If I close some of the air conditioning vents upstairs-- will the central air be stronger downstairs were i am

Question

It is hot-- will the central air come out stronger of the vents downstairs if i close the vents upstairs

Answer 1

yes

Answer 2

You might well starve the evap coil and cause ice to form. The answer to poor ducting isn't closing vents.

Someone said the blower will provide X CFM, but it can only provide Y pressure. The CFM is dependent on static pressure. There is a limit to the static pressure the blower can provide. Friction loss plays in here as to the amount of air that will flow. So at Max static pressure and no reduction to friction loss the airflow will not improve downstairs but the total CFM moving across the coil will drop off causing ice to form in many cases. This can block the coil and possibly ruin the compressor.

Your house, your call.

Answer 3

Yes, since hot air rises, it will cool off downstairs faster. i usually set my vents open more for upstairs because i sleep upstairs and want it cooler. in the winter time, open the vents more downstairs.

Answer 4

Alot of good information here, but probably useless to you. The simplest things you can do without calling for service are to change the filter, and wash out your condensing unit coils. Very few people are schooled enough to determine if their ductwork is sized properly, etc. Most of us neglect our equipment, then pay the price ($) later if its not something simple.

Answer 5

The fan motor on your A/C puts out so many cfm (cubic feet per minute)and that's set. The more holes in the supply line ( Grilles) the less air per hole. The fewer holes ( Grilles) more air per hole. That's a simple example and there are other things that come into play. But the bottom line is if you close off all the grilles upstairs more air will come out the remaining grilles.

You might want to reverse the process by closing the downstairs grilles and opening the upstairs grilles. Why? because cold air falls and hot air rises. So if you cool the upstairs there is no heat to comedown, just cool air returning to the unit.Good Luck

Answer 6

Before you do much more than close the vents in the upstairs rooms, I would check a few things.  Did you look at the air handler or forced air frunace if you have a dual system?   Is it turning at full speed.  If it has belts can you tighten the belts a little to see if that puts more air out?  Is the filter clean.  A dirty filter restricts air flow.  Is the evaporator coil clean?  A dirty evaporator will restrict air flow.  Does it have the proper amount of refrigerant.  Overcharged or undercharged units can both cause lack of cooling problems.  Is the ductwork leaking anywhere? Do you have enough return air ductwork to properly condition the house?   Where is your  air handler and how does the ductwork get from the air handler to the second floor?   If a trunk line was run from the basement to the attic and then drops were made to the vents in the second floor rooms, closing the vents will not increase air flow because the air handler will still be supplying air pressure up to the attic.  If you have ductwork in the attic do you have the attic space well ventilated so it is not extremely hot which adds to the heatload of the house. Is your ductwork insulated?  If not then you are losing a lot of cooling through the ductwork and your problem might not be not enough air flow but too much of a heat load.

Answer 7

Short answer is yes, but as others have stated you could cause other problems by blocking more than whats needed for your system.

I know its been hot in areas already but I haven't seen temperatures that are exceeding the design temperatures these units are suppose to be designed for.

More than likely your unit is not working to capacity because of no or little maintenance.

These units move heat from one place to the other so any dirt that impedes heat transfer makes the unit do less work.

If your unit has the proper refrigerant level (no leaks) and all components operate the only problem could be dirt in one place or the other.