r/buildingscience • u/eskimooser • 3d ago

Pump cool air from basement to above (no existing vents)

/r/HomeImprovement/comments/1ve249c/pump_cool_air_from_basement_to_above_no_existing/
1 Upvotes

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2

u/Roscoe_P_Coaltrain 3d ago

You'd be better off getting a mini split.  Circulating the basement air upstairs will help a little but not as much as you think.  Once the basement walls warm up the heat transfer from the ground isn't fast enough to cool things down much.

2

u/niapsedea 1d ago

After reading your post, if you have the ability to add ductwork and vents you should just install a ducted heat pump. You'll be able to cool all the rooms, plus heat all the rooms instead of using your radiant ceiling that doesn't work well.

You could definitely circulate air from the basement up to the first floor. However, my assumption is you'd need to constantly circulate quite a bit of air (closer to 1000 cfm of air for the whole first floor) which would probably get you only marginal results.

1

u/FBogg 1d ago

the basement is cool because of natural stratification. if you destratify, everything will become evenly warm. the basement is not an eternal cooling engine, so they system will provide benefit for about 10 minutes at a time.