A positive input ventilation system (PIV) is becoming an ever more popular choice across the UK. More than one in five of us is wrestling with mould growth, damp, and condensation. PIV units are a low-energy, quick, and easy method of reducing these issues. This won't just help your home feel more pleasant. It can also have a positive impact on your health. Let's take a closer look at how.
If you are considering installing a PIV unit in your home, you can get in touch with us at PIV Team for a free no-obligation quote. We are PIV experts and can help to create a ventilation system that works for your property, improving your quality of life.
Positive input ventilation systems are designed to improve indoor air quality. This is done through the use of positive pressure. Filtered air is actively brought into a home through a filtration unit. This unit is usually installed in the loft space (although it can be placed on a wall if you are in a flat or your loft isn't suitable).
The filtration unit actively pulls in fresh air from the outside. This air is pushed down into the rest of the property through a distribution infuser in the ceiling beneath. Because of the positive pressure, the stale air in the property is forced out through the naturally occurring leakage gaps located throughout the building.
This system means that fresh filtered air is in constant flow throughout the home while stale and humid air is constantly being forced out.
Dig Deeper: What Is A PIV Unit
A PIV system is good at improving indoor air quality and introducing fresh air while removing humid and stale air. But how does this translate to our health? There are lots of health problems associated with humidity levels, dampness, mould, and condensation. Other health problems are associated with air pollution within our homes.
Mould doesn't just look and smell bad. Due to its spores, it also produces allergens, substances that can irritate your respiratory system, and sometimes toxic substances.
According to the NHS, living in a damp and mouldy home can cause health problems such as:
These problems are more common among vulnerable people such as babies and young children, elderly people, and those with pre-existing health conditions.
In the UK, damp and mould problems are unfortunately very common. We have some of the oldest housing stock in Europe. Older houses were made from "breathable" materials, such as stone, timber, brick, and lime-based plasters. These materials are designed to allow moisture-laden air to escape.
However, these houses were modified with non-breathable modern building materials, such as cement, epoxy resin, plastics, paints, and more. These materials prevent the walls from being able to release their moisture as efficiently.
When you couple that with increased insulation and central heating, you start to get a real problem with warm air inside the house, hitting the cold stone walls, and creating condensation where it can't escape.
Over time, this condensation can create the perfect breeding ground for mould.
With that being said, even modern houses can suffer from damp patches and condensation problems. This is often linked to our lifestyles. Whenever we use water in our day-to-day lives, it adds moisture to the air.
This includes activities like:
If the house isn't ventilated enough to release the moisture quickly, it will build up and cause condensation, damp, and mould growth.
Delve into: What Causes Damp Patches On Ceilings
A positive input ventilation system can help to remove hot and humid air from your home. The positive pressure encourages natural ventilation, even in homes where the breathability is reduced.
There will always be places where air escapes, such as window frames, door frames, and other little holes. And the pressure from the pumped-in outside air will speed up and encourage the stale air out of these spaces.
Because the moisture is removed more quickly, it doesn't have time to build up and create condensation.
This will mean that mould is less likely to grow, reducing the risk of health conditions associated with it. These types of systems are especially important for people who deal with asthma or other long-term respiratory chronic conditions, and for households where there are very young children or the elderly.
Health problems related to damp and mould aren't the only issues you may deal with. Air pollution can also trigger illnesses. Their air pollutants can include:
Living in a home that has a high level of pollution can lead to illnesses such as:
A positive input ventilation unit can help to improve indoor air quality and reduce pollution within your home. It replaces stale air that harbours air pollutants with fresh, filtered air.
Because this process is continuous, it means that you will breathe in far fewer pollutants, lowering your risk of disease.
This can be especially useful for homes that have an open fireplace as the system will effectively remove soot particles from the air. It is also useful for people who are sensitive to dust mite allergens, reducing their risk of a reaction.
There are other types of ventilation systems available, such as mechanical ventilation systems. Like a PIV system, a mechanical system will also improve indoor air quality and reduce the risk of health problems related to damp and mould or air pollution.
A PIV system does have some benefits over a mechanical ventilation system, however.
A PIV system is energy efficient. The cost to run the system is on average 1p - 2p a day. A mechanical ventilation system, on the other hand, will run to around 10p a day.
A standard PIV system can help to reduce your space heating costs. Warm air rises and when it reaches the unit in the loft space, that heat is pushed throughout the home.
Some PIV units have a heater element, also known as heat recovery ventilation. This system actively extracts the heat from the stale air and uses it to heat the colder air being pulled in from outside before it is distributed. This will keep your home warmer and reduce your heating costs.
A mechanical ventilation system is quite difficult to install because you will need to include ducts throughout the home. For existing properties, this can be quite a barrier to entry simply because of the amount of work that will need to be completed.
PIV systems, on the other hand, can be installed in any existing home without any costly or time-consuming renovations.
Explore: How Much Does A PIV Unit Cost To Run
A positive input ventilation system is a sensible and cost-effective investment that can improve your health. It reduces the spread of condensation, damp, and mould. It also effectively removes air pollutants from the air. It does this by actively drawing fresh air in from the outside and pushing it through the home, forcing the stale air (full of moisture and pollutants) out through naturally occurring ventilation spots.
If you are considering a positive input ventilation system for your home, we can help. At PIV Team, we understand the importance of improving the air quality of your home for your comfort and your health, and we are passionate about making PIV systems accessible to everybody. We will work with you each step of the way to ensure your system is right for you.
