What is foundation ventilation for?
Creation of optimal conditions for storing various workpieces in the underground - ventilation of the foundation is responsible for this. If it is not done well enough, it will be too humid inside, the air will stagnate. In addition, it is not difficult to equip the ventilation holes.
What are the vents for?
A gradual increase in humidity in any room quickly leads to the formation of condensation. Water will enter the room from the ground and through the ceilings. Subsequently, you will find it on the floor, pipes and ceilings.
Don't underestimate the danger of the situation. At high humidity and positive temperatures in the room, harmful microorganisms actively develop.
As a result, you will face rapid wood decay. On the walls may appear mold... Materials will fail faster. And the atmosphere in such a room cannot be called healthy.
You are wrong if you think that stale air in the underground is not critical. Over time, it will lead to the formation of an unpleasant odor, and it will already penetrate into the living quarters. The comfort of living in the house will definitely decrease. And inside the radon content will gradually increase. In advanced cases, this will affect the tenants.
Do you need air vents in a foundation without a basement? Often it will be enough to equip a good waterproofing and cover it with a sandy pillow.
When you can do without airflow
In some cases, a private house can be deprived of ventilation in the underground space. You do not need to worry about airflows in the following cases:
- The subfloor is an enclosed space. For example, it is covered with sand, and a concrete slab is laid on top. Actually, there is no room under the house. Accordingly, it will not need ventilation from below.
- The underground soil is covered with high-quality waterproofing. The moisture will simply have nowhere to penetrate. However, fresh air will not come here either.
- A ventilation system (natural or forced) has already been installed, but its capacity must be at least 1 liter per second for an area of 10 square meters.
- The underfloor has air communication with heated ventilated areas.
If you have a timber house installed on a low grillage, ventilation holes in the foundation are also unnecessary. The house is well ventilated from below. Of course, you need to study your case and draw a conclusion. The relevance of the arrangement of ventilation or air vents in the foundation is determined simply. If condensation appears inside, get to work.
What should be the ventilation of the foundation
Ventilation openings can be made round, rectangular or square. The most important thing is that they can provide sufficient air permeability, for this, calculate the airflow in the foundation. The dimensions of the hole are determined by the area of your subfloor in a ratio of 1: 400. The minimum area is 500 square centimeters.
Arrange ventilation holes in the foundation at a distance of about 20 cm from its upper edge. If this is not possible due to insufficient elevation above the ground, it is worth making a small tunnel, but leaving the underground without ventilation is not worth it in any case.
If there are several air vents, they cannot be placed side by side, so as not to spoil the exterior of the building and not affect the strength of the foundation.The air vents in the plinth must be at a minimum distance of 2 meters. If there are partitions in the subfield, it is necessary to equip ventilation in them.
If there are several air vents in the foundation, it is preferable to create one large hole in the partitions.
To prevent pests from settling in your underground, and to prevent debris from flying in a strong wind, grates will come in handy. It is preferable to make them out of metal to make it harder for rodents to get inside.
How to close the air vents in the foundation? There is a non-standard solution - instead of a lattice, use a pipe with two corners. It should bend upward, and there - in the same direction as the air itself. The grille does not need to be installed.
How to close the air vents in the foundation for the winter? Many people put heat preservation in the building first. The logic is definitely there, since the floor on the ground floor is one of the main reasons for the decrease in indoor temperature. In addition, a cold surface does not have the best effect on the health of residents.
But if winter has already arrived, and the situation is urgent, you will still have to close several holes for a while. This problem will need to be addressed correctly next year. When to open the vents? As soon as the temperature rises to a comfortable temperature. If you open it too early, you will have to incur higher heating costs for a while.
How to make air
How to make an outlet in the basement of a private house? Making a product with your own hands is quite possible, and you do not have to involve specialists. Natural ventilation will be enough, forced ventilation in basements is a rarity. The most important thing is to make the correct calculations and correctly use the vents that are already there.
Even at the stage of building the foundation, the builder should attend to the issue of arranging ventilation ducts. If you have a tape base, which happens most often, install the embedded parts immediately after installing the reinforcement.
Embedded parts, as a rule, are made of metal, but plastic is also possible. But in this case, you need to fill them with sand and close them tightly so that they do not deform during the pouring of concrete.
Foundation ventilation in a private house can be represented by rectangular wood vents. When building a brick base, you sometimes have to install half, leaving a hole. The same goes for monolithic blocks. Multiple through-hole blocks can also be used. This way you will lose less strength in the foundation.
How to make airflows if the foundation is ready
Mistakes during construction are not uncommon. An inexperienced master may well forget to mount the air vents in foundation or make them not big enough. Fortunately, this problem can be solved on its own, and in several ways:
- If there are already air vents, but their area is not enough to organize good air exchange, you can expand them. You can also drill new ones. This is not an easy task, but a feasible one. You will need the largest diameter drill bit. Make many holes all over the area and then gouge the hole. Grind the surface and cover with a grill. You can order professional diamond drilling if you do not know how to make airflows in the finished foundation in your case.
- To increase the ventilation capacity, several openings can be brought out with pipes to the roof. Due to the pressure difference, air will enter the subfloor faster.
- Another good way is to use forced ventilation. Install indoor and outdoor temperature sensors that will trigger the system when there is a difference in temperature outside and in the subfield. You will have to spend money on electricity and monitor the performance of the fans.
- Reduce the amount of moisture entering the room. The main threat is soil. Cover it with a thick (about 160 microns) plastic wrap.Place the sheets with an overlap, holding them together with double-sided tape. Then make a sand mound on the floor.
- If the house has stove heating, the air for it can be removed from the underground. Just make a blower below the floor. Ventilation will be more than adequate if the oven is running continuously. This is a good option for a bath.
In any case, foundation ventilation is needed, without it the building will last less, and this will not affect the quality of life of the residents in the best way. Be sure to get a big enough vent underground with these simple tips!