During the construction of the foundation, it provides for the location of special holes that are used to ventilate the air space under the floor. If no such holes are present, gas accumulation and excessive moisture can occur.
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Why is the arrangement of the air required?
When self-erecting a house, the owner always has a question about why airflows are needed in the foundation of the house, and what function is assigned to them.
Air is a structural element of the ventilation system of the foundation base of the house, their arrangement extends the service life buildings, contributes to the creation of a pleasant microclimate and living environment, and also protects people living in the house from diseases. Air vents are a necessary structural component when laying the foundation for the construction of a wooden house.
At a positive temperature, moisture evaporates from the soil under the building, therefore even high-quality steam and waterproofing are not always able to protect wooden structures from the influence of water couple. Steam condenses on all structural elements of the house, moisturizing them, which provokes rapid wear.
The vents provide ventilation of the subfloor and prevent the deposition of evaporated moisture on the supporting structures. Also, vents prevent the appearance of fungal and mold contamination, which provokes the development putrefactive processes in the floor slabs, which reduces the strength and reduces the durability of the entire building.
Is there an alternative replacement for the vents?
When using modern steam-waterproofing materials, you can completely abandon arrangement of vents in the foundation structures, which ensures a reduction in heat losses at home in winter period.
Refusal to create ventilation holes in the foundation of the structure requires the organization of ventilation by using a central hood. To equip such a system, you need to know the basics of thermodynamics, heat engineering and installation of ventilation systems. Ventilation of the underground space by using a central hood eliminates excess moisture, but it cannot be used to remove gases.
In some cases, air conditioning is not required if the space under the floor is occupied by a slab of concrete lying on the sand. Air vents are not required if a heated subfloor is installed.
If the vapor barrier of the soil located under the house is made in compliance with all the rules and does not allow moisture and gases to pass through, then holes are not required.
Do you need to close the ventilation of the foundation in the fall?
The main function of vents is to organize natural ventilation of the basement. The need for such ventilation does not disappear with the onset of cold weather. This is due to the fact that moisture and gas are released from the soil even in the autumn-winter period.
When closing the vents in order to reduce the level of heat loss, it is necessary to weigh all the pros and cons. It is best to leave the ventilation open, but take care of additional thermal insulation of the ground floor.
When closing the air, you must adhere to the following recommendations:
- Some of the vents must be left open, it is desirable that the open holes are located on opposite sides of the house.
- Air vents should be equipped with dampers that prevent snow from entering the space under the floor.
- To close the ducts, you can use improvised means in the form of bricks, pieces of insulation, suitable for the size of logs.
Professionals recommend using expanded polystyrene or mineral wool for temporary insulation of holes in the foundation.
When preparing for winter, much attention should be paid to protecting the foundation from rodents. For this purpose, a grid with cells, the size of which does not exceed 5 mm, is mounted in each outlet. Such protection can be made of wire or metal mesh with a fine mesh. In some hardware stores, you can purchase pre-fabricated airflow meshes.
The air in the foundation is one of the ventilation elements of the house, so they must be in such a state that they can perform their functions.
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