How to Improve Ventilation in Your Home: A Practical Guide for Homeowners

You probably pay close attention to the temperature in your home, but what about ventilation? Ventilation is an often overlooked, yet key element for maintaining a healthy and comfortable home.

Proper airflow removes stale air and replaces it with fresh air, helping to control moisture, reduce the buildup of indoor pollutants that can cause health problems, and regulate temperature. HVAC.com offers practical tips for how to improve ventilation in a house.

1. Natural Ventilation

One of the easiest ways to improve ventilation in a house is to use natural methods. This involves making the most of windows, doors, and vents to allow fresh air to flow through your home.

• Cross Ventilation: Open windows on opposite sides of a room to create a flow of air. This helps to flush out stale air and replace it with fresh air. For the best results, open windows during cooler parts of the day (early morning or late evening).
• Open Doors: Leaving doors open can help improve airflow between rooms. For rooms with poor ventilation, keeping the door open allows air to circulate more freely.
• Window Vents: Consider installing trickle vents or window vents if your windows don’t already have them. These small openings allow a continuous flow of air without needing to completely open windows.

2. Install Exhaust Fans

Exhaust fans are particularly helpful in areas of the home where moisture and odors tend to build up, such as kitchens, bathrooms, and laundry rooms. These fans remove excess moisture and pollutants directly from the space. Make sure all exhaust fans are vented outside, not into the attic, to effectively remove moisture from your home.

• Bathroom Fans: A properly installed bathroom fan can reduce humidity to prevent mold and mildew. Run bathroom fans while showering and for a few minutes after you finish to remove lingering moisture.
• Kitchen Range Hoods: Cooking on a stovetop can release smoke, grease, and odors into the air. Using a range hood with an exhaust fan while you cook will help remove these pollutants to improve the air quality in your kitchen.
• Laundry Room Ventilation: Dryers can produce a lot of moisture. Make sure your dryer is vented outside to avoid humidity issues indoors.

3. Upgrade Your HVAC System

Your HVAC system plays a major role in your home’s ventilation – it’s part of the acronym, after all! Regular maintenance and installing ventilation equipment can help your system manage temperatures and air quality more effectively.

• HVAC Maintenance: Maintenance, including changing air filters and cleaning components, ensures your system is working efficiently. Clogged filters and ducts can impede airflow and reduce indoor air quality.
• Energy Recovery Ventilator (ERV) or Heat Recovery Ventilator (HRV): These systems exchange stale indoor air with fresh outdoor air while recovering energy from the exhaust air. They are particularly useful in tightly sealed homes where natural ventilation is limited.
• Air Purifiers with Ventilation: Some air purifiers come with a ventilation function to improve air quality and enhance airflow.

4. Use Ceiling Fans

Ceiling fans are a cost-effective way to enhance airflow in your home. They can help circulate air to make your living space feel cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter. Only run ceiling fans when rooms are occupied.

• Summer Mode: Set the fan to spin counterclockwise to push cool air down, creating a breeze that makes the room feel cooler.
• Winter Mode: Reverse the fan direction to clockwise to pull cool air up and push warm air down, helping to distribute heat more evenly.

5. Ventilate the Attic

Attics are often overlooked when it comes to ventilation. Because this area is typically unconditioned, moisture and heat can build up, which can negatively impact your home environment.

• Attic Fans: Installing an attic fan helps expel hot air during the summer and reduces the load on your air conditioning system. It also helps prevent moisture buildup in the winter.
• Roof Vents: Ensure your attic has adequate roof vents to allow hot air to escape and fresh air to enter. This can help reduce the risk of mold growth and ice dams.

6. Ventilate Crawl Spaces and Basements

Crawl spaces and basements are prone to moisture buildup, which can affect the air quality throughout your home. Proper ventilation in these areas prevents mold and musty odors.

• Crawl Space Ventilation: Install vents or fans to help air circulate in crawl spaces to reduce humidity and prevent mold growth. Close crawl space vents in the winter to help your home retain heat, and open them in the summer to eliminate moisture buildup.
• Basement Ventilation: Dehumidifiers are effective for reducing moisture in basements, but make sure the space is also well-ventilated to prevent stagnant air.