How Duct Design Affects Heating and Cooling

The HVAC system that maintains your home comfort consists of specialized equipment like an air conditioner, furnace or heat pump. One other critically-important HVAC component that directly affects how well your system performs is the ductwork that distributes conditioned air.

Poorly installed or deteriorated ductwork, or a flawed duct design, can cause serious problems including:

Temperature inconsistencies. Conditioned air losses through the ductwork can make it impossible to maintain a consistent, comfortable temperature.

Air quality issues. Problems within the duct system can let contaminants and allergens enter the air that’s circulated through your home.

High energy consumption. HVAC equipment that has to struggle to overcome duct issues will use more energy.

Premature equipment failure. Compensating for ductwork inefficiencies can put extra strain on your costly HVAC components and shorten their lifespan.

Basics of Good Duct Design

The role of your ductwork is to distribute the right amount of conditioned air at the desired temperature to all the rooms in your home, then return stale air back to your HVAC equipment for reheating/cooling. Designing such a system takes an understanding of scientific principles of thermal gains/losses and air distribution, the use quality materials and construction, and skilled installation. Some of the key factors that must be considered for effective duct design are:

Correct duct sizing. The system’s individual ducts need to be sized accurately to match your heating/cooling equipment capacity and your home. Undersized ducts won’t carry a sufficient volume of air, while oversized ducts make the system inefficient, wasting energy.

Balanced airflow. A good ductwork design includes a specific number of supply and return ducts to deliver and return the same volume of conditioned air. The goal is maintaining neutral pressure within the HVAC system and throughout your home.

Proper duct placement. Ideally, ductwork should always be installed within a home’s conditioned envelope. Any ducts routed through unconditioned spaces like an uninsulated basement, attic or garage must be sealed and insulated to minimize energy losses.

If you have concerns about the duct design in your Lorain home and need expert advice, contact us today at Energy 1 Heating & Air Conditioning.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in Lorain, Ohio about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Guide or call us at 440-201-2959.