Healthy indoor air depends on adequate ventilation. While most people assume that their home’s air is cleaner and healthier than the air outside, the opposite is more likely to be true. Homes with few air leaks need fresh air ventilation to dilute the pollutants that can build inside them, especially from volatile organic compounds (VOCs) whose side effects can cause minor to serious problems.
In the Kitchen
The fan over the range pulls out steam, smoke, and heat, which lowers the temperature of this room and keeps its air quality higher. People who use gas stoves also use the fan to exhaust the gases that natural gas produces as it burns.
In the Bathrooms
Like kitchens, bathroom fans are there to remove steam, heat, and odors. Each should have a fan rated for the size of the room. Using them while showering will cut the humidity level indoors and make it easier to cool the space in the summer. Not using the fans in the winter increases your home’s humidity levels and could also increase your comfort.
Hobby Rooms
If you have an area of your home where you work on hobbies that involve glues, paints or solvents, you could be exposing yourself to high levels of VOCs. Fans and open windows help dilute the concentration of these potentially harmful compounds.
Solutions for Good Ventilation
Besides the exhaust fans, your home already has, we at Big Builders in Bakersfield recommend heat recovery ventilators (HRVs) and energy recovery ventilators (ERVs) to help maintain high air quality. They pull out stale, polluted air and pull in the fresh air at the same time. They strip out the energy from the outgoing air and put it into the incoming air. Consequently, the fresh, incoming air won’t raise your energy bills substantially, which makes it possible to ventilate your home even when it’s too cold or hot to open the windows.
Bottom Line
The team at Big Builders in Bakersfield can give you more in-depth information about the need for ventilation. Let us show you how an HRV or an ERV can improve your air quality year-round without raising your energy costs. We handle all aspects of heating and cooling repair, installation, and maintenance. We also perform door, window and roofing work. Call today.