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The only people I know with newer houses seem to be having periodic teething issues around this new move towards air-tightness for energy efficiency. Unexpected

The only people I know with newer houses seem to be having periodic teething issues around this new move towards air-tightness for energy efficiency. Unexpected lack of proper ventilation/drainage in the exterior walls, for instance. The linked post doesn't get into these newer standards and such, but it seems like a work-in-progress to get right, so I'm personally gonna wait it out for a while longer. In the meantime I'm lucky and have windows I can open to get good breezes when I want and have come to enjoy that anyway.

esyir 5y ago
Something I've been wondering is how they handle ventilation with the push towards airtight houses. Co2 buildup is common in such environments. Do they implement heat exchanger ventilation systems or something like that?
- amluto 5y ago
  Generally some form of balanced ventilation (same rate of flow in and flow out) is used. Depending on climate, budget, and comfort considerations, the ventilation can be plain untempered or can be a heat recovery ventilator (HRV) or energy recovery ventilator (ERV). The latter exchanges heat and humidity.
  - cesarb 5y ago
    And I've always wondered about something else: on houses which require these systems, what happens when the power goes out? Do you simply crack open a window? What if you were sleeping when the power failed?
    - amluto 5y ago
      Presumably you either get a backup or crack open a window. It will be noticeably stuffy long before it incapacitates you.
leoedin 5y ago
The more I learn about energy efficient houses, the more I realise it's basically all about moisture management. The more energy efficient a house is, the more you have to worry about moisture. The biggest problems come when people do things that seem sensible - like insulating, or sealing up walls with render - and don't take into account the never ending stream of water vapour coming from within. Do it wrong and you get black mould and rotten timbers. It's obviously worth doing right - because we expend such a vast amount of energy on heating homes. But every aspect needs careful consideration.

esyir 5y ago

Something I've been wondering is how they handle ventilation with the push towards airtight houses. Co2 buildup is common in such environments. Do they implement heat exchanger ventilation systems or something like that?

amluto 5y ago
Generally some form of balanced ventilation (same rate of flow in and flow out) is used. Depending on climate, budget, and comfort considerations, the ventilation can be plain untempered or can be a heat recovery ventilator (HRV) or energy recovery ventilator (ERV). The latter exchanges heat and humidity.
- cesarb 5y ago
  And I've always wondered about something else: on houses which require these systems, what happens when the power goes out? Do you simply crack open a window? What if you were sleeping when the power failed?
  - amluto 5y ago
    Presumably you either get a backup or crack open a window. It will be noticeably stuffy long before it incapacitates you.

leoedin 5y ago

The more I learn about energy efficient houses, the more I realise it's basically all about moisture management. The more energy efficient a house is, the more you have to worry about moisture. The biggest problems come when people do things that seem sensible - like insulating, or sealing up walls with render - and don't take into account the never ending stream of water vapour coming from within. Do it wrong and you get black mould and rotten timbers. It's obviously worth doing right - because we expend such a vast amount of energy on heating homes. But every aspect needs careful consideration.