stair vents

[bigskyjimmy]

It has been Freak'in cold and wet up here in the NW and I am trying to keep the heat IN the 5th ,I have a 3402RL and I noticed the 2 steps going up to the bedroom are vented on the front and not solid wood and they are letting ALOT of cold air in from storage I was thinking of blocking them off, does anyone know why they are vented slots and not solid wood ?????

[Carl n Susan]

The slots in the steps are the return air path to the furnace. I don't recommend blocking them off. You will be better off insulating behind the basement wall to cut down (not eliminate) cold air intrusion.

[bigskyjimmy]

AHHHH.....I was thinking there HAS to be a reason for them, THANX Carl...I will do that but dang what a bummer it lets in alot of cold air into an otherwise warm and pretty well insulated interior

[Irlpguy]

I am ready to pull out of my yard on Saturday, will be going past your neck of the woods the same day. Our temperatures and weather are almost identical as yours Jimmy, and if I were living in my unit right now I would cover those slots in some manner to prevent the darn cold air from coming into my unit.

I expect I will be corrected, but those slots provide a minimal amount of air to your furnace, anyone who has ever opened up their basement can see that whole area is open to not only the storage area but the complete underbelly as well, closing them off will in no way deprive your furnace of sufficient air to operate properly, again I will likely be corrected on that statement.

You have said you are keeping a vent open to help prevent the accumulation of moisture, if your furnace is drawing air from other than within the living quarters it will create a pressure within the living area, this will help prevent cold air from entering at any point it might enter the living area.

We all have cold air entering the underbelly around the jacks, the slide out rails and anywhere that is not sealed off, that cold air enters into what is all part of the same area under your steps. If it were me I would take them both off and put some nice insulation behind them for the winter.

I hope you realize Jimmy I am only making suggestions based on what I have seen in my unit which happens to be the same as yours, you are a smart fella, take a look behind your storage wall when it warms up, look at your furnace and where it draws it's air, you will see what I am talking about.

[bigskyjimmy]

Thanx Edward for the advise, I think being the "smart fella that I am" and diplomatic I will take the advise of both camps and block off ONE vent on the stairs and see how that works

[Irlpguy]

Great idea Jimmy just make sure you get the one that lets in the most cold air, and being the smart fella you are do take a look in there when it warms up...

[DQDick]

You really are going to be better off insulating between the basement and that open space than you are going to be closing off the vents under the steps. Putting air filters in behind the stairs and the insulation would be what I would recommend.

[bigskyjimmy]

HMMMM.... air filters another good idea, Thanx Dick

[NCFischers]

X2 on te air filters. This is what Ozz recommends.

[Ozz]

Since Irlp guy warned me about contradicting him, I will just say DON'T block your furnace return air, and go hide stuff in the desert.

[kenandjudy]

Insulate between aluminum beams in basement area makes a world of difference both on heating and AC. I also installed air filters.
Ken

[1retired06]

Another consideration, in our unit the converter is under those steps behind the vents

[bigskyjimmy]

Thanx Gang, I will put air filters behind them, good plan!

[Johnnyg]

The combination of insulating the basement wall and beams with the addition of a filter on the steps sounds like a great idea. Too cold at the moment to fool with either here but a good spring project. Thanks for the ideas.

[Larry-P]

What type of insulation are we talking about.

The hard 2" to 3" styrofoam type between the studs or fiberglass rolls ??

Also, do you also use plastic sheeting across the outside of the studding to reduce drafts ??

[brenkco]

Larry,
I used both. Where there was a maze of plumbing, I stuffed in fiberglass, otherwise I used rigid.
There was a post on this with photos but I can't seem to find it.

Ken

[pineranch]

We put the sun shield panels behind the steps to keep the cool air in and green filter material to help keep the cold out and act as our furnace filter. If its cold enough to need additional insulation, I head to warmer places.
Mike

[bigred715]

When using just the fireplace I block off both of them. When using the furnace I block off one of the vents. We have had record cold, record heat and yesterday record rainfall here in Mesa Arizona. Beats back home though.

[fauch]

if you block off return from the living space, does this not force the fan to draw more colder air from the basement? Are you not better off circulating more of the warming air? Ive been thinking about a hinged damper on the backside of the stair vent. I rounded up some aluminum sheet flashing and a brass piano hinge. this is on my list for next repair/maintenance list schedule.

[Ozz]

quote:Originally posted by fauch

if you block off return from the living space, does this not force the fan to draw more colder air from the basement? Are you not better off circulating more of the warming air? Ive been thinking about a hinged damper on the backside of the stair vent. I rounded up some aluminum sheet flashing and a brass piano hinge. this is on my list for next repair/maintenance list schedule.

Yes, you are correct. Furnaces have a design 'air over' temperature, it varies, some average size gas furnaces are around 40-45 degrees. Pulls in 65 degrees from living space, delivers 105, as the space temperature increases, the supply air increases. Circulation is the name of the game here, the return air goes in the the furnace, it warms and is forced into the living spaces. Doesn't make much sense to block the return air then try to force air into a sealed space....
I would leave the return air alone, they designed it that way for a reason. I don't see any problem with insulation, except.. don't allow any loose insulation to become sucked into the furnace return AT THE Furnace, I can see this happening, getting loose and into the furnace it goes.