Wall Ventilation

Correctly sized ventilation plays a very important role in the comfort levels and quality of the air in a home or building. It also is a key issue for your Health & Safety in your home. As a minimum every house should have the following: A permanent wall vent should be installed in all rooms with a combustible appliance such as a stove, open fire or boiler. This is to help prevent the potential build-up of Carbon Monoxide that can lead to poisoning and also to provide a source of air for the combustible appliance. All kitchens, bathrooms or utilities that produce steam or warm air should have mechanical extractors fitted. This will take the steam away from the room to outside and prevent condensation on walls and ceilings which can lead to mould growth. All other habitable rooms such as bedrooms should have some form of controllable vent that can be opened and closed as its needed, either through a window vent or a wall vent.

Demand Control Ventilation

Demand control ventilation (DCV) is an intelligent ventilation method that ensures good indoor air quality and saves energy. DCV systems consist of sensors, controllers and ventilation fans. The sensors continuously measure and monitor indoor air quality and provide real time feedback to the controller. The controller conveys the sensor information to the fans, adjusting the rate of ventilation according to what is happening in each room. The extract fans, which are barely audible, are placed in attic spaces or utility rooms and are connected via ducts to extract grilles in wet rooms (kitchen, bathroom, utility). Air comes into the house through humidity sensitive wall inlets in the dry rooms (bedrooms, living rooms). The system constantly varies its operation to match the usage of the house.  A DCV system ensures adequate, but not excessive, ventilation in the rooms that need it. It adapts, moment- by-moment, to occupants’ needs. If a room is being used a lot the DCV ensures good ventilation. If a room is not being occupied the DCV automatically reduces air flow. By intelligently ventilating a house a DCV reduces the amount of air that needs to be warmed, thus saving heating costs. Another advantage of a DCV is that the build-up of condensation and the potential for mould-growing conditions are avoided.