Urgent question for a builder or DIY handyman going NUTS!!!

myles79

Hi there we have recently moved into a house that has little open vents to the outside in each room with a plastic grill that covers. My problem in this you hear EVERY little noise from the street every night I am wondering what would be effective in filling this in so as I would not have such a huge noise issue it is actually waking the children of an evening.:mad::mad::mad: I am slowly going :mad::mad::mad: any ideas TIA

D3PO

DO NOT fill these in.

The vents are there for a reason. Primary reason I believe is to ensure no carbon monoxide buildup in the property (although I could be wrong with the exact reasoning)

Either way I know these vents are there for health reasons. Im sure somebody will confirm their exact purpose.

myles79

yeah I know but surely you'd be safe enough with a CM detector?

Senna

Have these in my house too, i blocked up the one in the bedroom because i could hear wind noises. I just used some expanding foam, then refitted the plastic cover, i going to plaster over it and repaint it, but didn't have the time (i.e. lazy:D).

Dont know about other houses, but mine weren't there to stop CM building up, they are there to allow air to circulate.
If i was worried about CM, i wouldn't be relying on a vent.

mrgaa1

If you have gas appliances in the house you will need them otherwise fill them in - waste of time made up by some eejit somewhere. Your windows probably have vents in them which you can open.

irishguy

They are a total waste of time, only newer houses have them. You spend a fortune insulating a house then you just knock a big hole in the wall.

Sleipnir

THey're not there for carbon monoxide; what if there's no wind? A simple vent on it's own would not be enough to clear a build up of CO2. Although I do believe they are also recommended to allow radon to escape.

They're there for ventilation and possibly to prevent damp. If you want to block it up, do so as a temporary measure first to make sure you really don't need it. Or at least make sure you can put it back if easily if you need to.

Victor

Moved from Accommodation & Property.

Be careful closing these up as you could end up with a multitude of problems, including damp and mold. Potentially change the cover for a "hit or miss" type that you should be able to get in your local hardward shop.

Sleipnir wrote: »

THey're not there for carbon monoxide; what if there's no wind? A simple vent on it's own would not be enough to clear a build up of CO2. Although I do believe they are also recommended to allow radon to escape.

Carbon monoxide = CO
Carbon dioxide = CO2

firesidechat

You are running the risk of mould growing in your house.

If you do block the openings(and as a builder i would not advise you to do that) make sure to open the windows for a few hours every day to allow for air circulation and the drying out of humid conditions.Just because you cant see the moisture doesn't mean it is not in the air.
Those vents are there for a reason..

Loveless

I've seen in newer houses where the grill in front of the opening has a little slide that you can move to an open/shut position.. good idea I thought.

Mellor

D3PO wrote: »

DO NOT fill these in.

The vents are there for a reason. Primary reason I believe is to ensure no carbon monoxide buildup in the property (although I could be wrong with the exact reasoning)

Either way I know these vents are there for health reasons. Im sure somebody will confirm their exact purpose.

myles79 wrote: »

yeah I know but surely you'd be safe enough with a CM detector?

Senna wrote: »

Have these in my house too, i blocked up the one in the bedroom because i could hear wind noises. I just used some expanding foam, then refitted the plastic cover, i going to plaster over it and repaint it, but didn't have the time (i.e. lazy:D).

Dont know about other houses, but mine weren't there to stop CM building up, they are there to allow air to circulate.
If i was worried about CM, i wouldn't be relying on a vent.

mrgaa1 wrote: »

If you have gas appliances in the house you will need them otherwise fill them in - waste of time made up by some eejit somewhere. Your windows probably have vents in them which you can open.

irishguy wrote: »

They are a total waste of time, only newer houses have them. You spend a fortune insulating a house then you just knock a big hole in the wall.

Sleipnir wrote: »

THey're not there for carbon monoxide; what if there's no wind? A simple vent on it's own would not be enough to clear a build up of CO2. Although I do believe they are also recommended to allow radon to escape.

They're there for ventilation and possibly to prevent damp. If you want to block it up, do so as a temporary measure first to make sure you really don't need it. Or at least make sure you can put it back if easily if you need to.

That's 6 posts in a row. The first 6 posts. And every one of them as at least one (sometimes more) bit of bad advice or an error.


OP, they are there to ensure you have enough fresh air in the house. Without a source of fresh air, you would get sick or worse.
Alot of older houses had enough cracks and paths for air through the structure so that fresh air still made its way in even if they were blocked up. In newer houses, they are a must. They are commonly incorporated into windows these days, you don’t need both.

So:
They are a requirement in all houses.
They are not to prevent radon or carbon monoxide
Blocking them up can have serious health impacts if no other source of air is present.
There should be only 1 per room.
If you do insist on blocking some of them, make sure it is reversible. As it will affect the value of the house and make certs an issue.

Amhran Nua

Mellor wrote: »

They are a requirement in all houses.
They are not to prevent radon or carbon monoxide
Blocking them up can have serious health impacts if no other source of air is present.
There should be only 1 per room.
If you do insist on blocking some of them, make sure it is reversible. As it will affect the value of the house and make certs an issue.

Do they not completely defeat the purpose of insulation and all these energy ratings though, you've multiple holes knocked clear through to the outside world. Last winter we had to block up two of these because of the literal blast of icy wind coming from them, a roaring fire and oil heating made no dent on the temperature.

De_man

hi i just found a thread i replied to here in 2007

here's the link

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055059474&page=2

do not cover these vents in fully with expanding foam,

click on the jpeg you'll find a "ships vent" i've installed these together with vents in the windows.....pls note the website conrad direct uk is no
longer in business, however the conrad.de (germany) works fine the part number is the same. only thing with this crowd is that for international customers you have to transfer money first to them, no credit card took me a few mins to figure out the money transfer process (my german is vv rusty) but it worked fine...delivered by courier in 5days


www.conrad.de

Mellor

Amhran Nua wrote: »

Do they not completely defeat the purpose of insulation and all these energy ratings though, you've multiple holes knocked clear through to the outside world. Last winter we had to block up two of these because of the literal blast of icy wind coming from them, a roaring fire and oil heating made no dent on the temperature.

It's true that they are counter productive to insulation, just like your open fire is. But they are also necessary when the is a lack of another source of fresh air

That's why you'll never see them in any low energy rated houses. As they will have all gone for HRV.

ninjaBob

Amhran Nua wrote: »

Do they not completely defeat the purpose of insulation and all these energy ratings though, you've multiple holes knocked clear through to the outside world. Last winter we had to block up two of these because of the literal blast of icy wind coming from them, a roaring fire and oil heating made no dent on the temperature.

Not according to my engineers and the company doing my BER. A 4" vent will supply a room with adequate air circulation. Which will help remove damp, prevent mold and help to circulate the air in the room. HRV will require a source of energy, to move the air around the house. So it's not a renewable source of energy, instead you are consuming more energy to relocate fresh,warm air. So the energy you are consuming in your HRV and that lost through a 4" vent is relevant. Additionally I would question as to how often HRV Filters, so if they are not changed as per the manufacturers guideline you are probably not transfering clean air throughout the house.

The ultimate factor that prevented myself going for HRV, is that I live beside the family farm, so there are cattle sheds and large fields etc. So I didn't want a machine circulating the smell of **** around my house. Instead I opted for a good quality wall vents that I could close when required. I understand that I could turn off HRV but I would be worried that I might be out and not turn it off in time. At least with the trickle vents it wouldn't be circulated around the house as quick.

When I went into my local building supplier all they had were those really cheap (€3) vents which you see on nearly every house. These will not prevent any drafts and would simply allow all wind to flow straight into the house.

My Engineer and the guys doing my BER said to spend a little bit more on the vents and get a good quality vent that will control the circulation of air.

I am currently looking into:

Thread on Wall Vents

Fancy wall vents...

I am also looking into "Blackhole" vents

Black Hole Vents

Obviously there are dozens of variants out there and they all promise to do the same thing, but if you spend a little cash you can get decent quality vents that will no allow alot of noise or draft in.

D3PO

Mellor wrote: »

That's 6 posts in a row. The first 6 posts. And every one of them as at least one (sometimes more) bit of bad advice or an error.


.

so explain what bad advise i gave in my post. I said they were there for health reasons (thats correct) i also acknowledged the exact reasoning i posted may not be correct therfore allowing the OP use it as a basis for investigating further.

sydthebeat

D3PO wrote: »

so explain what bad advise i gave in my post. I said they were there for health reasons (thats correct) i also acknowledged the exact reasoning i posted may not be correct therfore allowing the OP use it as a basis for investigating further.

you could have led the OP to believe the vents were there to prevent CO build up....

mellor said that each post contained at least one error, he was correct in this.

let it go........

gaz wac

Mellor wrote: »

OP, they are there to ensure you have enough fresh air in the house. Without a source of fresh air, you would get sick or worse.
.

Dont mean to sound daft, but could you not just open a window

Kashkai

No vent = mould is on the way. You give off moisture everytime you exhale and if there's no vent where is this moisture to go? Into your clothes, shoes, furnishings, curtains , blinds etc is where.

I know this cause my a$$hole builder screwed vents to the wall alright. Trouble is he didn't put a hole through to the outside world and when my clothes and shoes became covered in mould, I went and did some investigating and found that the problem lay with the absence of a vent (the fact that the new build was drying out and was also giving off a lot of moisture also helped the growth of the mould). I've since rectified this issue and now have proper vents in all rooms. I even leave my bedroom window partially open at night as I find I sleep better with the additional fresh air coming into the room. If noise is an issue for you, perhaps start using earplugs. Its a better solution to blocking your vents.

myles79

gaz wac wrote: »

Dont mean to sound daft, but could you not just open a window

yes I totally agree I air the bedrooms EVERY day by opening the windows as I have young children and I am particular with having fresh air circulate, I know that some people don't...the noise issue is going to drive me MORE nuts ...than opening the windows for an hour or two each day! I reckon I will go for it..

myles79

Prosperous Dave wrote: »

No vent = mould is on the way. You give off moisture everytime you exhale and if there's no vent where is this moisture to go? Into your clothes, shoes, furnishings, curtains , blinds etc is where.

I know this cause my a$$hole builder screwed vents to the wall alright. Trouble is he didn't put a hole through to the outside world and when my clothes and shoes became covered in mould, I went and did some investigating and found that the problem lay with the absence of a vent (the fact that the new build was drying out and was also giving off a lot of moisture also helped the growth of the mould). I've since rectified this issue and now have proper vents in all rooms. I even leave my bedroom window partially open at night as I find I sleep better with the additional fresh air coming into the room. If noise is an issue for you, perhaps start using earplugs. Its a better solution to blocking your vents.

oh look come on I have asked a normal question requesting an opinion on this issue! I can hardly stuff ear plugs into my 11 month old and 3 year olds ears...BTW I actually DO use ear plugs its not our room that I am asking about it is my kids as the noise is waking THEM up

myles79

D3PO wrote: »

so explain what bad advise i gave in my post. I said they were there for health reasons (thats correct) i also acknowledged the exact reasoning i posted may not be correct therfore allowing the OP use it as a basis for investigating further.

thank you for responding I am greatful that you gave your thoughts!

Scober11

Jasus Dave your house must be in bits judging by the complaints you post here, who built it stevie wonder?