New houses are more energy efficient than ever. While this is excellent for keeping your energy expenses small, it’s bad for bringing adequate fresh air inside.
Recently constructed residences are firmly sealed, which indicates they don’t “breathe” like older homes are able to. Consequently, your home can appear to smell stuffy, feel too humid or experience problems with condensation. If you have allergy or asthma sufferers in your home, they may experience increasing issues.
Luckily, it’s not difficult to enhance the ventilation in your home in Haines City. Many of the options that we’ll go over in a minute are simple and reasonably priced.
1. Open Windows and Screened Doors
This is the fastest method to get fresh air into your house during pleasant temperatures. But it’s important to know this usually isn’t a year-round option and can create problems if someone in your home has seasonal allergies. If so, you don’t want to open windows during the early morning. That’s when the pollen counts are the highest, according to Mayo Clinic. You also shouldn’t open them during dry, windy conditions, because the weather can irritate allergies.
2. Operate Exhaust Fans in Your Kitchen and Bathrooms
Using these fans gets rid of stale air, extra moisture, odors and other things you don’t want in your house. They’re also inexpensive to use. An exhaust fan costs about $7-$15 yearly in electricity if you were to keep it on 24/7, according to the Center for Energy and the Environment (CEE).
If you want to do this, the CEE suggests looking for an ENERGY STAR® ventilation fan that delivers quiet, constant operation. These fans often include a sensor that will trigger then to run automatically when humidity is too elevated, so you won’t have to make a note to turn it on or off.
However, it’s essential to be aware that an exhaust fan can negatively influence your home’s temperature, since it’s getting rid of air that you’ve already heated or cooled.
3. Keep Your Residence’s Humidity Balanced
The right humidity level for your residence is between 30–50%, according to Mayo Clinic. While the correct amount of humidity won’t improve ventilation, it can enhance your home’s indoor air quality and keep your family pleasant at a more energy-efficient setting.
If the humidity is too low, you may experience dry skin, a scratchy throat or itchy eyes. Dry air can also affect wood flooring and furnishings in your house, causing them to split. On the other hand, humidity that’s too great can make air appear stale or stuffy. It can also result in mold and mildew growth and irritate allergies or asthma.
The best approach to keep humidity in check is with a whole-home solution. We offer humidifiers and dehumidifiers that work with your furnace and air conditioning system. You don’t need to carry an inefficient portable system around your home, spilling water as you walk.
It’s also critical to know an accurate humidity level can also make air more comfy at an energy-efficient temperature, helping you save more on heating and cooling expenses.
4. Install a Ventilation System
Getting a mechanical ventilation system is one of the wisest approaches to get additional fresh air into your house all year. There are two different kinds—heat recovery ventilation (HRV) and energy recovery ventilation (ERV). These systems continuously eliminate musty indoor air and replace it with fresh outdoor air.
HRV is great for chilly climates, since it retains the heat from the indoor air it emits. ERV is fantastic for warm climates, as it pulls out warmth and moisture from your air. Some areas can benefit from both systems, so check with our Air Commander's Heating & Air Conditioning Co. ventilation professionals about what’s a good match for your Haines City residence.
If stale or ongoing odors are an issue in your house, you can also buy a whole-house air purification system. These systems offer an added level of filtration, which can also help with lowering pet dander, allergens and bacteria in your residence.
Our ventilation experts are here to help you select the ideal solution for your home. Contact us at 863-216-2923 today for a free, no-obligation home comfort assessment. We’ll visually inspect your current equipment and listen to your needs before delivering our recommendations on the ideal solutions to boost ventilation in your home.