Step 5 Pressure Balanced

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The 7 Steps of Building a Synergy Home

• Airtight Construction.• Fresh Air Ventilation.• Improved Thermal Systems.• Properly Sized, Designed, Installed, and

Commissioned HVAC System.• Pressure Balanced.• Moisture Managed.• Combustion Safety.

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Pressure balancing is simple, inexpensive, and absolutely

necessary in achieving a “Synergy Home”.

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We simply want to…

•Build the House as Tight as Possible to the Outside. •Build the House as Leaky as

Possible to the Inside.

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Install returns, jumper ducts, or transfer grilles in all bedrooms so that the air has a

return path if the doors are closed.

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Examples of jumper ducts installed in a home.

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A nice way to advertise pressure balancing.

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What happens if you do not have proper return pathways and you close your

bedroom doors?• Air that is supplied to the bedroom cannot be

returned to the air handler to be reconditioned.• The bedroom becomes pressurized and air is forced

out of the room through holes in the envelope.• The main body of the home becomes depressurized

and outside air is pulled in from unintended places.• There are temperature differences throughout the

home.• Undercutting doors does not work.

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Installing jumper ducts keeps the homeowner from having to change multiple filters. It also eliminates

the need to balance the return ductwork.

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Symptoms of pressure issues• Interior doors close when your unit starts up.• You smell your fireplace when your heating

system starts up.• Temperature differences occur throughout the

home. For example, in an effort to become comfortable in your Master bedroom, you adjust the thermostat so that the rest of the home is uncomfortable.

• There are markings or stains under and around interior door frames.

• Your home is dusty.• Your home has odors.

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Make sure there are no duct leaks!

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Adding jumper ducts in the bedrooms of an existing home

along with increasing the existing return duct size is a simple fix for

many homes!

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The net difference in the supply side leakage and the return side

leakage causes increased air infiltration in the home. Moving ducts into the conditioned space

helps eliminate this.

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We use a manometer to confirm that there is 3 Pascal or less pressure

differential between a bedroom and the main body of the home.

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Important Tips For Pressure Balancing

• Build the house as tight as possible to the exterior.

• Add fresh air ventilation.• Properly Size, Design, Install, and Commission

your HVAC System.• Bring the ducts into the conditioning space.• Install returns, transfer grilles, or jumper ducts in

every bedroom.• Test and confirm every step!

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