A Guide to HVAC Zoning: The 3 Best Benefits

An HVAC zoning system is a heating and cooling system that uses dampers in the ductwork to regulate and redirect air throughout your home. This allows for personalized temperature zones, which creates increased comfort and energy savings.

For example, you might want to keep bedrooms cooler at night, while focusing your air conditioning on the kitchen and living room during the day. Installing an HVAC zoning system has the power to give you greater control of temperature in your home.

An HVAC zoning system is a heating and cooling system that uses dampers in the ductwork to regulate and redirect air throughout your home. This allows for personalized temperature zones, which creates increased comfort and energy savings. For example, you might want to keep bedrooms cooler at night, while focusing your air conditioning on the kitchen and living room during the day. An HVAC zoning system has the power to give you greater control of temperature in your home.

The only way temperature can be controlled in each room with a central forced-air system is by manipulating the shutoff valve to close off circulation. This method takes up time and can harm the HVAC unit because it reduces airflow, thereby shortening its lifespan.

Zoning solves this problem by not heating or cooling rooms that don’t need it. Energy, and in turn money, can be saved by setting the thermostat in a home with multiple levels so that it doesn’t call for hot or cool air when one level is vacant.

Zoning regulates temperature through motorized dampers that open and close based on the needs of zone thermostats. These dampers insert into ducts or air outlets, allowing for more flexibility when it comes to room controls. Multiple dampers can be controlled together for a single zone if multiple ducts serve a single room or zone.

In existing homes, the current thermostat can be used as a zone thermostat. Each zone has a thermostat that controls the heating, cooling, and fan. The control panel then also connects to the HVAC Unit’s thermostat connection. Instead of using one central thermostat, the control panel allows the unit to be controlled by multiple thermostats.

As each thermostat on the heating panel calls for heating, the first-called zone is then provided with hot air. If a different zone calls for heat, the dampers typically open to that zone and closes off all but one other HVAC system. Once every call has been satisfied, the furnace or heat pump shuts off automatically.

Professionally installed zoned HVAC systems are crucial for home comfort. The process of installing your installation can be complex, which is why it is best to let a trained professional help you set up the layout.

HVAC zoning offers several benefits for both the home and the wallet. Some of the perks of having the best HVAC zoning system include:

1. Better energy efficiency: A zoned system diverts air away from areas that don’t need it so you’re using less energy to keep your home comfortable. To fully understand the energy efficiency of zoning, it helps to use a comparison to light switches. It wouldn’t make sense to install just one light switch to control all of the lights in a home, would it? With just one thermostat controlling everything, a lot of energy gets wasted, while a programmable thermostat can achieve energy savings of up to 35%!
2. Personalized comfort levels: Want to avoid thermostat wars? A zoned HVAC system allows for different temperatures to be set in each area of the home, leaving everybody satisfied.
3. Even temperatures: A zoned HVAC installation helps compensate for hot and cold spots in the home. This system addresses heating and cooling needs by zone, so areas that are naturally colder can get the extra heat they need without throwing excess heat at locations that are already warm.

Zoned HVAC should be considered in homes that have large windows, a top floor that’s always warmer than lower floors, rooms that see little use or feel stuffy, or special areas like a home office or gym that need additional cooling.

Zoned heating and cooling, HVAC zone dampers work best in larger homes where there’s plenty of space to separate into zones. Some families benefit from zoning more than others because the architecture of their homes naturally leads to varying temperatures.

HVAC zoning is most effective in homes that have one or more of the following:

• A two-story home.
• A basement.
• An attic living space.
• Cathedral ceilings.
• A sunroom.
• Homes with multiple large windows
• A living area above your garage.

There are many ways to customize comfort levels in a home. The most common is HVAC zones, but ductless heating and cooling systems or zone dampers are excellent alternatives. Using a ductless system, several air handlers are dispersed throughout the house to maintain temperature. An outdoor unit connects to multiple indoor units, each with its own thermostat.

This heating and cooling system allows for heat and cooling control right at the air handler in each part of a home. While different in form, it is very similar in function to a zoned HVAC system.

If you’re considering installing a new air conditioner or furnace and are curious about the best way to go about it, choose Arzel Zoning. They offer a wide selection of HVAC zoning products and will help you make an informed decision to determine which type of system is best for your home. Visit the Arzel Zoning website to learn more.