When thinking about home energy and savings, we often talk about making homes as “tight” as possible to keep warm or cool air from escaping or getting into the home through leaks, cracks, or other energy waste culprits. While paying attention to tightening up the home is extremely important in the world of home performance, it’s also important to keep in mind the freshness of the air inside your home. Sometimes, air can become trapped in the home and feel stuffy or stale, leading to a lack of comfort, and in some cases, health issues.
Especially in newer builds, homes today are constructed to be extremely tight in order to be energy efficient. Because of this, ventilation is more important than ever. In order to maintain a healthy home and a high indoor air quality, fresh air must be able to get in and “stale” air must be able to get out. This air swap when done properly, should provide this added comfort without compromising the performance of the home.
Poor ventilation can lead to a number of different problems in the home, from small issues up to significant issues that can cause a great deal of damage to the home. Common initial problems include odor problems. When air is not properly circulating, stale air can cause bad smells inside your home. Unfortunately, if there are bad smells inside your home, there is very likely a larger root problem causing this issue.
Once such problem is mold growth. With poor ventilation, mold can have a chance to grow inside your home. If exposed to mold, or even stale air, for an extended period of time, the potential for health issues can be high. Headaches and fatigue are common problems in homes with poor circulation. If not resolved, long periods of exposure to this air or mold can lead to much more sever health issues. Aside from health issues, poor air quality resulting in mold can also cause significant structural damage to a home.
By taking care of the root of the poor air problem through proper ventilation, all of these issues can be avoided. Sometimes, and obviously in the case of warmer weather outside, using your windows to your advantage is a great and easy way to change the stale air inside with the fresh outdoor air. Keeping windows open when the weather allows is a huge positive for natural ventilation. For colder times of the year or for more serious cases, this air swap process can be expedited with the use of certain equipment. BelRed offers a number of different options that help the exchange occur. Some of these options include:
- Timed fresh air intakes
- Exhaust fans
- Energy Recovery Ventilators (ERVs) / Heat Recovery Ventilators (HRVs)
If you’re experiencing any of the symptoms of poor ventilation in your home, including bad smells, stale air or mold, it is imperative that you reach out to a qualified contractor such as BelRed. When we perform a home energy audit, we always take a look at proper ventilation. We can also give you recommendations on upgrades or new equipment that can help allow your home to breathe easy.
