Periodic inspection of ventilation is an urgent problem that faces almost every occupant of modern high-rise buildings. For construction contractors, in turn, this is a strictly regulated process.
Inadequate monitoring of the state of the air exchange system makes itself felt quickly enough by such manifestations as:
- noise;
- stagnation of air in the room;
- the appearance of odors;
- excessive moisture;
- fogging of windows;
- the appearance of mold.
They reduce comfort, and sometimes directly affect the deterioration of health and the violation of the integrity of building structures.
If at least one of the signs appears, you need to think about measures to restore the normal functioning of the system. Most likely, repairs will be required if not the entire system, then its individual nodes. The scope of the repair can only be estimated as a result of a competent diagnosis.
Diagnosis of problems
Self-examination of ventilation systems involves the use of physical markers. First of all, this concerns the simplest natural household air ducts, not complicated by electronics and high-tech solutions.
Regular diagnostics with subsequent maintenance implies a frequency of at least 2 times a year, and ideally 1 time per quarter and helps prevent sudden:
- clogging of the system or filters;
- depressurization of individual nodes;
- breakdowns.
The natural air exchange system is built on the influx of fresh air from the street through window openings and doors. Outflow is organized by a single ventilation system.
Inspection
To understand that the apartment has insufficient air exchange, it is necessary to inspect the control points:
- Window. There is always condensation on the surface of the glass in the winter; in summer, the slopes are checked for mold traces.
- Corners, walls behind massive interior objects standing right next to each other: cabinets, sofas are checked for the appearance of or traces of mold.
- In bathrooms, ceilings are inspected for condensation, and floors and corners are inspected for mold.
Using Markers
The presence of free flows of air masses is also determined by markers:
- air inlets are provided by window openings. Their sealing with modern plastic systems completely isolates the apartment from the intake of fresh air with the windows closed. If ordinary windows are installed in the house, then the influx can be felt with the back of a wet palm directly at the surface of the window. The feeling of a draft indicates the serviceability of the system;
- the outflow is checked in the same way with the ventilation grill: in the bathroom and kitchen. Normal functioning will make you feel the movement of air on the wet surface of the hand, with a clogged and malfunctioning system, it will be absent.
The outflow or inflow of air can also be checked by attaching several strips of soft paper (a toilet, single napkin or newspaper) about 2.5 x 6.5 cm each to the upper edge of the grate or window opening. The intensity of the vibration of the strips determines the strength of the air masses. If there are no fluctuations, there are problems.
It should be borne in mind that the intensity of the ventilation system is higher in the winter period, since the basis of its operation is the difference in ambient and indoor temperatures.
In summer, a ventilation test in this way may not produce results.
An unconditional marker will be stagnation of air, long-term preservation and distribution of traces of cooking, penetration into the room of unpleasant odors of the garbage chute or sewer.
In addition, the presence of noise, even with the normal functioning of the system, indicates the potential danger of malfunctions and needs to be fixed and repaired.
Causes of malfunctions
One of the most common air exchange problems is old houses that are not designed to install sealed plastic windows. In this case, the room is isolated, the natural air flow is disturbed.
In modern buildings, the influx is difficult when the filters are dirty and the mechanisms of forcing the air flow into the room are broken.
The problems of the outflow of air masses are mainly associated with blockages, depressurization and breakdowns. It also interferes with normal circulation:
- equipping homes with hoods whose power is not comparable with the design load of the duct shaft;
- installation of climatic equipment, which contributes to a sharper temperature difference between the external environment and the room.
The noise in the apartment from the ventilation duct arises as a result of:
- vibration of individual components, especially air distributors;
- mistakes made in the calculations and design;
- errors when installing equipment and choosing materials.
Independent troubleshooting of work and pollution is possible provided that:
- availability of free access to the main nodes of the system;
- lack of high-tech equipment;
- a small length of ducts.
The use of supply valves equipped with filters, or simple fans allows you to cope with a violation in their functionality on their own.
It is better to entrust professionals with the service of long complex air communications in industrial conditions, in multi-storey buildings equipped with high-tech equipment.
Troubleshooting Methods
If the survey revealed problems, then depending on their cause, they are completely solvable without the involvement of specialists and costly repairs.
Ensuring the necessary volume of air mass inflow
It is possible to provide the necessary inflow in case of sealing the room with plastic windows or in case of insufficient intake of air masses through ordinary windows and doors by installing supply air valves.
To do this, a valve crashes into a wall or window unit, providing the necessary flow of air masses into the room.
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- Air movement through the valve
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- Wall valve
Problems of the outflow of exhaust air masses from the premises
It is quite difficult to ensure a normal outflow on the scale of a separate dwelling in a multi-storey building. Even with free access to the system, the problem can be far beyond the visual inspection area.
In any case, during the repair, it must be remembered that the intensity of air mass movement depends not only on the size of the cross section of the exhaust channel, but also on the flow rate.
To achieve free movement of exhaust air after detecting a blockage, it must be eliminated. To do this, the grate is dismantled, and using a vacuum cleaner or a broom, the accessible part of the shaft is freed from contamination.
Clean channels are also not a guarantee of normal exhaust air removal. To improve the system during repair, an exhaust fan is mounted in the grill. However, its effectiveness is directly related to the operation of the central compressor, the integrity and cleanliness of the mine shaft of the whole house.
Noise
Soundproofing ventilation can be done independently, subject to free access to the duct.Of course, the design and installation errors of the entire ventilation system of a multi-storey building cannot be fixed. However, with vibration, insufficient fixation of individual nodes and the duct itself in the apartment, you can use soundproof materials:
- organic fiber or slabs;
- specialized polymer panels;
- mineral cloths or plates.
The most convenient and plastic cloths based on rubber, most often they are additionally equipped with a self-adhesive surface, which greatly facilitates the repair process.
With independent sound insulation it is necessary to adhere first of all:
- prepare the outer surface for installation of the selected material: clean, disinfect, if necessary, replace or repair individual components;
- make sure that the soundproofing material has a continuous coating, without gaps;
- thoroughly strengthen all insufficiently fixed nodes, adapters, angles, box differences.
If the noise source is out of reach, and there are no obvious problems in the examined channel, duct silencers are installed.
If the apartment has free air inflow and outflow, sound insulation is carried out, further repairs and cleaning must be carried out comprehensively throughout the house. In this case, you can additionally disinfect the entire system and achieve the most efficient air exchange system.
