Not all heating vents are located on the floor; ceiling heating ducts are located in the ceiling and floor heating ducts are located in the floor.  That seems obvious and inconsequential, but the location of the heating vents plays a major role in the heating of your home and the subsequent size of your utility bill.

Heating air vents are usually located in the floor, or in the walls along the baseboard, when the heating unit is located either in the basement or in a crawlspace under the house.  The piping connecting the vents to the furnace, called the heat runs, generally run along floor joists and allow heated air to blow up into the rooms of the house.

Sometimes a furnace cannot be located under a house.  This most often occurs when an HVAC unit is retrofitted into an older home, although in some parts of the county new homes are routinely designed with furnaces in alternate locations.  The alternate location is usually the attic, simply because it is accessible.  In this case, the heat runs are located along the ceiling joists and each heating vent is positioned in the ceiling.  The vent is much more noticeable in this position, and a decorative heating vent cover is often used.

So, other than one being in the floor and one being in the ceiling, is there any difference?  Yes, there is.  Heated air is less dense than cold air, and so it rises.  When warm air from a furnace is blown into a room through the floor, it warms the room as it rises to the ceiling.  However, when heated air is blown into a room through the ceiling, it already occupies the area where physics is directing it to go.  In order to provide warmth to you, in the lower areas of the room, it must be blown into the room more forcefully, pushed downward with a ceiling fan, or else additional warm air added until it fills the room.

Blowing air into the room more forcefully is not a good option.  Air handlers are designed to move air at a certain cubic feet per minute.  Passing the air through the furnace more quickly allows less time for the air to be heated, and is inefficient.  It would also require more air to pass through in a given amount of time, meaning that your intake would have to be larger.

Running a ceiling fan while the heater is going seems counter-intuitive, but this often a good option.  Most ceiling fans have reversible motors.  The blades are pitched, and turning them in one direction draws air upwards while turning them in the opposite direction pushes air downwards.  If they are slowly rotating while pushing air downward, the warm air gathered at the ceiling is circulated down in to the living area of the room.

The third scenario – simply running the furnace longer until warm air has completely filled the room, is the option most homes use.

To complete the look of new floors or just to give your air duct openings a finished look installing heating air vents is an option. In many homes the covers are only considered when they need to be cleaned or if filters need to be changed. However, there are ways to make them blend in with the home décor. An individual can also decorate with protective covers. There also instances where replacing the style of cover will help to improve the circulation of air into a room. Many ducts in older homes don’t allow an individual to control the amount of air that flows into a room. Updating the heating vent covers in one’s home is advantageous for many reasons.

Control of airflow is one of the many reasons that many people update their vents. In some homes and buildings, particularly the older ones they may not allow an individual to control the amount air that a room receives. The updated grille covers or registers are made in different shapes and sizes, although the square or rectangular shapes are the most popular. They are made with slots that allow the air to flow through. The slots are positioned in different directions so that the air is forced to flow in alternate directions. There is also a button or lever that allows the individual to control the amount of air that is released from the vent into the room. There are ceiling heating covers that can be placed strategically to allow optimum heating and cooling of a room. When purchasing one for better air control it is best to consider a model that allows for multi-directional airflow and a strong levering system that will provide control over the air flow.

The purchase of a heating vent is also done for purely aesthetic purposes. Depending on where openings are located, the appearance of the cover is very important. There are some homes where the heating and air conditioning ducts are located in the floor making them very obvious to everyone. Floor heating vents need to be covered adequately so that they don’t impede traffic and most importantly to cover up the hole in the floor created by the heating system. If the area that needs to be covered is in a high traffic area it is best to use a cover that is made from a material that can withstand weight and frequent contact such as bronze, aluminum or even iron. All vents should be made from materials that can withstand extremes in temperatures to ensure that the cover will not melt or burn as a result of the hot air passing through. Likewise, there are many companies that offer the assistance of custom made grilles that are shaped irregularly or for those individuals that would like a more decorative appearance.

As long as mechanical air heating systems have been around, they’ve been accompanied by ceiling heating vents and other forms of covers to provide a basic air filter and a pleasant look to the heating ducts. While often overlooked due to obtrusiveness, the heating grille has a vital role to play in any heating system. Today’s models are mostly cheap and utilitarian in nature, mostly composed of a simple white aluminum or steel.

When shopping for a heating duct cover, price is not generally an issue. Ordinary prices are under fifteen dollars, with basic but sturdy designs that will last a long time. Care should be taken, however, to get a good model, even though they may all look very similar at a casual glance. Theu should have numerous closely-spaced angled bars or fins that filter the air properly. As a general rule, the gap between each bar should not be wider than the bar itself. There should also be a basic damper switch that can be operated easily to adjust these bars and close off the vent if desired. If possible, try out the switch beforehand to make sure it’s easy to use. A vent that is placed in the ceiling or another awkward position, with a difficult to flip switch, can be more of an irritant than most would think.

Any covers you buy should fit their ultimate destinations perfectly. This usually means measuring things out before you go shopping. An ill-fitting one is almost as good as worthless since the air will flow improperly. Remember to take into account the space the frame around the fins will require. Most will attach via screws along the frame, so you’ll need a screwdriver handy if you don’t have one already. Any store that sells the covers will also sell screws, so just make sure you get the right size.

While most vents are plain steel or aluminum, there are slightly more expensive and significantly more artistic higher-class models on the market, generally for use as floor heating vents in hotels and the like. If you want to make every aspect of your home beautiful you might find some use for them. Prices for these products are still very reasonable at eighteen to twenty dollars. These fancier models use alternative materials such as maple or oak wood, plated brass, brushed nickel, oil rubbed bronze, or cast iron. The designs are much different from the usual no-nonsense finned versions, with a much great variety of artistic filtering bar layouts including oriental, geometric, scrolled, and latticed designs. Overall they are much more beautiful, but some of the wilder designs compromise good ventilation for appearances, which is a bit of a self-defeating trade to make. There’s nothing wrong with buying these higher-end models if they suit you, but you should take care to buy a version that actually circulates well while looking good, instead of one that looks great and circulates badly as a result.

If you’re considering building a new home you may want to consider what you are going to use to cover each heating vent. Most people overlook the duct openings because they become a part of the everyday fixtures in our lives. The truth is they also can be quite an eyesore to look at if they don’t fit in with the style of the rest of the room. When deciding on the placement and design of objects in your new home you should consider the placement of the heating and air conditioning vents as well.

Heating air vents can be placed in different types of locations. The type of location also affects how the heat is distributed throughout the room. Ceiling grilles will blow the air downward and might heat a particular area, but not be an effective way of heating a whole room. The laws of physics dictate that hot air rises, so you should consider this when choosing where your vents will be located.

Most people choose to go with the floor openings. These seem to offer the best coverage for heating an entire room. Usually there will only be one grille in a room that generates the heat for the entire room. You will also have ones located in other areas such as in the entryway and in a hallway. This makes for more even distribution of heat throughout the home. If you are not using a traditional furnace to heat your new home you will need to consult with other professionals on the best placement of other types of vents.

In addition to the placement of the openings, you will want to consider the type of material used for the cover. Most people are not aware of the wide variety of different covers available to them. In addition to the standard metal cover you can also get iron cover, molded plastic covers and wood veneer covers. The standard metal covers come in many different colors to blend with the color of the room they will be in.

Most homes use the traditional metal cover because it can be painted over very easily. This makes it convenient when you decide to repaint a room in a new and different color. If you have installed paneling in a room you would be more likely to go with a wood veneer type of cover. This helps the cover to blend into the décor of the room. Of course it does make a difference if the opening is located in the floor or on the wall by the baseboard.

If you are choosing to go with a floor duct then you will want it to blend with the type of flooring you are using. If you have a carpeted room you also want to make sure the carpet is laid neatly and securely around the vent to deter any unraveling or snagging as people walk over it.