How Redirecting Air Flow Vents Work
Do you find yourself too cold during the winter or too warm during the summer? Are the rooms in your home less than comfortable? This might be an issue with airflow. By redirecting your air vents, you can make sure the treated air goes to the right rooms, rather than going to rooms you rarely use.
Redirecting Vents Improves Efficiency
Using air conditioning as an example, whenever a vent’s airflow is obstructed, you will reap fewer benefits in terms of comfort. For example, if it is blocked by a piece of furniture, some of the air’s coolness will diminish because it will be hitting against a warmer surface.
If the vent directs cool air in front of a warm appliance or a warm window, there will be even greater heat transference, and this again means less cool air gets to where you need it to be. This reduces efficiency.
You will feel warmer and be more likely to adjust the thermostat to get some relief. In addition, since heat transference makes the actual indoor temperature rise, your AC will try to make up the difference. In other words, some of the energy your air conditioner expended to cool the air will be wasted due to poorly aimed vents.
How to Redirect Air From Vents
Most vent covers have a switch or lever built into the side that you can use to redirect the airflow. If your existing vent covers don’t provide a suitable way to aim airflow, such as an adjustable damper, you do have other options:
- Air deflectors – These are typically made of curved plastic and attach to the vent cover. With these, you can direct airflow upwards, downwards or to the sides. The latter is often helpful when you want to direct air around furniture or other large items.
- Deflector extenders – You can also find vent deflectors with extenders. These are helpful when vents are located beneath beds or sofas, for example.
For more information about air vents or to schedule a service with our team, call Elite AirSM at (609) 205-3813 or contact us online!
