Where to locate registers
by Ed Ventimiglia
(Shoreham, NY, USA)
I am planning to install central air in a 2 story colonial house. I have had two installers provide information/recommendations. I have a conflict between the two as to where the ducts/room registers should be located on the first floor.
One recommends the air flow registers be placed in the floor, and the other is suggesting the air flow registers be located in the ceiling of the first floor rooms. Both agree the second floor rooms would have all the air registers in the ceiling of each room.
Can you please tell me what is the most efficient way to install the air flow registers on the 1st floor of my house. AND, should the 1st and 2nd floor have their own zones?
Thank you,
Ed
Answer from Green Energy Efficient Homes
Cold air falls, so if you are only going to have air conditioning running from your ducts then it makes the most sense to have the registers on the ceiling. This will increase the circulation throughout the vertical space within the room, making the temperature more consistent.
On the other hand, if you are going to combine heating and air conditioning through the same ducts, then the registers should be on the floor.
Another consideration for the second story is whether your ductwork would need to go through the attic.Remember that attics can get very hot in the summer, so running your ductwork above the second story will significantly increase your air conditioning costs and/or reduce the cooling effectiveness.
Also, your local building code may provide guidance on where to locate registers. In Ontario, for example, heating registers must be located on an outside wall in any room that has an outside wall. So the position of the registers may be affected by whether either floor or ceiling location allows you to locate the registers close to an outside wall.
When installing ductwork for two stories, my temptation would be to put the lower floor ductwork in the ceiling and the upper floor ductwork in the floor,simply because it means a single ceiling needs to be cut into to install the ductwork and registers.
Finally, consider the aesthetics of your installation. Ceiling registers are very visible as they are typically the only protruberance from your ceiling, whereas floor registers are virtually unnoticeable. My sister had ceiling air conditioning registers in her house and she really disliked them so had them removed. Fortunately for her, Toronto doesn't get that hot in the summer and they survive just fine without any air conditioning.
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