I'm finishing my basement and I'm wondering how I should approach placement of the supply vents. I live in Minnesota so my primary consideration is to do what I can to make sure the space can be kept comfortably warm in the winter. From the research I've done, it sounds like ideally they should go near the windows and low. At the same time, I don't want to take a more difficult route if it's unlikely to have any noticeable benefit over an easier one. I figure I generally have 3 options in order of least to most effort:
- Place the supply vents on the ceiling near the windows/exterior walls with returns on opposing walls and placed low.
- Place supply vents low on the walls adjacent to the exterior walls as close to the windows as possible.
- Place the supply vents low on the exterior walls a couple of stud bays from the windows. I would have to cut the existing vapor barrier and remove some insulation to make room for the duct work.
My assumption is that 3 isn't a good route to take. But I'm unsure of whether placing the supply vents low on the walls will be enough of an improvement over having them in the ceilings to make it worth the extra effort.
Best Answer
The short answer is do the most effective of the available option for each room. You may not get them all set up exactly the same.
For most modern basements in Minnesota the supplies are in the ceiling near the windows and the returns are low on an opposing wall. That's the ideal, in my opinion. You get better flow over and around the window with this arrangement since the air can be directed downward, along the window. It's difficult to do that from a wall vent, so condensation and frost build up more readily, and the air near the windows feels colder (and therefore more drafty).
Obviously it's difficult to get a vent below a window on an exterior wall, and you wouldn't want to compromise your insulation and HVAC air temp by doing so anyway.