Air Ducts In Attic

An attic can get up to about 130 f in the summer and the conditioned air entering the ducts is about 55 f or so.
Air ducts in attic. Throw duct leakage into the mix and the problems are even worse. Save money on your new air conditioner or furnace. In more cases than not a 3 ton ac with the ducts in the attic has a ton or so of load that s just from the location of the ducts in the attic and the associated duct gains leakage etc. With hundreds of square feet of ductwork surface area in the attic and a δt of 75 f the air coming out of the vents in your home will be significantly higher than 55 f.
Over time the insulation on the exterior of old metal ducts deteriorates letting the hot air come in contact with the very cold metal and this is worst when it comes to condensation. However an attic in pensacola florida is likely to have a humidity level closer to 100 and the risk of condensation on ductwork would then go up quite a bit. Use metal flex or fiber board ducts that are insulated to code. The really bad news is that with old metal duct systems the only option is replacement of the ducts to stop the rain in the attic.
The duct insulation should include a vapor barrier cover. Here s a short video on how. In turn this forces the air conditioner to work overtime to recoup the lost thermal energy. Air duct replacement by attic guys a ir duct replacement is an integral part of our integrated attic cleaning solution.
If you have central heating and or air conditioning in your home the warm or cool air is delivered to each room through a system of connected ducts and vents. Install ductwork so that it is in direct contact with i e laying on the ceiling and or truss lower cords. The air ducts for a central hvac systems are typically located above a home in the attic or upper crawl space or underneath a home in the space between the foundation and the floor so you don t see them unless you have cause to replace them. If one or more air ducts in your attic have a thermal leak you could end up paying more for your monthly electric bill.
When the cool air travels through the ductwork some of it may escape through cracks crevices and other openings. When hvac ducts are installed in a vented attic in a dry climate bury the ducts in attic insulation to protect them from temperature extremes in the unconditioned attic space. If ducts are located in a crawlspace underneath your house cover the soil to reduce moisture. Not only must you ensure that your air ducts are clean and free of contamination and dust but you also want to make sure they re supporting the efficiency of your heating and air system.
According to nrel researchers david roberts and jon winkler moving the ducts from a vented attic to a new location inside the conditioned space will reduce electricity used for cooling by 15 to 20 and will reduce the size of the needed air conditioning equipment by 0 5 to 1 ton. Because the average humidity level is 10 20 in phoenix.