Every floor in your home should be a sanctuary that’s warm and cozy in the cold months and cool and comfortable in the summer. However, owners of some two-story homes find the upper floor is stubbornly hotter or colder than the rooms on ground level.
This could just be because most thermostats in a house are on the first floor, which is where people spend the the majority of time—in the living room, kitchen, etc.—so they set the temperature according to how it feels on the first floor.
However, temperature discrepancies between the upstairs and downstairs could also be caused by issues with your HVAC system. Some of these challenges can be sorted out relatively quickly while others might require more extensive and costly fixes. Here, the professionals at America's Green Heating & Air Conditioning will help you determine why the upstairs of your home is hotter than downstairs, or vice versa.
Why Is It Hotter Upstairs?
The phenomenon of the upstairs of a two-story home becoming hotter than the downstairs can be attributed to several factors. Number one, heat rises, so it’s natural for the second floor of a home to get hotter than the first floor. Poor insulation in the attic or roof can make this worse by letting heat transfer from the roof into the upstairs rooms.
Another common reason is that the HVAC system is not powerful enough to cool the entire home, causing it to fight to cool the upstairs properly.
To deal with 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 correct size for the home, call an experienced HVAC company like America's Green Heating & Air Conditioning inspect the unit. A skilled professional also can help find a unit that's better suited for your home if you need air conditioning installation or replacement.
Why Is My Upstairs So Cold/Not Heating?
When the downstairs of your home is warm, but it’s extremely chilly upstairs, that makes for a frosty night for anyone whose bedrooms are on the upper floor. The most frequent causes of an upstairs not heating like it ought to are the insulation levels and the ductwork.
Inadequate insulation allows cold air to leak through the home’s attic or walls and contribute to heat loss, resulting in colder temperatures on higher floors. It’s crucial 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 critical role in disseminating conditioned air throughout different areas of the building. However, problems with the ductwork can cause the upstairs being colder than the downstairs. A frequently reported cause for this is improper airflow balance. The ducts may not be the proper size or design, resulting in an uneven distribution of air between the floors. This can cause more warm air to flow downstairs, which creates insufficient airflow—which is the heated air—on the upper level.
Another potential problem area in the ductwork is the placement of the supply and return vents. If there are fewer vents on the upper level or they are not correctly located, it can limit air circulation and cause substandard heating or cooling. In addition, leaks or gaps in the ductwork can allow air loss, lowering the overall efficiency of the HVAC system and exacerbating the temperature difference.
To figure out why the upstairs is colder than the downstairs, homeowners should hve their ductwork inspected by skilled experts like the team at America's Green Heating & Air Conditioning to identify any imbalances, leaks or inadequacies. Sealing leaks and adding additional vents or adjusting existing ones can help enhance airflow and ensure a more even 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 ground level of your residence, an HVAC zoning system could be a highly effective solution.
An HVAC zoning system separates the household into distinctive zones, which each have their own thermostat and damper system so the homeowner can modify the heating or cooling of each zone.
This system can be very beneficial in instances where the upstairs of a multi-story home is quite hot or really cold while the main floor is comfortable. By installing a zoning system, homeowners can control the temperature independently in each zone, making it possible for them to address specific hot or cold spots easily.
To learn more about an HVAC zoning system in Frederick, call America's Green Heating & Air Conditioning. We’ve created and installed customized home comfort plans for many community members and are happy to show how an HVAC zoning system could enhance the comfort in your home.
Why Is it So Humid Upstairs?
In addition to the upper story being hotter or colder than the rest of the house, another issue in multi-floor homes is when the higher levels are more humid than downstairs.
A typical cause for excess upper floor humidity is poor ventilation on the upper floor, which can result in increased humidity levels. As is often the case with temperature differences between floors, poor insulation or sealing in the attic or walls may permit warm, humid air from outdoors infiltrate the upstairs rooms. Plus, if there are any leaks or plumbing problems on the upper floor, that can also lead to excessive moisture in that level of a home.
To address humidity problems, homeowners can increase ventilation by getting fans or opening windows to promote airflow. Adding more insulation in the attic and better sealing the attic and walls can help protect against external moisture from entering the upstairs. Locating 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.
