Ghosts In The Machine
Is there a room in your house that is always hot or feels drafty at certain times of the year or in certain weather conditions? Does it feel like a ghost is controlling your HVAC system? This could be the phenomena known as “ghost flow”. While ghost flow is rare, it is indeed real and some people don't even realize that they have it.
Ghost flow happens one of two ways.
You have a call for heat in one room, let's say your master bedroom on the second floor. The heat is working fine in the master but when you walk into your office to check an email on the 1st floor, you feel like you just walked into a sauna. You check the thermostat and it's off, but your baseboards or heating registers are hot or blowing warm air. This happens because the office is a much closer room than your bedroom and therefore the path of least resistance. The system was installed without a proper damper or zone valve to stop the flow. It's not only annoying and uncomfortable but inefficient and a waste of energy and money.
Your HVAC system was installed in an unconditioned space such and as uninsulated attic and you are using a different source of heat in the winter such as baseboard heat or a fireplace. When the living space reaches a certain differential in temperature and/or humidity, this will cause the warm air to travel to the cooler air and begin to mix. This feels like a draft or cold air blowing out of the vents of the HVAC system. This can actually cause condescension which can result in water damage to floors and walls as well as mold.
It’s important to have a proper installation to avoid these potential problems. At Gault Enterprises, we always strive to install the most efficient, effective, and problem free systems in the industry. We would never recommend a product we wouldn't install in our own homes nor would we cut corners on an install to save time or money. We just do it right.
