On Thursday, June 5, 2014 1:41:49 PM UTC-4, micky wrote:
On Thu, 05 Jun 2014 17:31:15 GMT, (Scott Lurndal)

wrote:



trader_4 writes:

On Thursday, June 5, 2014 10:19:32 AM UTC-4, Scott Lurndal wrote:

Ed Pawlowski writes:

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On Wed, 4 Jun 2014 14:08:38 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

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Discovered today with standard AC check that the house we recently purc=

hased has fake cold air returns. Vents are there (high on walls) but at flo=

or level they are sealed shut with wood. Wondering if this has happened to =

anyone else and if inspection/old owners should have discovered/disclosed i=

nformation. Essentially, the second floor of our house has no AC. No issue =

with first floor/basement.=20

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Thanks

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You don't make a lot of sense. You say the vents are high on the

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wall, yet blocked at the floor. Return vents are never high on the

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wall. I have to wonder if you know what you are looking at or just

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doing a poor job of explaining.

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_Never_ is pretty absolute. I've seen houses that used the wall

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cavity as a return ductwork with a vent high on the wall.=20



They are not only common, but standard in houses that are outfitted

with central AC when built. The houses that don't have them up high are

typically ones that were heating only, eg old houses.









The

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base of the cavity had a cutout to the basement which was itself

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the return "ductwork" for the furnace. Supply vents were in the

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floor, usually under the external wall window openings. Built

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in the 70's, midwest.

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Sounds like someone plugged the opening at the bottom of the

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cavity in the OP's case.



More likely the cavity was never cut, I'd bet. He could check what's

beneath and see if a return duct is there. If so, he could cut out

the opening. And even if it's not, it could still be done, it would

just require some additional duct work.



Perhaps I wasn't clear enough. There was no ductwork, the entire



I think you were clear.



basement was the "duct". There was just an opening through the

floor at the base of the wall cavity, and a vent high on the wall.



The air handler unit had the filter and just pulled air from the

basement.



But that's all you. Trader was talking about the OP. So were you at

the end of your post.

Thanks for pointing that out. I thought I was replying to/talking
about the OP's problem. But the comments were still correct for
anyone that has a furnace with no return ducting, just pulling air
from the basement.