Block that flow and your home will run sub optimally and you could even cause damage to your hvac system.
Can you put furniture in front of air return vent.
This extra work takes a toll.
Furniture especially upholstered furniture rugs and curtains are typically what block vents in the home.
I want to place a piece of furniture in front of a cold air return vent.
1 don t block the airflow.
Move the item further away.
You will not feel air being blown out of these vents as they are used to force out the cool air in the room to be reheated by the furnace.
Normally we place furniture very near the wall.
Should be okay as long as you are not putting the furniture directly up against the return blocking its cfms just make sure that your return is not blocked from intake airflow.
Renay you can place all the furniture you want in tront of a return air vent just be sure you leave a little room for air to go under around or over the top and don t place a piece that the vent.
If you own the house and can put an intake in the basement that will help but you should be ok.
It inhales quite a large volume of air.
This is one of the main reasons why some homeowners believe they can block air return vents with furniture.
Return vents are usually larger than heat registers and can generally be found close to the ground or in the floor in older homes or on a wall close to a ceiling in newer homes.
Your ac will wear out faster and will consume more energy.
But sometimes the vent is in an extremely inconvenient place the only wall big enough for your sofa or your library media wall system the best section of the room for the bed or the dresser or the dining room sideboard.
When you block a vent with a textile the entire ac has to work harder to pull air into the system and to push it out again.
The vent is close to the floor.
As long as you are not on top the vent and the bookshelf is not closed in in other words there is open space on each end you should be fine.
The answer i generally give is no but without knowing how much return air you have in your house or how much you ll be blocking the return its impossible to tell from here.
There would be a gap of at least 3 inches between the vent and the back of the furniture.
Yes if you take into account a few considerations.