Are your furniture placement plans getting ruined due to the placements of vents? Are you thinking of putting furniture over vents? Are you wondering whether or not this placement of furniture over vent will cause negative consequences?
Can you put furniture over vents?
Air vents are supposed to have a free air passageway to function fully. However, if you put furniture like bed, crib, dresser, piano, and so on over or around vents, chances are you will have mold growth, HVAC system failure, uneven cooling or heating process.
Table of Contents
Let’s watch over the following aspects to enrich your knowledge regarding the issue –
Furniture over a floor vent:
Putting your furniture like a bed or dresser over a floor vent will not suffice as it will cause blockage in the free-flowing of air.
Furthermore, harmful molds can also grow in the vents and this can also cause breathing problems due to the passing of air through the vents that are filled with molds.
Bed or couch in front of the wall heater vent:
Putting a bed/couch in front of the wall heater vent can cause the HVAC system to go on overdrive.
Your HVAC system will not only get damaged but you will also have excessive electricity bills due to the overworking of the HVAC system.
Partially covering a floor vent:
It doesn’t matter whether you cover a floor vent be it a return vent or heat vent partially or completely. If putting furniture partially over a floor vent is your last resort, even then you should leave 18 inches of space.
Can you put a bed over a vent?
If you do not want your bed to be ruined and damaged by the airflow and by the humid weather, then you should prevent yourself from putting a bed over a vent.
Raised bed:
If you are planning to put a raised bed over the vent, then you should be mindful of the fact that this will cause the vents to stop working properly and may also cause mold growth, loss of efficiency, and system damage.
Platform bed:
Platform beds don’t have any space underneath to let the air pass. This may cause the system to burst, cause the electricity bills to rise, and can also cause uneven heating and cooling.
Can you put these pieces of furniture over a vent?
Knowing what types of furniture to put over air vents can help you to mold your decisions accordingly and this will also save you from unnecessary surprises.
Cabinet over a vent:
Nothing should be put over a vent as it will cause excessive power usage however, if you can relocate the air vent systems, then it won’t be any problem.
Crib over a vent:
Putting a crib over a vent is not such a good idea as the soft bedding will be prone to molding and this will eventually cause breathing problems.
Piano over a vent:
You can damage your precious piano especially if you put a piano over and near air vents. The hot and cold blowing air may cause your piano to be swollen.
Dresser over a vent:
If you want to place a dresser over air vents, you should know that this placement will block the natural airflow and the flow of the fresh air.
Rug over a vent:
Putting a rug over a vent can be very dangerous and harmful. This will eventually cause the HVAC system to be damaged.
What happens if you cover a vent with furniture?
Covering a vent with furniture may be the worst thing to do therefore, being knowledgeable about the negative consequences can help you to take proper necessary steps beforehand.
Electricity Loss:
If you are thinking you are favoring your electricity bills by ‘closing’ vents with furniture, you can not be more wrong; rather the opposite is true in this scenario.
In addition, this is because when you are putting furniture over a vent, you are blocking the fresh air flow of your house. Consequently, this will cause the system to overwork.
Moreover, you will also be left with fewer air vents and additional pressure will be imposed upon these vents which will eventually lead to energy loss and higher utility bills.
Furniture Damage:
Another adverse effect of covering vents with furniture is that it will damage your furniture. When you cover any vents with furniture, the vents in your house will produce dry air in it.
Consequently, this dry air is very harmful to your furniture because it can cause the furniture to dry out and collapse. Furniture may also get swollen and shrink due to the covering.
In addition, you will also have mildew and mold problems with the furniture because of the humid and warm environment which is a perfect place for the molds to grow.
Disruptive HVAC System:
If you are covering the air vents with furniture, you are also putting the HVAC system into overdrive and your HVAC system’s longevity will be reduced due to that.
In addition, the blockage of air can also cause the overheating of the heat exchanger and freezing of the condenser.
How to put furniture over a floor vent?
You should never put furniture over floor vents but if it comes to that situation, then you need to be knowledgeable of the ways of putting furniture over a floor vent.
Leave Space In-between:
If you do not have any other resort left other than putting furniture over a vent, then you can simply follow the general rule of leaving 18 inches between the vents and the furniture. By doing that, you can somehow subvert the damage.
Buy an Air Deflector:
Another important thing you can do to put furniture over a floor vent is that you can invest in a good air deflector which can be a wonderful way of saving your furniture from ruining and it will also help to keep the fresh air flowing.
Make a Vent Extender:
If you are on a budget, the best option for you to choose is that you can make a DIY vent extender by the usage of duct tape and aluminum.
How to make a DIY vent extender under furniture?
Are the vent placements ruining your furniture placement plans? Nevertheless, this can be pretty annoying and can destroy the aesthetic look of your home however, you can make a DIY vent extender to remedy the situation.
Take Measurements:
The first thing you need to do is to take accurate measurements of the vent itself and you will also need to make sure the vent is open when you will be taking measurements. You need to measure from the back of the vent to the edge of the furniture.
Buy Necessary Equipment:
After taking all the measurements, you will need to buy the necessary things such as aluminum baking trays and duct tape.
Cut the Aluminum Pan:
You now need to cut the aluminum pan according to the measurement you have taken and after that, you need to duct tape the aluminum to the vent cover.
Insert the Vent Cover:
After duct taping the cover, you now need to insert the vent cover back into the air vent however, you need to make sure that the DIY extender’s edge is aligned with the edge of the furniture.
How far should furniture be from the air vent?
It is never a good idea to put furniture over any kind of air vent. Air vents are integral parts of daily life. Air vents actually keep the fresh air coming into the house.
Consequently, putting furniture around any vents will result in severe consequences. Therefore, you always need to leave a considerable amount of space from the air vents when you are trying to place your furniture.
Additionally, you can leave eighteen inches of space between air vents and your furniture to allow a natural ventilation process.
Can you put furniture over a vent if it’s closed?
If you have an air vent that is not functional anymore or you have it closed by professionals, then it may be ok to put furniture over the vent that has been closed.
However, there can be some type of leakage or malfunction in the vent’s system which can cause the air to leak.
This leakage if not treated properly meaning if you put some kind of furniture over the closed vents without first fixing the leakage, you may end up with damaged furniture, mold problems, and so on.
Is it bad to close vents in unused rooms?
It is never a good idea to close vents in unused rooms because this can cause a lot of negative consequences. If you happen to close the vents in the unused rooms, chances are you are going to impair the airflow to function properly.
Consequently, this will also cause the coil to freeze. And this will eventually cause the compressor to deteriorate and the HVAC system to damage as well.
In addition, when you are putting your vents in closed mode, this will cause the HVAC system to experience more pressure which will lead to overwork.
Moreover, the vent’s ductwork may also develop leakage or can eventually burst. However, one of the harmful things that can happen due to the closing off vents in unused rooms is that it can cause carbon monoxide poisoning.
Final thoughts:
To conclude, you should never put any piece of furniture over or anywhere near a vent because it will do more harm than good. In addition, this will eventually cause excessive electricity bills, system loss, busted ductworks, and failure of the HVAC system.