The AC in my condo doesn't seems to be efficient enough to beat the summer heat. Here is some background. Condo is a 2nd floor unit, 1,300 sqft unit on the south side of the building with no shade trees.
Since this is a second floor unit the HVAC ducts run through the attic. In the winter the heat is OK but in the summer there seems to be significant loss from the ducts to "cool" the attic. I don't think this is truly an issue with the system itself, but more of a design issue/flaw.
The temperature coming out of the main trunk before entering the attic is about 46-50 degrees, at both the shortest and longest run from the unit the temperature is around 70 degrees. Cold air returns seem to be functioning, however the back of the house seems to be much harder to cool than the front, which is also where the thermostat is located.
Currently the system runs 10-15 hours a day. and I'm concerned this is going to effect the longevity of the unit (2.5 ton I believe).
I'd like some advice on what would be best to try first. I'm currently trying to convince my HOA that I need to install more ventilation in the attic, we only have a ridge vent which does not seem to be working properly. There are plenty of soffit vents, but little ventilation through the attic.
I've also considered building an insulated soffit around the ducts (insulated) in the attic, to reduce the loss from the ductwork to the attic, but this seems like a lot of work for possibly marginal gains.
The last option that I've considered is to reroute some of the air flow from the main trunk into the living area before it goes into the attic but I have no idea how this will impact the system as a whole. Any input would be appreciated.
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