new furnace-should i tape the corners

[jerry1967]

i have a new furnace and i feel air leaking out of the connection between the furnace and the new duck work and the backing of the furnace. i was wondering if it would hurt if i put some tape over the spaces where i feel the air leaking out?

[air2spare]

call the guy who put it in and tell him to come finish the job

[ryan_the_furnace_guy]

Originally posted by jerry1967
i have a new furnace and i feel air leaking out of the connection between the furnace and the new duck work and the backing of the furnace. i was wondering if it would hurt if i put some tape over the spaces where i feel the air leaking out?

Hi Jerry. Good question. Leakage is common as is loose ductwork. You can tape this, or silicone that. But you are still going to be left with a lot of unavoidable leakage. What you might actually want to do is consider having a "duct sealing" service performed. "I believe" the real troublesome leakage is in the return ductwork. These are professional services who will come to your home and make sure everything is tight and in good order. It will save you efficiency, improve your air quality, and increase the life of your new equipment. Might as well have them cleaned if needed as well.

I am not much of a ductwork guy, so somebody else may come along and know a little bit more about this or correct any misinformation I may have unintentionally provided.

[jerry1967]

could someone explain what the purpose of cold air return is?

[ryan_the_furnace_guy]

Originally posted by jerry1967
could someone explain what the purpose of cold air return is?

Your furnace (or air handler) supplies either warmed or cooled air to the home, depending on the season. That air once it has served it's purpose needs to be "returned" to the unit to be warmed or cooled again. See how that works? So there are a collections of ducts, in most homes, whose sole purpose is to collect air and "return" it to the furnace (or air handler) to be treated again. Basically.

A "cold air return" is a register/grill that is connected to the return ducts, not the supply ducts.

[Edited by ryan_the_furnace_guy on 10-16-2005 at 10:55 AM]

[rufus]

Originally posted by jerry1967
i have a new furnace and i feel air leaking out of the connection between the furnace and the new duck work and the backing of the furnace. i was wondering if it would hurt if i put some tape over the spaces where i feel the air leaking out?

Go ahead and Tape the Corners.
If it bugs you, fix it.
It's fine to tape over the spaces where
you can feel air leaking out.
Use UL listed foil tape.