CHATTANOOGA Blog

The Stack Effect & How it Impacts Your Comfort

We all want to be cozy and comfy in our homes, and we want to do so in the most efficient (and cost-effective) way possible. A home that is properly insulated will be able to move air through your house efficiently, allowing your HVAC system to work smoothly right alongside your insulation to keep you comfortable.

If you don’t have the right amount of insulation or your home is not efficient, you will constantly be fighting against a concept called the “stack effect,” and your home will have uncomfortable temperatures consistently until this problem is fixed. Read on to learn more about the stack effect and how it impacts your home.

How Air Pressure Affects Your Home

Do you remember learning about convection in school? While this concept was probably discussed and then forgotten about by many, convection actually happens every day in your home! We all know that the warmer air in your home rises through the day, and that rising air will create a space of negative pressure underneath it. That drop in pressure invites cooler air beneath it to replace that warm air.

As that hot air makes its way to your upper levels and attics, the high pressure starts to build up. This air either needs to be efficiently circulated or it will force itself out of your home through holes, gaps or drafts in your attic. Once that air is gone, the pressure change will once again pull cooler and unconditioned air into the lower levels of your home.

Why the Stack Effect Is Not a Good Thing

This column of air creates the stack effect in your home, where cool air is constantly being introduced into your home down below and then rises as it warms up. Even though it may not sound too troublesome, it is a really inefficient way to circulate the air in your home. All of the air your home worked hard to condition to the right temperature is escaping right out of your walls and attic!

That means you are basically paying to condition the air around your home as it is constantly escaping. That is not only hard on your wallet, but it is also hard on your HVAC system since it will have to work in overdrive to keep you comfortable. It will experience more wear and tear and will be more prone to malfunctions, and you will be battling with uncomfortable rooms every day.

Can the Stack Effect Be Fixed?

Of course it can! You just need our Koala team to help make sure your home is running as efficiently as possible. New insulation and air sealing can help keep the air circulating while giving your HVAC system a well-deserved break. We can also install a solar attic fan to help prevent the hot air in your attic from causing chaos.

An attic fan will pull the hot and humid air from your attic and will replace it with cooler, drier air. This helps prevent that negative pressure difference and will encourage your air to circulate much more efficiently.

Is your house uncomfortable? Contact us today at Koala Insulation of Chattanooga.