June 14, 2019
No, it isn’t an illusion — some rooms in your home really are hotter than others. And if you’ve noticed fluctuating temperatures inside your house, you’re not alone. At Kearney HVAC, we often meet homeowners who battle inconsistent indoor temperatures, especially during the summer when upstairs bedrooms can get uncomfortably hot.
Why Some Rooms in Your Home Are Hotter Than Others
There are a number of factors that can cause one room in the home to become hotter than the rest.
Air conditioning system issues
If you have central air conditioning, it could be a problem with your AC system — like a dirty air filter restricting air flow, closed vents keeping cool air out of certain rooms, or leaky or damaged duct work restricting air supply to certain rooms. It’s also possible that your air conditioner is undersized and therefore unable to cool your house evenly.
Improper thermostat placement
Fairly sure that none of the above problems apply to your AC system? Don’t forget to think about your thermostat. Your thermostat contains a thermometer, which means that air conditioning systems are designed to run until the area around the thermostat reaches the set temperature. So, even if another area of the house is much warmer than the set temperature, it’s possible that your thermostat will shut your system off. In this scenario, moving the thermostat to an interior wall in a location your family uses more often can help.
Excess heat gain
“Heat gain” refers to the transfer of heat into your home. Sometimes, one room will see more heat gain than the others. This might be due to overexposure to sunlight (such as in a room with several windows), or it might be due to poor insulation.
New home addition
Of course, if you’ve recently added a new addition onto your home, and AC ductwork does not reach that new addition, you can expect that area to be hotter than the rest of the home.
The Solution for a Hot Room: A Ductless Heat Pump
There is a simple way to keep that notoriously hot room cool: installing a ductless heat pump by Mitsubishi Electric Cooling & Heating. A ductless heat pump, also known as a ductless mini split or mini split heat pump, provides targeted cooling (and heating) right where it is installed. Rather than connecting to ductwork, an indoor air handler is installed on a wall, floor, or ceiling in the room that needs conditioning. This means that even if you don’t have ductwork in your home, you can enjoy cool, conditioned air indoors.
Mitsubishi Electric heat pumps, in particular, are a smart option because they are ultra quiet and energy efficient. With a Mitsubishi Electric heat pump, you don’t have to worry about the loud noise and high energy bills that are so commonly associated with portable AC units.
Install a Ductless Heat Pump in That Hard-to-Cool Room
If you’re tired of lugging those portable AC units around your home (and who isn’t?), schedule a free in-home consultation with Kearney HVAC to learn more about installing a ductless heat pump. We’ve helped numerous homeowners along Massachusetts’ North Shore and New Hampshire’s Seacoast stay cool with expert heat pump service — including ductless heat pump installation. Our team is here to answer your questions and design a system that meets your home comfort and energy efficiency goals.