Unusual home ventilation idea
 

I have an unusual suggestion for ventilation. I have connected an
intake vent hose (like a dryer vent hose) , from the outside of my
house to the return plenum of my furnace. (I have a hot air system).
When the blower is on, it sucks in some fresh air from outside through
this intake vent. This air is cold in the winter and is fed directly
into the furnace to be heated. This tends to pressurize the house a
little and reduces the leaking of cold air throughout the house. When
the furnace kicks on in the winter, you can definitely sense the fresh
air entering. Yes it is a little cool at first until the furnace warms
up. Also this fresh air continues to leak in through the intake even
when the blower is not running and flows through the still warm furnace
by natural convection. Even though I am introducing cold outside air
into the system, I think it is not really hurting efficiency that
much because it is displacing cold air that would have leaked into the
house otherwise and I am controlling it to enter via the furnace. And
the fresh air in the winter is definitely nice.

Mark

Mark wrote:
I have an unusual suggestion for ventilation. I have connected an
intake vent hose (like a dryer vent hose) , from the outside of my
house to the return plenum of my furnace. (I have a hot air system).
When the blower is on, it sucks in some fresh air from outside through
this intake vent. This air is cold in the winter and is fed directly
into the furnace to be heated. This tends to pressurize the house a
little and reduces the leaking of cold air throughout the house. When
the furnace kicks on in the winter, you can definitely sense the fresh
air entering. Yes it is a little cool at first until the furnace warms
up. Also this fresh air continues to leak in through the intake even
when the blower is not running and flows through the still warm furnace
by natural convection. Even though I am introducing cold outside air
into the system, I think it is not really hurting efficiency that
much because it is displacing cold air that would have leaked into the
house otherwise and I am controlling it to enter via the furnace. And
the fresh air in the winter is definitely nice.

Mark


I wouldnt call it unusual. I believe that would be standard today no?
My 2.5 year old house has such a contraption. Though I question that it
pressurizes the house as if I run a window fan the air is clearly
sucking in through other places and not that vent too much. Still an
excellent idea to offset downdrafts you could get through exhause vents
and whatnot.


CL

Mark wrote:
I have an unusual suggestion for ventilation. I have connected an
intake vent hose (like a dryer vent hose) , from the outside of my
house to the return plenum of my furnace. (I have a hot air system).
When the blower is on, it sucks in some fresh air from outside through
this intake vent. This air is cold in the winter and is fed directly
into the furnace to be heated. This tends to pressurize the house a
little and reduces the leaking of cold air throughout the house. When
the furnace kicks on in the winter, you can definitely sense the fresh
air entering. Yes it is a little cool at first until the furnace
warms up. Also this fresh air continues to leak in through the
intake even when the blower is not running and flows through the
still warm furnace by natural convection. Even though I am
introducing cold outside air into the system, I think it is not
really hurting efficiency that much because it is displacing cold air
that would have leaked into the house otherwise and I am controlling
it to enter via the furnace. And the fresh air in the winter is
definitely nice.

Mark

My 12 year old home has it, it was standard and if I remember correctly
required.

--
Joseph Meehan

Dia duit