Nine Reasons Your Home Isn’t Heating Evenly

Are some rooms in your home colder than others? Heating unevenly occurs when some rooms feel nice and cozy while others are much chillier. Several causes could be to blame for this heating challenge. Here, we’ll help you learn what could be triggering these temperature imbalances and show you how to resolve the issue.

Something’s Blocking Your Home’s Vents

Your problem: Your furnace distributes warm air throughout your home using supply and return registers. If these are closed or shut, the restricted airflow creates warm and cold zones in your home.

How to fix it: Ensure all your home’s vents are clear of obstructions, especially if some rooms feel like they aren’t getting enough heat. Then, check to make sure there aren’t any furniture, rugs or drapes obstructing airflow. If a room is too hot, make sure the registers in the other rooms are clear and feel like they are putting out a similar amount of air. If a register is open but not a lot of air is coming out, there may be a problem with a valve or the duct isn’t forcing the air to the right place.

Your HVAC System Has a Dirty Air Filter

Your problem: Your furnace air filter collects and removes dust, pollen and other airborne particles to provide clean and healthy air in your home. However, a clogged filter filled with these particles can drastically lower airflow, making your furnace work harder and causing uneven heating. If warm air can’t get through easily, rooms farther from the system will be colder.

How to fix it: Look over and replace the furnace’s air filter every 30-90 days, especially in the winter when your home’s heating system operates overtime.

Your Home Needs More Insulation

Your problem: Inadequate home insulation allows heat to seep out of your home, especially from rooms exposed to outside walls or your attic. This makes these rooms harder to keep as warm as you’d like, even when the rest of the home is nice and comfortable.

How to fix it: Update your attic insulation to keep heat from escaping from your home. If the insulation in your home now is in good shape, you may be able to simply add more on top of it.

Drafty Doors and Windows Are Letting Cold Air In

Your problem: Single-pane windows and old, drafty doors are a common culprit for letting cold air into your home, cooling the indoor temperature. This problem is most often seen in older homes, which commonly have windows and doors that don’t seal as snug as they should.

How to fix it: Prevent drafts in and around doors and windows with weatherstripping or caulk. Insulated curtains and thermal blinds also help prevent cold air from getting in your home. If you find that these simple fixes aren’t enough to prevent cold spots in your home, you may want to think about replacing your windows and exterior doors.

Duct Leaks Are Letting Warm Air Out

Your problem: Ductwork delivers heated air to your entire home. If an air duct has a crack, warm air can leak out of the ducts before it gets to some rooms of your home.

How to fix it: Hire an HVAC professional like one of our team members at Service Experts Heating, Air Conditioning & Plumbing to inspect your ductwork for cracks, which can usually be sealed with metal tape or mastic sealant. In more severe cases, you may need duct replacement.

Your Thermostat Is in a Bad Spot

Your problem: The thermostat manages the heating system in your home. If it’s in a drafty or unusually hot spot, it may give misleading readings, causing your HVAC system to run at the wrong times—and result in uneven temperatures.

How to fix it: If your thermostat is near a windy window or heat-emitting appliance, it might be a good idea to find a new place for it. An HVAC professional from Service Experts Heating, Air Conditioning & Plumbing can help you move it to an area more representative of your home’s actual temperature where it can more accurately gauge your home’s average temperature. For extra convenience, opt for a smart thermostat, which gives you remote temperature control and personalized heating schedules.

Your Furnace Is the Wrong Size

Your problem: A furnace that’s too small may struggle to heat all of your residence, leaving some rooms colder than others. On the other end of the spectrum, an oversized furnace often cycles on and off constantly, resulting in temperature fluctuations and increased wear and tear that can shorten the lifetime of your heating and cooling system.

How to fix it: Have a heating and cooling professional assess your home’s furnace size compared to your home’s square footage, the climate where you live, the home’s insulation levels, windows and other factors. If your furnace is mismatched, you may opt for upgrading to the right size for better heating performance and energy efficiency.

Heating Challenges of Multilevel Homes

Your problem: Heat rises, so the second floor of your home is sometimes heated while the main floor is colder.

How to fix it: Zoning your heating system is a way for you to control the temperature in different rooms with multiple thermostats and ductwork dampers. This way, you can redirect warm air exactly where you need it.

You Need to Schedule Regular HVAC Maintenance

Your problem: Like any system with moving parts, your furnace needs regular checkups to function smoothly. Without routine care, your HVAC system may experience issues that lower energy efficiency and hinder it from heating your home evenly.

How to fix it: Schedule professional maintenance for your heating system annually—if possible in the fall before the heating season begins. Regular maintenance also helps spot and fix issues before they lead to potentially costly performance issues or major breakdowns.

Call the Experts at Service Experts Heating, Air Conditioning & Plumbing for Furnace Service in the U.S.

No one likes spending time in a chilly room. If one of these simple fixes doesn’t solve the issue, count on Service Experts Heating, Air Conditioning & Plumbing to get the job done correctly. Our ACE-certified technicians provide quick, dependable solutions to all your comfort needs backed by a 100% satisfaction guarantee. Don’t let a stubbornly cold room ruin your comfort—call 866-397-3787 today to schedule the U.S. furnace services with the Experts at Service Experts Heating, Air Conditioning & Plumbing.