Every home needs fresh air for good indoor air quality and the safe operation of combustion appliances. Opening windows and doors teamed with extractor fans was in the past sufficient. To ensure lower energy demands as well as creating a healthy home, it’s important to consider how the house is ventilated. Mechanical ventilation with heat recovery ventilator (MVHR) is the ideal solution.
Its a process of ventilating a building mechanically with heat recovered from wet rooms such as the kitchen and bathroom, thus providing a continuous supply of fresh filtered warm air.
This is done through a concealed duct system. The air is passed through a heat exchanger then ducted outside. Fresh air from outside is drawn in and passed through the heat exchanger, which warms it, and it’s then ducted to the living rooms and bedrooms.
The heat exchanger unit is usually fitted in the loft, in a void in the eaves or ceiling or cupboard in the kitchen, or utility room, or in the garage.
MVHR systems come with air filters, which are helpful in preventing potential allergens entering the house.
A heat recovery system in Ireland can be retrofitted; however, we would recommend an airtightness test is performed first to determine if your house is suitable for this type of heat recovery ventilation in Ireland.
If you are building an energy efficient house, then the system can support part of the heating needs of your home, as well as helping to distribute the heat.
It’s vital that stale, damp air and pollutants are removed – both for your health, and the integrity of the building.
The summer bypass function bypasses the heat exchanger to keep the house cool when it’s warm outside.
When lots of moisture is being produced in the kitchen and bathrooms – the extraction rate can be boosted.
Passive House Systems will design the system to provide the optimum air changes while achieving the highest possible system efficiencies with the least running costs.
