Ventilation plays a pretty big role in climate control for your home. Without it, central heating and air conditioning would be incredibly ineffective. A problem with your ventilation system could easily cause you a big headache, so here are are some tips that you should use if you suspect that your ventilation isn't working properly.

Identify the Location of the Problem

If you suspect that you have a blockage in your vents, then it can be pretty hard to narrow the location down. After all, you generally can't easily access residential ventilation systems, aside from the openings in each room. This means that it can be almost impossible to track down where the blockage is. Therefore, you will want to turn on the ventilation system to help you out.

Run the Fan

If possible, first try running the fan alone, without heat or air conditioning. This will save you a bit of money on electricity, since it is cheaper to run the fan without the added process of heating or cooling the air first. The downside is that it might be a bit harder to detect which vent covers are working well and which are not.

You'll want to manually check every vent in your home to see which are working properly. If every vent does have noticeable air flow, then your problem might lie with your heater or air conditioner rather than the ventilation itself.

Try the Heater or AC

Next, you will want to turn on either the heater or air conditioner and close all the doors and windows in your house. This will contain the temperature of each individual room. After half an hour or so, you should check the temperature in every room. You don't really need to measure with a thermometer, but you should be on the lookout for any rooms that have drastically different temperatures from the rest of your house. If you do find such a room, then there is a good chance that there is something wrong with the ventilation system in that part of your home. If multiple rooms are affected, then the blockage is likely deep in your ventilation system, prior to any forks that lead to the affected rooms.

Solving the Problem

If you do conclude that you have a blockage, you can try to clear it out yourself. However, you probably don't have the tools necessary to reach a blockage that is deeper than a couple of feet into your vents.

In any event, you should open up the vent with a screwdriver and take a look around with a flashlight. If you can see the blockage, then there is a good chance that you can reach it and break it up. If not, then this might be a good time to call the pros, such those from Winters Heating Cooling & Indoor Air Quality. On top of cleaning out your blockage, professional vent cleaners can also remove a lot of the dust up there, which can ultimately improve the air quality in your home.