Your entire home should be a retreat that’s warm and comfy in the winter and cool and comfortable in the summer. However, owners of some homes with multiple levels find the upper floor is stubbornly hotter or colder than the first floor.
This could simply be caused by the fact that most thermostats in a house are on the ground floor, which is where people spend the the majority of time—in the living room, kitchen, etc.—so as a result they tend to set the temperature according to how it feels on the first floor.
However, temperature variations between the upstairs and downstairs could also be caused by issues with your HVAC system. Some of these issues can be solved fairly quickly while others might call for more extensive and costly fixes. Here, the professionals at Siloam Springs Heating & AC will help you solve why the upstairs of your home is hotter than downstairs, or vice versa.
Why Is It Hot Upstairs?
The phenomenon of the upstairs of a two-story home becoming hotter than the downstairs can be attributed to several factors. For starters, heat rises, so it’s common for the second floor of a home to get hotter than the main floor. Not enough insulation in the attic or roof can exacerbate this issue by permitting heat transfer from the roof into the upstairs rooms.
Another common reason is that the air conditioning is not powerful enough to cool the entire home, causing it to struggle to cool the upstairs properly.
To tackle these issues, homeowners could install additional insulation in the attic and make sure their home has adequate ventilation. If there’s a question of whether the air conditioning unit is the ideal size for the home, call an experienced HVAC company like Siloam Springs Heating & AC inspect the unit. A qualified professional also can help select 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 freezing upstairs, that makes for a very chilly night for anyone whose bedrooms are on the upper floor. The most common explanations for an upstairs not heating like it ought to are the insulation levels and the ductwork.
Inadequate insulation enables cold air to seep through the home’s attic or walls and contribute to heat loss, resulting in colder temperatures upstairs. It’s crucial to make sure your home has a solid, level layer of insulation in the attic and appropriate 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 locations of the building. However, troubles with the ductwork can result in the upstairs being colder than the downstairs. A frequently reported reason for this is improper airflow balance. The ducts may not be the correct size or design, causing an uneven distribution of air between the floors. This can cause more warm air to flow downstairs, causing insufficient airflow—which is the heated air—on the upper level.
Another potential problem area in the ductwork is the layout of the supply and return vents. If there are fewer vents on the upper story or they are not correctly located, it can reduce air circulation and cause inferior heating or cooling. In addition, leaks or gaps in the ductwork can allow air loss, lowering the overall efficiency of the HVAC system and actually making the temperature difference worse.
To find out why the upstairs is colder than the downstairs, homeowners should hve their ductwork examined by experienced experts like the team at Siloam Springs Heating & AC to identify any imbalances, leaks or inadequacies. Sealing leaks and putting in additional vents or adjusting existing ones can help increase airflow and ensure a more consistent temperature balance between the upstairs and downstairs.
How You Can Fix a Hot or Cold Upstairs?
If your upstairs is hotter or colder than the lower floors of your home, an HVAC zoning system could be a great solution.
An HVAC zoning system divides the household into different zones, which each have their own thermostat and damper system so the homeowner can control the heating or cooling of each zone.
This system can be very beneficial in scenarios 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 effortlessly.
To discover more about an HVAC zoning system in Siloam Springs, call Siloam Springs Heating & AC. We’ve developed and installed customized home comfort plans for many community members and are happy to show how an HVAC zoning system could work in your home.
Why Is My Upstairs So Humid?
In addition to the upper story being hotter or colder than the rest of the house, another challenge in multi-floor homes is when the upstairs is more humid than downstairs.
A typical explanation for excess upper floor humidity is inadequate ventilation on the upper floor, which can cause higher humidity levels. As is often the case with temperature differences between floors, insufficient insulation or sealing in the attic or walls may allow warm, humid air from outside infiltrate the upstairs rooms. And, 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 correct humidity problems, homeowners can add more ventilation by getting fans or opening windows to promote airflow. Appropriate levels of insulation in the attic and better sealing the attic and walls can help stop external moisture from entering the upstairs. Identifying and repairing any leaks or plumbing issues is also critical.
Depending on the levels of moisture found in the home, a whole-home dehumidifier could be another useful tool to manage humidity on the upper and lower floors.
