Air pressure imbalances are caused by an inefficient or faulty HVAC system. Happenings in your house that might be caused by an imbalance are doors that aren’t closed, opening on their own or slamming shut with no one around them. If you have doors that aren’t very heavy but you really need to pull to close them; this is another indication. Hearing odd noises or whistling sounds and drafts of air that come out of nowhere with rooms that are unusually cold or hot are also indications. Rest assured you don’t have ghosts floating around in your home! No need to call in the ghost hunters. You may however need to call an HVAC professional because if you’re dealing with an unbalanced pressure problem, it can lead to expensive problems!
Positive & Negative Air Pressure Problems in Houses & Other Buildings
Positive air pressure means the pressure is too high with air being forced out. This is what will cause doors to open outward suddenly. If it’s very forceful it might harm people and you will need a lot of strength to open inward-swinging doors. This is a problem as cooled air is being wasted as it escapes any tiny opening. Negative air pressure means that the pressure inside the space is lower than outside and results in outside air being sucked in. When this happens, doors that swing inward will just fly open without any warning and can make pushing a door to get out difficult. Your HVAC system is working harder than it should to counteract the air outside being pulled in. These situations are both dangerous, waste energy and can lead to higher energy bills.
Reasons That Air Pressure Gets Unbalanced
1. Rising hot air. Warm air rises to upper floors and causes negative pressure in the lower areas. The hot air will also be drawn out through vents of combustion appliances like fireplaces or furnaces that will also cause the negative pressure if too much air is being pushed out.
2. Leaky ducts. Ductwork with holes can cause air distribution to be compromised. This will lead to all sorts of pressure issues that have you thinking there are ghosts floating around.
3. Exhaust fans. Along with combustion appliances, the exhaust fans will expel too much air that will lead to negative pressure. If this happens in a kitchen it can be dangerous as the negative pressure can cause backdrafts that can lead to deadly fumes building up like carbon monoxide.
4. Speed of fan motor. If the motor on the air conditioner is running too high, it might be pushing too much air into a room that will cause the doors to slam shut.
5. Poorly designed heating, cooling and ventilation systems will lead to positive or negative air pressure in a space.
Air Pressure Imbalance Inspections & Correcting Adjustments, Tuneups & Repairs in Manhattan, New York City
You should always hire professionals to deal with air pressure problems because it takes experience to pinpoint the problem. It can be as simple as repairing ducts or adjusting fan motors to possibly needing to add more ventilation. If your HVAC system is inadequate for the space, it may need to be replaced to fix the flow of air. Contact the professionals at NY NJ AC Connection to figure out what the problem is and find a solution.
