I've got a large bedroom on the second floor of my house, and while the ground floor is nice and cool, the upstairs gets really hot. There's only one AC vent in this bedroom, positioned at the floor level on a shared wall with an adjacent room, which also has a vent. Both vents adjust between completely closed and horizontal, but they can't fully open at the same time because they bump into each other. The adjacent room isn't in use, so I'm wondering what the best setup would be to cool my bedroom effectively. Should I close off the vent in the unused room and fully open the vent in my bedroom? Or maybe I should open both vents to 45 degrees? I'm also open to any other cooling solutions that don't involve getting a window AC unit. I'm just worried that this one vent won't provide enough airflow for such a large bedroom. Any advice?
3 Answers
Along with that fan suggestion, don't forget about your insulation! Ensure your ceiling has good insulation to keep that attic heat from seeping in. Also, it may help to crack the bedroom door a bit so air can flow back to the return vent more easily. And yeah, definitely close off that vent to the unused room too, it’ll help focus the airflow to where you need it most.
I say close off the vent in the unused room no matter what. It only makes sense to maximize the cooling in your bedroom. However, you might also want a small fan to help move the air around since you have just one vent doing all the work!
Closing that vent seems smart since it doesn't get used anyway.
You're definitely dealing with a common issue. If you don't have a return or intake vent upstairs, it's tough because cold air sinks and can't effectively move up. It might help if you try to improve airflow with a ceiling fan to circulate the cool air better. Also, if possible, consider getting an AC vent booster fan—those can really help push more air into the room!
Totally agree about the ceiling fan! It can really change how you feel the air.
Great points! Definitely looking into insulation!