I've personally performed thousands of energy audits during my time, so I've seen some pretty interesting things people do in their well meaning attempts to save energy. Let me just say that duct tape is not a suitable material for any energy-related home improvement!
A very common activity that seems to make sense on the surface is closing the vents in low-use areas or rooms of the home. People think, ''this will prevent wasted money on heating/cooling this space.' But this logic is wrong, and can wind up costing you.
First, when you close a vent, the air that was directed to it gets stuck. With nowhere to go, it applies backpressure on the unit's fan, causing it to work harder (burn more energy) to do its job. Overtime, this will also cause the fan to wear out quicker.
Second, your HVAC unit will produce the same amount of conditioned air, regardless of how many vents are open/closed (so you are not reducing energy consumption). When you close a vent, you are simply sending more conditioned air into spaces that don't need it - often times, this can even make other rooms UNcomfortable.
Lastly, restricting the flow of conditioned air increases the probability that it will be pushed out through the leaks in your duct work, decreasing your energy efficiency. (Now if you've followed our duct sealing project video on YouTube, this should be less of a concern for you!)
Bottom line, closing your vents can do way more harm than good.
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