Those are valid reasons to do it so the real answer is to make the attic at least semi conditioned space.
Why would a duct be open tobthe attic.
The flex ducts were literally filled shut with ice in the low spots compressing the scant insulation layer beneath them.
It s for the output air.
There s a hole in the ceiling of the furnace room that i didn t even notice.
The rigid insulation was saturated from condensation.
When hvac ducts are installed in a vented attic in a dry climate bury the ducts in attic insulation to protect them from temperature extremes in the unconditioned attic space.
It s done this way because it s easier and cheaper to run a flex duct through a wide open space than to fit it through and around floor and wall framing.
Why is this a problem.
I was up in the attic yesterday and noticed something about my return air duct that is strange.
The duct insulation should include a vapor barrier cover.
Use metal flex or fiber board ducts that are insulated to code.
According to nrel researchers david roberts and jon winkler moving the ducts from a vented attic to a new location inside the conditioned space will reduce electricity used for cooling by 15 to 20 and will reduce the size of the needed air conditioning equipment by 0 5 to 1 ton.
In addition to making the unit hard to get to for service high attic heat can trigger the.
Why is condensation on ductwork a problem.
But our erv ducts stand alone system not tied in w heat pump and 2 jumper ducts for pressure balancing from bedrooms are suspended above the insulation in our vented attic.
It all corresponds perfectly to this illustration in the code.
Our heating and ac ducts are 100 within the thermal envelope in the floor trusses above our insulated basement.
Ceiling duct openings are usually found in homes that do not have a basement.
It also makes maintenance and or modification easier.
The heat ducts usually travel in the walls behind the drywall and exit through openings in the ceiling on first floor levels.
There was no evidence of roof leaks even around the attic fan.
So water is condensing on your ac ducts.
Put it in an attic full of blown insulation and you re forcing it to work harder to vent its heat.
The furnace may be in a garage attic laundry room or interior closet for accessibility.
When water condenses and drips into your attic or home it can cause a some serious secondary problems.
I live in a 3 story townhouse and my return air ducts for the 3rd floor run through the attic space.
First water dripping off of your ducts and onto your insulation can cause the insulation to compress which decreases it s r value or ability to insulate.
The sun would come out melt some ice and it would find it s way to the nearest hole into the house.