Thoroughly insulating your home is a double-edged sword. As it helps you retain heat, it also retains moisture. As a result, you may encounter moisture-related problems such as structural damage and mold growth. A ventilation system such as a heat recovery ventilator (HRV) can help you avoid these issues. Here's how it works and how it could benefit your home.
How it Works
A heat recovery ventilator is a whole-house ventilation system. It features a heat exchanger, two or more fans, filters and controls. One fan sucks air from outside while another one removes indoor air.
The HRV's heat exchange core has a series of narrow channels through which the inbound and outbound air streams flow. The two streams never mix. However, as they're pushed past each other, heat is transferred from the outgoing air to the incoming air. The opposite happens during the summer; the cooler indoor air absorbs some of the incoming air's heat.
A HRV can recover as much as 85 percent of heat from the outbound air. Its filters remove particulates such as dust and pollen from the air coming into your house. It reduces moisture levels in your home by exhausting humid indoor air. However, the device is not suitable for use if there's excessive outdoor humidity. An energy-recovery ventilator (ERV) will be a much better option in such a case.
Benefits
A heat-recovery ventilator reduces heating and cooling loads. It saves energy thus helping you save on utility bills. In the winter, it reduces energy consumption by using the heat from the outbound air to warm the inbound air.
A HRV makes your indoor air cleaner by removing contaminants from the incoming air. It's beneficial for a home with excessive indoor humidity. It replaces the stale, humid air with dry, fresh outdoor air.
When shopping for a heat recovery ventilator, make sure your preferred choice is Energy Star-qualified. For more information on heat recovery ventilators, please contact us at Hartman Brothers Heating & Air Conditioning. We've served the Fort Wayne area for more than 50 years.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in New Haven, Indiana and surrounding Fort Wayne area about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about heat recovery ventilators and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Guide or call us at 260-376-2961.
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