We have a forced air gas funace. with floor vents for heat. we also have 2 wall vents with are not connected to the heat ducts and seem to blow cold air. My only guess is that the air is comming from the attic in the roof. Is this normal and if not what do I need to do?
2007-03-27 13:37:19 · 4 answers · asked by Anonymous in Home & Garden ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
Yours is probably an 80% gas furnace and that draws huge quantities of air out of a house, creating a negitive pressure within the house. The return air vents you are refering to run thru the hollow of the wall and are nothing more that an opening between two 2x4 wall studs and drywall on each side. No sealed sheet metal duct work here for sure. Those can leak and draw down cold air from the attic to satisfy that negitive pressure caused by the furnace.
You can eleviate the problem by runing a make up air pipe to the intake of the furnace, just prior to the filter. That pipe then contains a "fapper" valve that will open when the pressure is negitive within the house. With that set up, which by the way is quite common, your intake air vents will not have a need to leak and draw air from the attic.
By the way, the newer 90% gas furnaces draw their combustion air from the outside and thus keep the house from going to negitive pressure and causing drafts near windows and problems such as you describe.
2007-03-27 14:12:46 · answer #1 · answered by James M 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
So the floor vents are heating fine? If that's the case, then the wall vents probably arn't connected to the furnace, unless they are intake vents... but if they're blowing cold air this seems unlikely. You should climb into the attick and find the vents and figure out if they are connected to anything. If not, you have the option of connecting them to the furnace, or if you don't need them, you can pop them out of the wall and simply drywall over the hole (be happy to explain this if you send me a message wanting to know how). DON'T close over the vents until you figure out exactly where the air is coming from. Really you don't have much of a choice besides getting up in the attick. Just wear long sleeves and pants and be sure to walk on the joists (not in between them, you'll go through the ceiling). Good luck.
2007-03-27 20:50:11 · answer #2 · answered by Wildernessguy 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
are the 2 wall vents near the floor maybe 12x15"? Also are they mounted on interior walls? That is the cold air return that sucks the rooms cold air back to the furnace. If it seems like it is blowing, it may be. There is a air filter in the furnace that needs to be checked each year to be sure it doesn't get packed up and plugged up. Go down and pull it out. Homeowners can do this, vacuuming the filter helps alot. you need the filter otherwise all that dust is in the air again.
2007-03-27 21:08:21 · answer #3 · answered by ButwhatdoIno? 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The wall vents are most likely there for VENTILATION - haven't you heard about CARBON MONOXIDE poisoning.
If you seal them up and plaster over them you will probably DIE when the weather gets really cold and your furnace is working overtime !
Shouldn't they be connected to an extractor fan in the attic ?
2007-03-27 21:13:43 · answer #4 · answered by Paul M 1 · 1⤊ 1⤋