Centrail Air & Heat Return Vent

[weso18]

Hi, I've got a central air and heating system in my apartment that I've recently moved into. The return vent is located in my living room of the apartment. When the heat is not running I feel cold air coming in through this vent. The other night I decided to put a thermomator about 4 inches away from the vent to see just how cold the air is thats coming through the vent. The thermomator read 31 degrees! Yikes thats just alot of cold air coming through the vent and just does not seem to be normal. So what I've been doing is putting a full body pillow in front of the vent to help stop some of that cold air from entering my apartment...but each time the heat comes on i have to remove that pillow from the vent so the system will work and push heat out the vents in the apartment. If I don't keep the pillow over that vent its very hard to keep this apartment warm and the heat is constantly running. Someone please help or give me some kind of an idea as to what I can do or tell me if this is supposed to be normal for the return vent. Any ideas or help would greatly be appreciated.

Thanks,
Phil

[jimbo122655]

Well, I'll take a stab since no one else has. Do you have access to find out where the return is located. My best guess is that there is a hole in your return somewhere. Check that out and repost. Jim

[mattison]

Don't touch it and have management take care of the problem. The minute you work on it they will blame you for all of it and there goes your deposit.

But like Jim said it's probably a package unit and the return is open somewhere drawing in outdoor air.

[weso18]

I just wanted to make sure what im experiencing is not normal. The maintinence that this realty company seems to be really stupid. They were here once to check it out and tried telling me it was normal. I think there just stupid and don't know anything so just tell me it's fine when in reality how could it be fine when I've got 30 degree air coming in through the vent into my apartment making it very cold in here....im afraid to know what my gas bill is gonna be next month because of this.

Thanks.

[Ed Imeduc]

Might look around and see if the unit has a outside air intake to the cold air return . Most of them have a damper on them you can shut

ED ;)

[dougm]

Check for a damper as Ed suggested first, but this problem could be expected for a poorly installed system. Unfortunately, there is not much you can do about it if the landloard isn't willing to help.

Doug M.

[weso18]

Ok, Lets assume that were talking about a poorly installed system here. The idea of the system being an old system has crossed my mind except I recall before I moved in here that they had just finished putting new heating units for every apartment in the complex. But assuming it was poorly installed...Is there anything that I can do from inside the apartment such as a one way air return vent that I could replace with the vent thats currently on the wall? Does something like this exist? I realize the landlord should be the one doing this and should be the one paying for something like this if in fact something like this does exist. but the landlord just doesnt seem to be doing much. so if there is something like a one way air vent that i could place inside of the apartment...i'd be more then happy to go and buy it for the sake of saving myself alot of money on my heat bill. The savings on my heat bill would more then pay for it if it would stop the air from coming inside. Any more ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Phil

[Ed Imeduc]

Check around where the filter is .Take it out and see what you find in the duct there and where it goes.

ED ;)

[weso18]

I've taken the cover and filter off, the return vent goes up leading to the outside. Theres nothing behind the cover/filter to the return vent except the vent itself leading up and to the outside. It appears as if there is a little bit of insulation around the inside of the vent...like a 1/4 inch mat. But there is nothing there to stop cold air from coming inside.

[mattison]

If the return goes to the outside then you have a package unit on the roof. I doubt that they have economizers on there but it's possible. I wonder if either the unit don't match up with the curb good or a panel is off on the roof.

I still say don't mess with it and talk to management and have one of them come and feel the air for themselves. I know for a fact that most apartment maintanance guys are not very good at hvac and most learned it on the job with no guidance.

[scottg]

Wes
Write to your landlord and let them know that there is 30o degree air comming in through the return vent and you would like to have this stopped.
If the problem is not stopped you would have grounds to vacate the property. Send it priorty mail and reciept requested. You may need to leave, but I suspect that the return duct has a hole in it or is not attached properly. Before you vacate have it checked by a heat and air company and furnish them with the results of the inspection with a request that they reimburst you for the service call. See if they repair the problem if the problem is not fixed then you did all that you could do and take your landlord to court. It seems pretty bad when the repair is proably just a couple of hundred dollars or just some tape. What I see today is a bunch of people that don't want to work and do nothing. Sorry about your problems. I work for some good rental agents that get things fixed promptly. I live in Wilmington NC right on the east coast.

[weso18]

Mattison....The return vent goes outside...but the unit is actually on the side of the building. Dunno what difference that makes.

[mattison]

Are ther any ducts attached to the unit you see on the side of the building? In most apartments they put the airhandler above the cieling and pull the return air from right at the unit. Yours sounds crazy?? Can you host some pictures somewhere or e-mail them to me??