use?
Only if you would like to save on your utility bill.
Does covering vents in unused rooms lower your gas bill?
Yes.
Closing off room heat register in winter cause mildew on furniture.
Yes, it might, but only because you did it on your own without consulting with me first…
So, if you are one of them, please purchase the paid pages above and find the answer for yourself!
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