I am raising the floor of a sunken living room to match the rest of the house. There is a cold air return for the furnace that is low on the wall and will be covered by the new floor. The size of the boot is 6X14. There is also a return directly under the furnace that is 14X20. The furnace was replaced a few years ago if that means anything. I was wondering why there was a second return. Wouldn’t the one under the furnace suffice? The house isn’t that large, maybe 1500 sq ft. Is there any reason why I couldn’t just cap this secondary one? It sits under the sill plate of the main floor level, so I don’t see any way to just move it up like I’m doing with the electrical. Any help is very appreciated!
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Cold air would "sink" into the sunken living room. That return is probably to get it circulated out of the low area. If you have enough return otherwise, you don't need it if you raise the floor.
Mike Hennessy
Pittsburgh, PA