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James A/C Co.
serving Do-It-Yourselfers since 1990.
Satisfying every customer....one at a time!
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Call toll free 1-866-584-0355 or 1-903-759-2160 fax 903-759-4605
309 Patriot Circle, Longview, TX 75604-2240
THINGS TO CHECK IF THE INDOOR TEMPERATURE IS INCONSISTENT:
- Thermostats:
- Defective thermostats are the leading cause of erratic temperature within the home or
office. There is very little you or the service technician can do to "fix" a thermostat. Replace it. That is all there is to it
other that setting the heat anticipator. Refer to the menu of this database for THERMOSTATS to learn how to set the
anticipator as well as getting lots of information on the location of the thermostat and its best usage.
- Poor location of the thermostat in relation to the supply air outlets creates numerous
problems. Check to see if any supply air (which is very cold or very hot air) is blowing directly on the thermostat. Make sure this
air is directed well away from the area where the thermostat is located. I usually will even reduce the output of the air from the
nearest grill in proximity to the thermostat.
Poor location of the thermostat
in conjunction with its surroundings and structure of the building is common. Refer to the
menu of this database and read THERMOSTATS for this information where it is given in detail.
- Unbalanced air distribution will cause short-cycling of conditioned air and thus give
inadequate comfort in the rest of the rooms. The most common fault here is that the vast majority of air will dump out nearest
the equipment if the ducts are not VERY CAREFULLY DESIGNED (and they seldom are). This air then quickly zips right back into
the system to be cooled again well before all the cooling effect it holds has been used. This costs you money.
What I suggest you might do to correct this is:
- Understand that the air will be best distributed and best used if it is supplied most abundantly to the perimeter and
extremities of any area, whether it is a room or a complete structure. That air will heat or cool the fartherest point and will
still be suitable to cool additionally as it makes its way back to the equipment to be cycled again. Turn off your ceiling fans
and try this repair.
- Feel of the air volume of the nearest to the equipment supply outlets to see if there is quite a sufficient flow. That is
likely too much.
Turn the cooling system on and lower the temperature as if to make it run for an hour or so. Close off these grills nearest the
equipment to almost tightly sealed until you can barely feel air escaping from them. Let the cooling system run. Examine the
temperature of those rooms in fifteen minutes and if it is slightly too warm, then open the grills louver just enough to let
out a small amount more of air. Wait fifteen more minutes and repeat the process until you think (just by walking in the room)
that it is about the temperature of the far end of the house.
You will need to do this to all of the grills nearest the equipment. You can easily do them all at the same time.
- For an area to stay the same as the rest of the house there has to be air movement. If the weather is a mild winter, fall,
or spring day, your system (thus the fan) is going to run very little. However, the sun or the cooking in the kitchen, baths,
etc. is going to cause temperature fluctuations in various parts of the house. You may find it a really nice comfort to run
the fan switch of the thermostat in the "on" position rather than the "auto" setting. Circulate all the air in all the house.
Ceiling fans can circulate the air that is already in just that one area. Central cooling and heating systems constantly move all
the air out of every area and mix it and send the resulting comfortable air back out to all areas.
- TIP
Ceiling fans in the middle of the room will interfere with the air from the grills getting to the extremeties and perimeters and
cooling even as it returns across the room on its way back to the system to be recycled. Run your ceiling fan or run your central
system.
- Air movement behind the thermostat will be unconditioned air and will vary greatly
in temperature. It is pretty common to find that there is a large hole in the wall behind the thermostat and a careful and
arduous trek up into the attic or under the house may reveal holes in the wall that lets outside air circulate into or through
the back of the thermostat. As commonly, you will find that the wire may go directly from the thermostat to the furnace or
heater closet and there is a large hole around the wire that lets attic air that is normally in the closet or equipment room
also interfere with the thermostat.
- Door openings, especially if two at once are opened, will cause the thermostat to run or be
off when it is not supposed to be. If you have children you will have this problem more than grandma does. Some people love to
have a window slightly open all the time and this will be a possible cause of the thermostat not working well enough.
- Check your fireplace damper. Be aware that it is pulling air out of the house at an enormous
rate. That is the purpose it was designed to perform. Note also that this creates a vacuum in the house and air will "be trying to
get in" from all kinds of places to equalize this vacuum. In the cooling season when the fireplace is not in use, you might wish to
close the damper. The draft is still there and so is the vacuum. You will have a hard time cooling that bedroom with the leaky window
frame due to the vast sucking-in of outside air.
- Exhaust fans in the kitchen, bathrooms and clothes driers should have dampers on them. You
need to check this and if the damper is not there or it doesn't work, you really need to replace it. They create tremendous drafts.
- Heat running the same time as the cooling can and does happen. Visually check for
wires in the heater burned together. Us an amprobe to see if one of the heat strips is energized if you have that capability.
Call you service technician if your supply air is not cool and you suspect the heat strip in on.
- Lack of insulation in the ceiling and walls is a fairly common cause. This and
air leakage will make the house seem drafty and may affect the operation of the thermostat.
- Leakage of air from inside the return air ductwork, leakage from poor window and door
seals, and unfinished construction are common causes of infiltrated air. Even wall plugs and light switch boxes are a big
source of air leakage into and out of the home. This is especially true when the door facings and wall plates are not in place
and things like curtains and light fixtures aren't up yet.
- Poorly sealed equipment rooms and closets are common causes of infiltration of attic
air and outside air into the systems return air. Seal the return air from infiltration and if you can insulate the walls of
the equipment room.
All these things will have an affect on the operation of the thermostat. Check some of these before you replace the thermostat.
It costs money.
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