How to Keep a Second Floor Warmer

 

During the winter season, you will find it much more difficult to keep your rooms on the second-floor warm and making you feel disheartening whenever you want to retire in a cold and inhospitable bedroom every night. Warmer air will normally rise to the ceiling and second floor of your house because it is much lighter than the cold air. Even if your first floor is warm, improper insulation, ventilation as well as other factors that you have done to your house will also prevent the second floor area of your house to keep warm. In order to keep your second floor warmer during the winter season, you need to make sure that the two main steps are taken that is by improving the hot air flow within the surrounding of your house and also minimizing the loss of heat inside your house.

To keep a second floor warmer, you need:

  • Ceiling fans
  • Large trees
  • Box fan
  • Space heaters
  • Programmable furnace fan timer
  • Insulation
  • Grilles

Keeping a Second Floor Warmer

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How to Keep a Second Floor Warmer

  • The first thing that you need to do is to always do a regular checking on the efficiency of your furnace
    • You can do it yourself if you have the knowledge or hire a professional technician to personally check the furnace and do some maintenance work on them. For example, replacing the filter or even perform any repairs required in order for the furnace to operate at its peak performance especially during the cold season.
  • The next step that you can do is to install ceiling fans in the lower levels of your house.
    • It is recommended that you install the ceiling fans in an area adjacent to the stairs in your house.
    • Then, you need to turn the ceiling fan’s switch and make sure that the blades rotate in counterclockwise manner. This can be accomplished by running the ceiling fan’s blades via its reverse setting.
    • After that, the ceiling fan on your second floor need to be run in the clockwise direction in order to keep the warm air circulate within the second floor area.

Ceiling fan that runs in a reverse setting can produce warm air by drawing the warm air upwards and then distribute the warm air to the second level of your house.

  • Another method that you can apply is by planting large trees on the north side of your house. By doing this, the trees will help provide shading and also block the cold winter winds enabling you to have a warmer environment for your second floor rooms.
  • You can also install a box fan right at the foot of your stairs and make sure to set the box fan on its low setting before turning it on.
    • The box fan will help you pull warm air from the lower level of your house and send them to the second floor of your house.
    • Make sure that you do not set the box fan into a reverse setting.
  • Another option is to use space heaters on your upper level by choosing suitable model appropriate for each size of your second floor rooms.
    • If your house has children and pets, you should be using a model that will remain cool to the touch and is tilt-resistant.
  • If your house has an attic, you can also install insulation on the attic to ensure that no heat will escape via the roof which in the end will keep your upper level much warmer.
  • Always make it a habit of opening the curtains or raising the blinds or shading inside your house especially during sunny days.
    • By doing this, you will allow the sunlight to warm the rooms on your second floor.
  • All doors between main source of heat and the second floor should be left open.
    • Any closed doors will always block the movement of warm air within your house.
    • You also need to leave doors on the second floor of your house open in order to increase horizontal air movement.
  • If you have transom or wall in between the top of your door and ceiling, you need to remove them.
    • By removing the transom, you would be able to enable any hot air to go through to the second floor of your house effortlessly.
    • You also need to remove the transom on doors fitted on the second floor in order to increase the movement of horizontal hot air. This task requires you to do some trimming work to be done so that the opening will look much more presentable.
  • If your house furnace or other main heat source is located in the basement area, it is recommended that you install grilles between the basement and the lower ground of your house.
    • By doing this method, you would be able to allow warm air to travel upward a lot easier.
    • Apart from that, you can also install grilles between the lower ground and the second floor.
  • You should also operate the furnace fan constantly so that the warm air is circulating thus enabling the rooms in the second floor to be warm all the time.
    • Another option that you can do is to install a programmable furnace fan timer in order to move the warm air only when you needed them and at the same time able to save on energy.
  • Skylights can also be installed for increasing solar gain and also improving on the level of heat especially for the rooms located on the second floor of your house.
  • If your house is designed with ducts, make sure you seal any leaks that you notice in your ducts.
    • By keeping the ducts sealed and maintaining them accordingly, your second floor rooms will have a positive effect in terms of the heat level.

    Always remember that whenever you want to keep a second floor warmer

    • Make sure that check the insulation of your house whether it is in good condition or not.
    • Always check that all windows are tightly sealed and all drafts have been eliminated. Once you managed to have well-insulated and sealed home, the heat distribution will not be a problem to you.
    • If you have extra budget, you can install a radiant-floor heating system beneath the flooring of your upper level rooms.

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