[Orlanzo[_2_]]

I've got a question for you. I live in a two story home
approximately 2400 Sq ft. with a bonus room above the garage. The
heating/cooling equipment is located in the attic. In two weeks, I'm
going to have the first and second stories split into separate HVAC
zones.

An issue I'm facing is the bonus room is either warmer or cooler than
the remainder of the house depending on the season. The HVAC tech
suggested adding a 12x12 return duct in the bonus room; in addition to
a previously existing duct in the upstairs hallway, to help equalize
the temperature. I read the return ducts should equal the total size
of the heating/cooling ducts in the rooms. So, if a second duct were
added in the bonus room, would the existing return duct in the hallway
need to be reduced accordingly?

Any information you can provide would be helpful. Secondary resources
would also be beneficial.

Regards,
Orlanzo

[Edwin Pawlowski]

"Orlanzo" wrote in message

An issue I'm facing is the bonus room is either warmer or cooler than
the remainder of the house depending on the season.

It would help to know for sure you mean it is hotter in summer, cooler in
winter. There have been complaints of the opposite.


The HVAC tech
suggested adding a 12x12 return duct in the bonus room; in addition to
a previously existing duct in the upstairs hallway, to help equalize
the temperature. I read the return ducts should equal the total size
of the heating/cooling ducts in the rooms. So, if a second duct were
added in the bonus room, would the existing return duct in the hallway
need to be reduced accordingly?

You have to determine if the insulation is correct too, fix if necessary.
YOud on['t have to reduce the duct size, but you can try blocking off a
portion of the return to see if that makes a difference. If it does, j ust
put a beffle as needed.


Any information you can provide would be helpful. Secondary resources
would also be beneficial.

"There is something called Manual J to determine the size AC you need, and a
manual D to determine the duct size. That should be done before you put in
the dual system. It may save a lot of money to do the job right.

[ValveJob]

On Thu, 19 Jul 2007 17:55:54 -0000, Orlanzo wrote:

I've got a question for you. I live in a two story home
approximately 2400 Sq ft. with a bonus room above the garage. The
heating/cooling equipment is located in the attic. In two weeks, I'm
going to have the first and second stories split into separate HVAC
zones.

An issue I'm facing is the bonus room is either warmer or cooler than
the remainder of the house depending on the season. The HVAC tech
suggested adding a 12x12 return duct in the bonus room; in addition to
a previously existing duct in the upstairs hallway, to help equalize
the temperature. I read the return ducts should equal the total size
of the heating/cooling ducts in the rooms. So, if a second duct were
added in the bonus room, would the existing return duct in the hallway
need to be reduced accordingly?

Any information you can provide would be helpful. Secondary resources
would also be beneficial.

Regards,
Orlanzo

I would NEVER reduce return duct size to any room where I wanted AC.

[Edwin Pawlowski]

"valvejob" wrote in message
I would NEVER reduce return duct size to any room where I wanted AC.



He isn't. He is adding to the room he wants more air and trying to balance
the system. While the return cannot actually move more air that is supplied
to it, you can vary openings to push more to another area though.

[[email protected]]

On Jul 19, 1:55 pm, Orlanzo wrote:
I've got a question for you. I live in a two story home
approximately 2400 Sq ft. with a bonus room above the garage. The
heating/cooling equipment is located in the attic. In two weeks, I'm
going to have the first and second stories split into separate HVAC
zones.

An issue I'm facing is the bonus room is either warmer or cooler than
the remainder of the house depending on the season. The HVAC tech
suggested adding a 12x12 return duct in the bonus room; in addition to
a previously existing duct in the upstairs hallway, to help equalize
the temperature. I read the return ducts should equal the total size
of the heating/cooling ducts in the rooms. So, if a second duct were
added in the bonus room, would the existing return duct in the hallway
need to be reduced accordingly?

Any information you can provide would be helpful. Secondary resources
would also be beneficial.

Regards,
Orlanzo

ok I'm in the same boat you are. we have 2400sq home and its 1 level.
the 2 cargarage was turned into a gaint bedroom 400sqfoot room years
ago and we are still plagued by the cooling and heating problem.in the
summer its too hot and winter ice cold. the problem is the run of the
pipes. just too long. we got a hvac guy to install 2 ceiling outlets
for the system. and a duct return.

the problem we are having now is if we leave the garage door open to
the rest of the house in summer ,hot air comes into the rest of house
and causes the a/c to run constant. same for winter.

you might want to ask about a inline duct fan that will pull more hot/
cold air in when the unit switch on for the season. they pretty cheap
less than 100.00 and all you do is hook them up to the furnace
electrical.


make sure you have a aquate heating and cooling system for it.

[Orlanzo[_2_]]

Edwin,

I appreciate the response...

The rooom is warmer than the rest of the house in the summer. The
opposite is true in the winter months. The insulation did pass
inspection when it was installed two years ago. Although, I did read
some information that suggested some additional improvements that
would help rooms above the garages ro carports. And, I understand a
baffle could be used to help balance the returns.

Thanks also for the references you provided. All of this helps
ensure I'm doing the right thing for my situation.

On Jul 19, 2:16 pm, "Edwin Pawlowski" wrote:
"Orlanzo" wrote in message

An issue I'm facing is the bonus room is either warmer or cooler than
the remainder of the house depending on the season.

It would help to know for sure you mean it is hotter in summer, cooler in
winter. There have been complaints of the opposite.

The HVAC tech
suggested adding a 12x12 return duct in the bonus room; in addition to
a previously existing duct in the upstairs hallway, to help equalize
the temperature. I read the return ducts should equal the total size
of the heating/cooling ducts in the rooms. So, if a second duct were
added in the bonus room, would the existing return duct in the hallway
need to be reduced accordingly?

You have to determine if the insulation is correct too, fix if necessary.
YOud on['t have to reduce the duct size, but you can try blocking off a
portion of the return to see if that makes a difference. If it does, j ust
put a beffle as needed.



Any information you can provide would be helpful. Secondary resources
would also be beneficial.

"There is something called Manual J to determine the size AC you need, and a
manual D to determine the duct size. That should be done before you put in
the dual system. It may save a lot of money to do the job right.

[Orlanzo[_2_]]

On Jul 19, 7:08 pm, wrote:
On Jul 19, 1:55 pm, Orlanzo wrote:





I've got a question for you. I live in a two story home
approximately 2400 Sq ft. with a bonus room above the garage. The
heating/cooling equipment is located in the attic. In two weeks, I'm
going to have the first and second stories split into separate HVAC
zones.

An issue I'm facing is the bonus room is either warmer or cooler than
the remainder of the house depending on the season. The HVAC tech
suggested adding a 12x12 return duct in the bonus room; in addition to
a previously existing duct in the upstairs hallway, to help equalize
the temperature. I read the return ducts should equal the total size
of the heating/cooling ducts in the rooms. So, if a second duct were
added in the bonus room, would the existing return duct in the hallway
need to be reduced accordingly?

Any information you can provide would be helpful. Secondary resources
would also be beneficial.

Regards,
Orlanzo

ok I'm in the same boat you are. we have 2400sq home and its 1 level.
the 2 cargarage was turned into a gaint bedroom 400sqfoot room years
ago and we are still plagued by the cooling and heating problem.in the
summer its too hot and winter ice cold. the problem is the run of the
pipes. just too long. we got a hvac guy to install 2 ceiling outlets
for the system. and a duct return.

the problem we are having now is if we leave the garage door open to
the rest of the house in summer ,hot air comes into the rest of house
and causes the a/c to run constant. same for winter.

you might want to ask about a inline duct fan that will pull more hot/
cold air in when the unit switch on for the season. they pretty cheap
less than 100.00 and all you do is hook them up to the furnace
electrical.

make sure you have a aquate heating and cooling system for it.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Thanks for the information...

In my case, the unit HVAC unit is in the attic. It's probably less
than 20 feet from the bonus room. But, the actual duct runs (from the
main upstairs distribution box to two outlets) to the room may be
greater. Adding a duct fan may be beneficial. I'll raise the
question with the company doing the installation work.

I'm definitely going to separate the heating and cooling for the upper
and lower levels into distinct zones. The duct fan could be a more
appropriate and cheaper alternative in the bonus room. Did that
alleviate the problem in your home? Or, are you still having the
issue; even though, you've installed additiona outlets and a return
duct in the room.

Thank you for your response!

Orlanzo