Natural ventilation is a better option for the environment than artificial cooling methods like air conditioners. Natural ventilation uses outside air flow and pressure differences to cool and ventilate a home. Cooling winds significantly reduce the temperature of interior rooms by removing heat from a building and replacing warmed internal air with cooler outdoor air. That’s why this type of ventilation relies on well-placed windows and doors and unhindered breeze paths.
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When you present your rental home to a possible tenant, you don’t want your visitors to think your apartment is unpleasant and stuffy. Bay Property Management Group can help you with resources to improve natural ventilation in your rental. Read along as this article discusses how to enhance natural ventilation in your rental property and other valuable information.
5 Ways to Improve Natural Ventilation in a Rental Home
- Open the windows
Opening the windows is essential to allow enough fresh air into the home, which is inexpensive and straightforward. Open your windows and doors sometimes to increase airflow during warm weather. Clean air can be provided while harmful pollutants are removed.
Start your day off right by opening the windows. Opening windows is not the best choice during rough weather or local pollution. Using fans to ventilate the area is another tactic. These will aid in airflow and, if a window can be opened, will gently speed it up.
- Improve your ventilation with plants
At the cost of a bit of watering a few times per week, adding plants to your home can organically enhance the quality of the air within. Simple home plants can serve as natural air filtering devices, significantly improving the ambiance in your space. Your property would look amazing with plants as decor. They also create a peaceful atmosphere by bringing some nature indoors. Indoor plants may improve the quality of the air indoors. This is due to plants’ capacity to release oxygen and absorb carbon dioxide, enhancing air quality. Although scientists are yet uncertain of the full extent of plants’ usefulness, there might be some advantages.
According to some researchers, the secret to raising air quality is choosing large, leafy plants with lots of surface area. It is possible to employ English ivy and snake plants to remove formaldehyde, benzene, and ammonia from the air around them, making them some of the best plants for cleaning the air in space.
- Install entryways such that cross ventilation is possible
A room or space in your home should have several wind-flow channels. Although we may believe that wind enters our buildings, it is absorbed in areas with lower air pressure. As a result, openings should be strategically located to allow for the passage of prevailing winds. An indoor rental maintenance guide will assist you in finding these unique places.
This includes establishing cross-ventilation openings on at least two ends of your room. This can be placed on either the opposite or adjacent walls. Cooling winds work best in constrained or open-plan designs. Interior window frames allow for comprehensive designs, but cross-ventilation is still required.
- Increase convective airflow
Convective ventilation, or stack ventilation, moves air using temperature differences. Warm air is more buoyant and rises to leave through higher openings, bringing cooler air in from lower openings. Clerestory windows, operable skylights, roof ventilators, and vented ridges promote cross ventilation by relying on convective air movement.
- Take advantage of the chilly night air
Your home might feel generally cool in the evening once a chillier wind replaces the hot air coming from your home. By leaving window frames open all night, you can filter the hot air and ventilate your interior spaces in preparation for the next day. Furthermore, opening a few windows at night can improve indoor air quality while reducing dampness and the risk of microbial contamination like mold.
Should tenants test thermostats?
- The thermostats in single-family rental homes are frequently modifiable by the tenants. But not for those who lease an apartment or a unit in another multi-family housing complex. To reduce energy expenditures, landlords often attempt to maintain a low thermostat in the winter and a high thermostat in the summer.
- Conflicts between the renter and landlord may result from this practice. Additionally, it may cause the landlord to break other laws and regulations or the implied assurance of habitability. Maintaining a positive landlord-tenant relationship requires understanding these regulatory standards and how they relate to the control of the thermostat.
Importance of good ventilation
- Fresh air
Naturally, adequate natural ventilation will allow free air circulation inside the apartments. This guarantees that moist air is expelled and that fresh air is supplied. This continuous supply of fresh air can alter the ambiance inside an apartment. There are a variety of strategies, such as cross ventilation, to allow air to circulate throughout the rooms.
- Reduced moisture content
Reduced moisture content is another benefit of adequate natural ventilation in an apartment. The daily tasks, such as bathing, washing, cleaning, etc. cause an abundance of moisture to develop. Less moisture content is ensured by building sufficient natural ventilation. Also, lowering the moisture content will guarantee no offensive odors inside, resulting in a contented and healthy life.
- Amplified level of comfort
Of course, feeling cozy and at home in one’s own space is crucial. Having a well-ventilated flat has this and other benefits, for sure. There’s a removal of impurities in the air because the space is filled with clean air. Also, adequate airflow that effectively cools the room creates a pleasant indoor atmosphere. All of these contribute to the boost in comfort.
Conclusion
There is no denying that natural ventilation has a wide range of essential benefits, from significantly lowering your energy costs to improving the air quality in your home by adding plants. Generally, a naturally well-ventilated house design benefits not only the homeowners or household occupants but also the house’s physical structure and ecology.
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