HEATING, VENTILATION & SERVICES


81


Fresh air – the essential resource


With new homes being built to stricter airtightness standards, providing a mechanical ventilation with heat recovery (MVHR) solution is becoming more of a necessity rather than an option, says Grant Holmes of Ubbink


egislation changes to Part L & F of Building Regulations are looking to further improve ventilation and airtightness standards. Airtightness is all well and good, but if we cannot provide sufficient ‘fresh air’ circulation, we will not be improving the actual indoor air quality of our homes. Therefore, it is vitally important that a good quality MVHR system is included from the very start of the design stage, and not just as an afterthought.


L


Every household needs an adequate supply of fresh clean air to ensure a healthy environment and to prevent increased levels of humidity, which can cause mould. It will also remove bad odours such as cooking smells and other allergens or irritants, while also protecting the envelope of the property – all of which can lead to health issues if the supply is insufficient. To prevent these issues, a controlled ventilation system is strongly recommended,


ADF APRIL/MAY 2020


and with a ‘System D’ solution for example, homes will get a balanced airflow as the air is mechanically supplied and extracted to and from the building. This type of system is being specified more and more, and becoming the self-build market’s preferred choice for ventilation requirements. Also, the desire to build more homes to the Passivhaus standard is growing in popularity, and with the costs to build a home to this level decreasing over the years, this approach to housebuilding is certainly on the rise. As part of achieving such a standard, a high quality MVHR system is a must. Key benefits of using MVHR are: • Providing a constant flow of air, enabling 100 per cent balance in the supply and extract of air, with no airflow mix between the fresh air supply and foul air exhaust.


• Recovery of 90 per cent of the heat from the extracted air – used to warm up the supplied air though the MVHR unit’s


WWW.ARCHITECTSDATAFILE.CO.UK


Every household needs an adequate supply of fresh clean air to ensure a healthy environment and to prevent increased levels of humidity, which can cause mould


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100  |  Page 101  |  Page 102  |  Page 103  |  Page 104  |  Page 105  |  Page 106  |  Page 107  |  Page 108