Our newly remodeled kitchen holds a temperature that averages about 5 degrees cooler than the remainder of the house. The house thermostat is set at 70 degrees, and the kitchen has been as low as 63. The furnace servicemen measured the temperature of the outside wall at 65 degrees. They believe that is a bit cool, even for an outside wall. They increased the furnace fan speed, but it has not helped. I am wondering if the drywall contractors neglected to install insulation before they attached the drywall. Could the lack of insulation on one outside wall and one wall between the kitchen and garage account for the temperature difference? I should add that we are new owners of this house and have no history or way to discovery if this was true of the house before we moved in or had the kitchen remodeled.
What could cause a temperature variance between our kitchen and the rest of the house
insulationtemperature
Related Solutions
For a quick and dirty fix, I have had some success with a Register Booster Fan.
This has alleviated most of the problem in my house. I still plan to install more insulation (and upgrade to a multi-zone system), but this is a lot less work up front. You can use it as a stop gap until you figure out what permanent fixes you need to make.
It depends partly where you live whether it is up to code or not. In Mass., for example, exterior bracing (plywood is required).
Where is the house? I could probably dig out the building codes for you.
As far as what to do? I'd call a lawyer if it isn't up to your city/county/state building code. You probably don't want to fight that battle yourself.
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Best Answer
I use a Black and Decker Thermal Leak Detector to compare the temperature of the walls around rooms, windows, floors, etc. With it you can determine whether an outside wall in the kitchen is colder than one in another part of the house. Also, you can remove the cover plate on an outlet on a suspected wall and use a flashlight to check for insulation.