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Room Temperature problem in theater

1240 Views 5 Replies 5 Participants Last post by jntart, Jan 23, 2008

chrismd77

Discussion Starter · Jan 23, 2008

Hey everybody,

I am having a problem in my home theater with the room temperature getting to warm. Not super hot but just warm enough to be uncomfortable, especially when I have movie night. If I had to guess I bet it gets to about 85 degrees or warmer. I currently have two outlets for the main house HVAC in the room. In the winter time I have the vents shut to stop as much new warm are getting into the room. In the summer I have the vents open to allow some new cold air in but I do not see any difference.

My theater is roughly 4200 Square ft. I have a benQ projector and a AV rack open to the room. The room is sealed good and the AV Rack contains a large Denon receiver, DVD player, Xbox 360, Cable DVR, etc. When the room is in use only the rope lights on the floor and in the soft fit are on so I do not think the lights are adding to the heat but I could be wrong.

My thought is to add a portable air conditioner and port the cold air outlet into the theater some how. Has anyone done this? Does anyone have any recommendations on a model and a method to move the cold air into the room. I do not have access to the outside but do have room behind the theater to the rear where my Rack is located. I was thinking the portable unit could be placed there and then the condensation outlet run into my sump pump located in that same spare room.

Thanks in advance,

Chris

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bpape

· #2 · Jan 23, 2008

You mention two supplies in the room. Is there a cold air return? There needs to be.

Tying into an existing system is always difficult in cold climates as you're pumping warm air into a room that really doesn't want or need it. A separate unit that can always cool is a good solution.

Search here on avs for mini-split.

Bryan

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BIGmouthinDC

· #3 · Jan 23, 2008

Quote:
Originally Posted by chrismd77 /forum/post/12906265

My theater is roughly 4200 Square ft.

really?

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chrismd77

Discussion Starter · #4 · Jan 23, 2008

I guess if said ft Cubed I would be correct

22ft wide * 24ft long * 8ft high = 4224 ft cubed. Sorry.

I am looking into the Mini-splits but they look like they have an unit that needs to be outside. I have no access to the outside of my house with out ripping apart my basement.

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budk

· #5 · Jan 23, 2008

This is sometimes an expensive issue to resolve and most folks do not give it enough thought before or during the build. The experts will tell you a mini-split is the best way since it is a completely seperate and therefore seperately controlled system. Others use different zones off of their main system while others take your approach.

As mentioned, you need a return in the room in order to pull the air into the room.. however if you are blocking the intake during the winter then a return is a moot issue.

What I am doing, and I have seen others do it in a similar fashion, is to put 2 new runs of ductwork into the room and have them vented into an unconditioned area of the basement (if you have one). I have one area of my basement where the mechanicals are that doesn't have any vents in it and it is on an outside wall. That area of my basement stays a consistant 66 deg or so all year long. I plan on pulling this slightly cooler air out of that space and duct it into my theater... most likely at floor level and then have the other piece of ductwork pulling air out of the theater at the ceiling and dumping it back into the unconditioned room. Time will tell as to whether or not it works. For the summer months I will also have a duct off of the A/c running into the room.

A mini-split is out of my price range.

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jntart

· #6 · Jan 23, 2008

We installed a mini-split for our server room and put the outside condenser in the warehouse. This maybe a possibility for you if the room behind your equipment can be vented.

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