Ventilate your home by design

Much is said about the necessity of ventilation because homes today are more tightly sealed in the name of efficiency, not realizing that all advantages come with a corresponding disadvantage.
Consideration prior to the build is essential as solutions to problems arising later will come at a greater expense.

The most common indicator of poor ventilation is when odours are sensed on initial entry into the house.
The saturation of household odours is highest after a winter season.

In the past natural ventilation existed as a consequence of houses not sealed as tightly as they are today.
Plastics, synthetics and associated odours were less common place in the home by way of furniture and furnishings.

Purpose

Ventilation is not about air currents cascading down corridors but to gently wash stale air out of rooms in an acceptable manner.
Trickle ventilation by natural displacement is what works best.
A balance is struck with air in and air out with the added advantage of being able to control and adjust the air flow.

Whether summer or winter, oxygen replenishment by way of ventilation is essential to family well being.
Obviously it is desirable to keep loss of heat to a minimum during the winter months however.
‘you have to be willing lose a little to gain a lot’, as is the case here here.
A balance of ingress and egress is essential so as to maintain better air quality in the home at all times.

Asthmatics are probably the most natural human indicator as to the air quality in a home by nature of their innate sensitivity.

Filtering the air is something you do where the particulate is identified as being detrimental and therefore requires removal.
However, by filtering the air too much people can also diminish human ability to cope with general ambient conditions.

Foresight

Air quality is easily overlooked because it has no visual presence, however discomfort is easily sensed when that feeling of well being is interfered with.
Just as you always notice when a house has a ‘good feel’ about it.

Architects and designers need to employ natural ventilation techniques in the build, essentially enabling a house to aspirate, using and and incorporating products suitable to this end.