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View Full Version : Cold air is coming up with the heat on


nightbird1103
Nov 23, 2007, 09:56 PM
We just moved into a home after a renovation. We have an oil furnace that blows forced air. Let me say that I would not recommend the contractor we used to screw in a light bulb. All inspections were done and we passed. However, after moving in, we noticed not all the ducts were going anywhere, etc. So I'm not confident that things were done properly, despite our building inspector's seal of approval.
Here's the issue:
When the heat kicks on, I feel warm air coming from the registers on the lower level, but the air coming into the bedrooms on the second floor feels cool. We only have one thermostat for the whole house- one zone. There is air blowing from these registers on the 2nd floor, so I'm guessing that there aren't any closed baffles in the pipes. I don't know much about this sort of thing, but I did remove the drop ceiling tiles in the basement to look at the pipes, and I can't find any levers, and the pipes down there feel warm. One of the repairmen said these levers are usually close to the main - largest duct. What am I missing?
Another thing, I'm not used to having oil heat. Sometimes I feel like I can smell a fuel coming from the vents. I've had numerous plumbers and repairmen come out. There are no lvisible oil leaks, so I'm not sure if I'm just hypersensitive to smells or what. (I have a very keen sense of smell).

Any help you could provide would be greatly appreciated.

simoneaugie
Nov 24, 2007, 12:52 AM
I'm no expert but I used to have have an oil furnace. They smell, or the oil does anyway. I would ask the oil deliveryperson about odor. Could it be that the air is cooling before it has a chance to reach the second level? That would suggest a "too long" route, or the need to insulate some or all of the ducts. Good luck.

hvac1000
Nov 24, 2007, 04:39 AM
We just moved into a home after a renovation

I would have the people responsible for this renovation out to your house and have them figure it out for you. Somebody spend some$$$ to have things work correctly and they should take care of the problem.

It is very difficult if not impossible to see what you are talking about when we are not there. If you have pipes disconnected they should not be that way. The building inspector should be able to answer that question and if he cannot get his boss on the phone and have him look into it.