Home Ventilation
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The most obvious place for a ventilator is the bathroom.
No need to go into the details of why for this one.
It's a building code to either have a mechanical vent or at least a window in a bathroom.
The next place is the kitchen.
This should be a fan that pulls moisture and odors from cooking and exhausts them outside.
I'm not talking about the vent hood that's installed over the kitchen stove and just circulates the air back into the room.
This type is nothing more than a grease catcher and if it has a light it makes a nice night light.
A good kitchen ventilator also removes the products of combustion (carbon monoxide,nitric oxides,etc,) that are produced from a gas stove or oven from the living area.
Beyond bathroom and kitchen vent systems, there are home ventilation systems that are designed to ensure there is enough fresh air to help prevent an unhealthy house.
We really didn't hear anything about these whole house ventilation systems until we started building tighter houses to save energy.
Before then, houses had all the fresh air that was needed through the air leaks (cracks and openings) into the house.
There are different types of ventilators that provide fresh air for the home.
The simplest are bathroom or kitchen ventilators that can be used as a whole-house system.
When the fan is on it replaces stale air and some contaminants with fresh air that enters through openings of the house.
Supply air fan - This system forces air into the house.
It's really just the opposite of an exhaust fan.
This is called balanced ventilation.
The reason they are called heat recovery ventilators is because they recover a large percentage of the heat from the house that is usually lost through ventilation.
Energy Recovery Ventilators - The same as a heat recovery ventilator except it also recovers humidity that is normally lost in the winter and limits the amount of humidity that can enter the house in the summer.
Each of these systems have their pros and cons which I'll dicuss in future articles.
The most important thing is to find out if you really need one!
Bathroom and kitchen ventilators are a must.
Too many people assume that because they have a new house or if they insulate it very well they automatically have a tight house.
Let me tell you, this is not always the case.
I've tested air infiltration rates in many houses that had expensive energy recovery systems installed and found the house allowed plenty of fresh air without the vent system.
All the system did was make the house have more leaks.
What a waste!
I don't suggest that people leave intentional leaks in their houses to give them fresh air.
I do suggest they have the house tested with a blower door before they decide an a ventilation system.
The mantra of the experts is "build it tight - ventilate right"
Great advice!
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