Simple, effective & permanent ways to improve household ventilation

Is your home often stuffy? Do you feel like the air is stale and there is no real airflow? Or are you conscious of persistent and unpleasant odours that you can’t seem to get rid of? Maybe condensation buildup is a problem and you’re constantly fighting mould inside? If you answered ‘yes’ to one or more of those questions, it’s highly likely that your home isn’t sufficiently ventilated.

Adequate ventilation is crucial to maintaining a happy, healthy living environment inside your home. Poor ventilation leads to mould, which is more than just an unsightly nuisance. It’s a common allergy trigger and severe health hazard.

Proper ventilation is also important in maintaining the structural soundness of the home. Dampness can facilitate the onset of rot in key structural components of the home and undermine the integrity of the whole building.

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To comply with energy ratings, modern homes are often tightly sealed. The result? – poor ventilation. But hey, that doesn’t mean you should fold your hands and meekly accept that you’ll just have to cope with these problems for the rest of your life! There are solutions, and what’s more, they’re simple, effective and permanent.

Let’s look at a few easy ways you can help ventilation issues in your home.

Open windows & doors

This may sound like a no-brainer, but funnily enough, it’s something we often forget to do! Simply opening the bathroom window after your shower can help draw all that moist, humid air out of the room and dry out the shower cubicle. This, in turn, will help solve mildew issues – mould loves warm, wet conditions and that’s why bathrooms are such problem areas.

Provided it doesn’t compromise the safety of your home, use this basic trick to help flush out unpleasant odours, cooking smells and dry out any other damp corners of the home. It’s simple, it doesn’t cost anything and it’s very effective. 

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Exhaust fans

Installing exhaust fans in your bathroom and kitchen is a great way to get rid of warm, humid air. Exhaust fans are not expensive and they can make a huge difference when it comes to dealing with stale air and odours. Drawing the stale air out and replacing it with fresh, clean air will make that room a much more pleasant and healthy environment.

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Total ventilation via heat recovery

If your budget allows, consider installing a ducted ventilation unit in the home. This is a mechanical system which uses a series of fans and ducts to remove stale, moisture-laden air and replaces it with clean, filtered air from outside. These units have been proven to vastly improve the quality of air inside the home and help create a healthier living environment. In addition to ventilation benefits, they’re also highly effective in maintaining temperature control.

Installation costs do vary depending on the size, age and structure of your home, but generally, a fully installed ventilation system will set you back about $5,000.

If you’re budget conscious and not ready to install a complete home ventilation system, installing a few whirly birds would be a good way to go, and won’t break the bank. Installing two or three whirly birds will cost you around $600, obviously, this price can vary depending on the style and age of your home. Keep in mind, this is a rough estimation, its best to talk to the experts before making a final decision.

It’s important to consider the ventilation of your home. Not only can you solve obvious dampness issues, but you can do things to improve your health and overall quality of living. Healthy home = happy life!