ᐅ Insulated drywall enclosure for controlled residential ventilation unit in the attic
Created on: 25 Mar 2020 19:01
A
annab377
Hello everyone,
I have two questions regarding the following proposal from our architect:
We are planning a two-story house with a pitched roof and a basement. He recommends installing the central mechanical ventilation system with heat recovery in the attic (this avoids breaking through the basement wall and having a "little tower" in the garden). However, the attic is intended to be outside the thermal envelope (insulation will be added on top of the concrete ceiling of the first floor). Since the attic can get quite cold without insulation, and according to him the ventilation system does not work well in rooms colder than 10°C (50°F), we are advised to build an insulated small room for the ventilation system on one gable wall inside a drywall structure attached to the masonry Poroton 49cm (19 inch) wall.
Question 1): Should I choose the gable side that is not above the kitchen on the ground floor with the exhaust hood, or do kitchen odors dissipate well enough over two floors so that you don’t end up pulling kitchen air into the ventilation unit in the gable?
Question 2): Are there any experiences with this approach of having an insulated small room? It seems the insulation on top of the ceiling would be left out in this area to allow heat from the first floor to rise into the small room. Is that sufficient to keep the insulated space warm enough just from the heat of the rooms below?
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.
Best regards
I have two questions regarding the following proposal from our architect:
We are planning a two-story house with a pitched roof and a basement. He recommends installing the central mechanical ventilation system with heat recovery in the attic (this avoids breaking through the basement wall and having a "little tower" in the garden). However, the attic is intended to be outside the thermal envelope (insulation will be added on top of the concrete ceiling of the first floor). Since the attic can get quite cold without insulation, and according to him the ventilation system does not work well in rooms colder than 10°C (50°F), we are advised to build an insulated small room for the ventilation system on one gable wall inside a drywall structure attached to the masonry Poroton 49cm (19 inch) wall.
Question 1): Should I choose the gable side that is not above the kitchen on the ground floor with the exhaust hood, or do kitchen odors dissipate well enough over two floors so that you don’t end up pulling kitchen air into the ventilation unit in the gable?
Question 2): Are there any experiences with this approach of having an insulated small room? It seems the insulation on top of the ceiling would be left out in this area to allow heat from the first floor to rise into the small room. Is that sufficient to keep the insulated space warm enough just from the heat of the rooms below?
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.
Best regards
Mycraft schrieb:
You simply route the fresh outside air intake and the exhaust air through the roof.So, you mean the exhaust air (including from the kitchen) should be channeled all the way up there, and at the same time used there to help prevent frost buildup in the small room?https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
Mycraft schrieb:
Exhaust air is what comes from the heat exchanger in the controlled residential ventilation system.The original poster used this term but was also specifically referring to the exhaust air from the kitchen extractor hood. From that, I developed my follow-up question: whether directing that air upward would still deliver enough residual heat to help warm the small room.https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
Yes, the mechanical ventilation system with heat recovery is planned.
And no, don’t get me wrong. The exhaust hood from the kitchen on the ground floor is supposed to vent directly outside through the shortest route via the kitchen exterior wall. It should obviously not go up into the attic. My only question is: when I cook downstairs and vent the kitchen air out through the hood, is the distance from the ground floor to the attic enough if I bring fresh air into the attic above the exhaust outlet? Will the kitchen odors sufficiently mix with the outdoor air so that I don’t end up drawing kitchen smells back inside through the mechanical ventilation system?
It would probably be better to vent through the gable wall side of the attic rather than through the roof itself, right? Venting through the attic exterior wall should be considerably easier and more cost-effective than through the roof. The mechanical ventilation system needs both an outdoor air intake and an exhaust outlet to the outside. Both can simply go through the gable wall of the attic.
And no, don’t get me wrong. The exhaust hood from the kitchen on the ground floor is supposed to vent directly outside through the shortest route via the kitchen exterior wall. It should obviously not go up into the attic. My only question is: when I cook downstairs and vent the kitchen air out through the hood, is the distance from the ground floor to the attic enough if I bring fresh air into the attic above the exhaust outlet? Will the kitchen odors sufficiently mix with the outdoor air so that I don’t end up drawing kitchen smells back inside through the mechanical ventilation system?
It would probably be better to vent through the gable wall side of the attic rather than through the roof itself, right? Venting through the attic exterior wall should be considerably easier and more cost-effective than through the roof. The mechanical ventilation system needs both an outdoor air intake and an exhaust outlet to the outside. Both can simply go through the gable wall of the attic.
The terminology related to controlled residential ventilation should be clarified.
Exhaust air is the air that is pushed out of the house. Extract air is the air that comes from the rooms into the controlled ventilation system.
The extract air from a kitchen hood is actually unrelated to this, as it forms a separate system. From what I understand from the explanations, an automatic shut-off of the controlled ventilation system should be planned when the kitchen hood is in operation.
That is technically not possible. You cannot draw air in through an outlet.
So, it should be:
when I draw in fresh air above the outdoor air intake hood in the attic.
Basically, it makes no difference. The main thing is to maintain a distance of 2m (6.5 feet), or use the hoods from Vallox, which are designed in such a way that exhaust and outdoor air can be routed side by side through the wall without mixing.
Exhaust air is the air that is pushed out of the house. Extract air is the air that comes from the rooms into the controlled ventilation system.
The extract air from a kitchen hood is actually unrelated to this, as it forms a separate system. From what I understand from the explanations, an automatic shut-off of the controlled ventilation system should be planned when the kitchen hood is in operation.
annab377 schrieb:
when I draw in outdoor air above the exhaust air outlet hood in the attic.
That is technically not possible. You cannot draw air in through an outlet.
So, it should be:
when I draw in fresh air above the outdoor air intake hood in the attic.
annab377 schrieb:
In the attic, wouldn’t it be better to go through the gable wall rather than through the roof itself?
Basically, it makes no difference. The main thing is to maintain a distance of 2m (6.5 feet), or use the hoods from Vallox, which are designed in such a way that exhaust and outdoor air can be routed side by side through the wall without mixing.
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