room hot when heat is running, cold when not

14 years ago

I live in a house in Oklahoma which was built in 2008. We have 3 units for 3 zones:

-1 upstairs zone for the game room;

-1 downstairs zone for the west side of the house which is family room/kitchen/dining area;

-1 downstairs zone for the east size of the house which is bedrooms.

Most of our house has vaulted ceilings.

My question is about the downstairs zone that controls the bedrooms. In the winter, when the heat is blowing, our bedrooms get HOT. Sometimes it's so hot it wakes me in the middle of the night. I look at the thermostat and it registers a temp 1 or 2 degrees warmer than it's programmed to be, yet the heat keeps blowing. Eventually the heat stops blowing and soon thereafter, the bedroom gets really cold. Then it starts all over again.

I'm so frustrated by this. I know very little about heat/ac systems and have had the installing heat/ac company (a large company in my city) over to look at this but they say nothing is wrong. One tech told me to leave the blower fan set to on all the time so that it keeps circulating the air. Another told me to leave the ceiling fan on, but set to summer-time rotation so that it blow the hot air down from the vaulted ceiling. I've started wondering if the problem is the actual thermostat (why does it continue to run if it detects the room is warmer than it should be?)

I don't know what to do or if I even have a problem that's fixable. I would sure appreciate someone sending me some ideas on this. I didn't have this problem in any of my previous homes so I know it doesn't *have* to be this way.

Thank you.

Try_Hard

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Comments (6)

pepperidge_farm
14 years ago
Other than simply location of the thermostat, it sounds more like you have too bid a swing temperature?

Some thermostats have a setting that determines how narrow or wide the range can be- for instance, if you set the temp to 70, it will heat up to 72, turn off, then cool down to 68 before it goes back on. That is a 2 degree swing (above and below) giving your room a FOUR degree difference! If it were one degree swing, the difference would be 69-71 for a 70 degree setting.

I personally find even a 1 degree swing noticeable as I tend to be cold. It is normal that you would totally sense a different comfort level with a wider swing. The smaller the swing, the more your system will cycle on and off to maintain the tighter temp range.

Some thermostats are only one setting, though, so you have to look at the manual for yours.

I think that is the most likely thing, but I am by far no expert. and yes, the celing fans help keep the hot air off the ceiling during winter when run in reverse on slow- especially good for those vaulted ceilings.
veesubotee
14 years ago
" One tech told me to leave the blower fan set to on all the time so that it keeps circulating the air."

I don't know a thing about zoned systems, but aren't the ducts closed to a zone when it isn't calling?

V
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weedmeister
14 years ago
Do you have 3 compressors outside, or just 1 or 2? If less than 3, then one is running to heat both the bedrooms and something else. And this may be why your bedrooms get so warm.
chrisny
14 years ago
Lots of potential issues here.

Thermostat - poor location or differential setting

Obviously you have forced air...is it a Furnace (how many), heat pump, Hydro Air? It's possible to reduce the heat and have a more prolonged run time.

Duct design / location / grill patterns / fan speed /dampers / return air / windows

Those vaulted systems really can be challenging...the hot air rises and the cold air falls...the cieling fan could help a lot and may be required.

No matter how much help you receive online it is doubtful that you will achieve comfort without a really experienced tech. It will most likely take a combination of the above mention areas to achieve comfort. I'd look to locals to point you to a more highly qualified contractor.

Since your house is new perhaps get the builder to get the existing HVAC contractor to put some TIME in and see what can be done to make you more comfortable.
try_hard
Original Author
14 years ago
Thank you for the comments, everyone!

We have 3 compressors outside and 3 furnaces in the attic.

I will look at the thermostat owner's manual and see if it says anything about the swing.

Also - last night I pulled back the curtains on the bedroom windows and felt cold air coming through! Clearly we need to caulk the windows in the bedroom. I'm not suggesting that will solve my heater issues but it will certainly help with general temperature control and energy efficiency.

Try_Hard
creek_side
14 years ago
If you have a one year old house with air leaking through or around the windows, you probably should have an energy audit done. There maybe other areas that need attention.

Contact your power utility. They sometimes sponsor energy audits, and usually know who is doing them in their service area.

room hot when heat is running, cold when not

Comments (6)

pepperidge_farm

veesubotee

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room hot when heat is running, cold when not

Comments (6)

pepperidge_farm

veesubotee

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weedmeister

chrisny

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creek_side

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