Do I need to clean the ventilation. Features of professional cleaning. How to check for traction in a simple way
The ventilation of an apartment building is a complex system ventilation ducts that permeate the entire building, entering each apartment. It is through them that the air is removed from the premises. But over time, ventilation ducts and shafts decrease in cross section due to debris, fat and oil deposits, which leads to a weakening of the outflow of air masses. This means that the ventilation of the house begins to work incorrectly. That is, it's time to think about the question of how to clean the ventilation in the house.
Why clean ventilation
Maintain correct operation ventilation system for purely hygienic reasons. After all, the weakening of the hood leads, first of all, to a decrease in air exchange, which is legalized by sanitary standards of residence. The exhaust air leaving the ventilation shaft takes dust particles with it, excessive moisture, as well as various kinds microorganisms that adversely affect human health.
Therefore, there is a special attitude to cleaning the ventilation in the apartment. But, as practice shows, the owners of apartments practically do not deal with it. It is rare that anyone tries to do something to increase air outflow. But that doesn't help much either. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the process of cleaning the ventilation, and if it is possible to carry it out regularly. If not on your own, then at least once every two or three years, call a specialist.
When to Clean
It is clear that few people open the ventilation grill to look into the ventilation duct of the building. Therefore, it is worth paying attention to some signs that ventilation duct became smaller than its original size. Here are a few of the signs that are very striking.
- Dust and dirt accumulate around the ventilation grill and on it, a cobweb appears.
- After wet cleaning dust immediately settles on the surface of the floor and furniture.
- In the summer, in the very heat, the apartment does not get cool.
- If drafts at open windows or front door became much weaker or disappeared altogether.
He will definitely say that cleaning the ventilation in the apartment is necessary. Especially if it has been used for many years. A paper napkin brought to the ventilation opening will help determine the need. If the napkin remains at the ventilation duct, then the ventilation is working well. If the napkin does not hold, then you need to sound the alarm. The channel is littered, and the ventilation does not work.
In the same way, you can check if you attach a piece of toilet or toilet to the opening. newsprint. If it sticks to the grate, then the ventilation works according to its parameters. If it falls, then the problem is serious, and it needs to be addressed urgently.
In general, bring the ventilation system to such a state apartment building it is forbidden. After all, this network has several levels equal to the number of floors. And channels lead to each apartment from the vertical shaft. Therefore, such a situation also happens when the horizontal channel from the apartment seems to be clean, but the air outflow is weak. The reason is that the vertical common channel is clogged. And here everyone will not be able to help themselves, because cleaning of the common ventilation shaft is required, for which the management company is responsible. And for her set precise norms how often to clean the ventilation of an apartment building, which, unfortunately, she does not perform.
Causes of clogged ventilation ducts
The main cause of clogging is a large accumulation of dust, dirt and grease on the walls of channels and shafts. Unfortunately, this is how the ventilation of an apartment building is arranged, which is difficult to get into. These are narrow channels through which the exhaust air from the apartments, especially from the kitchen and bathroom, goes outside. Moving through the system, the particles located in it settle on the walls of the channels, increasing in thickness over the years in the form of a mud layer. Hence the reduction in the cross section of the ducts.
Another reason is the collapse of the brickwork, from which the ventilation shaft is built in many houses. Repairing masonry is very difficult, and sometimes possible, so you have to live with such incorrectly working ventilation.
The third reason is small animals and birds that got inside the ventilation and died. Some birds build nests in canals that cover part of the opening.
The fourth reason is established kitchen hood, the air duct of which is cut into the ventilation duct. The reason is quite serious, because the ventilation of an apartment building itself must provide air exchange inside the apartment at the rate of 90 m³ / h. And this is 5-10 times less than the performance modern hoods. That is, when enabled household appliance excess pressure is formed in the ventilation shaft, which pushes the air in it through the channels to neighboring apartments. That is, we can no longer talk about the ventilation of an apartment building.
How to clean the ventilation in the apartment with your own hands
We turn to the main question of the article, which has always been relevant, and today many owners of city apartments ask it: how to clean the ventilation in an apartment with your own hands. As mentioned above, if the management companies fulfilled their duties exactly, then there would be no need to clean the ventilation on their own. But things are such that no one wants to deal with your apartments except yourself. Therefore, all activities will have to be carried out without a specialist.
Although it should be noted that cleaning the horizontal channel is an ineffective operation, because without cleaning the vertical riser, these are just cosmetic measures. But even they can increase air draft a little. So what needs to be done:
- the ventilation grille is removed, which must be washed with household detergent because fat and oil deposits with clean or soapy water are unlikely to go away;
- the web is removed with a broom or a rag, try to do this by completely putting them into the channel;
- arm yourself with a spatula and scrape dirt deposits from the walls of the channel, in no case use chemicals, they will not help here;
- take a long wire and shove it as far as possible, that is, in this way the arm lengthens, additionally tie a brush to it;
- after that, you need to put the hose from the vacuum cleaner into the channel and turn on the latter to remove the accumulated and collected debris.
There are no other options to clean the ventilation duct from your apartment. Of course, if you do not invite experts, armed special equipment. When carrying out these works, be sure to be careful. Caution in this matter is in the first place, because inside the ventilation passages there may be wasp nest, dwellings of lizards and other small rodents.
Where to go if you can't clean it yourself
We must immediately make a reservation that cleaning the ventilation in apartment building- this is the responsibility of a special organization that has concluded an agreement with management company. It is forbidden to clean the vertical ventilation shaft on your own. Yes, and it is qualitatively impossible to do this with improvised tools and devices.
Therefore, you need to come to the office of the management company and leave a written application, indicating in it the number of the entrance and the number of the house. The thing is that one vertical ventilation shaft is often installed on one entrance. Therefore, it will be easy to search for it if the entrance number is indicated.
The specialists who arrived on a call must first take measurements of the air velocity in the ventilation system. One froze from the side of the apartment, the other from inside the venshakhta. After that, it is determined what activities will be carried out. By the way, in addition to cleaning, it is proposed to carry out disinfection or repair.
Note that the question of who should clean up specifies the responsibility of the parties. That is, the management company itself does not do this. She simply monitors the requirements of the tenants of an apartment building and their implementation by her employees or persons with whom there is an agreement to hold certain events. But tenants must demand the performance of work from the management company.
To begin with, we will give the main advice - you cannot clean the ventilation in the apartment on your own. But if there is no other way out, then do not climb into the vertical riser. Your options are limited, so you can only clean the horizontal ventilation duct that connects the shaft to the apartment. How to do it, you now know.
Sometimes the apartment owners themselves are to blame for the fact that the internal air exchange is reduced or completely absent. In the process of ongoing repairs, they close finishing materials ventilation openings. First, you can't do this. Secondly, if this still happened, then try to correct the situation and bring it back to normal. Otherwise high humidity, unpleasant odors, mold and fungi you can not avoid.
If, nevertheless, a decision is made to clean the air ducts with your own hands, then try to prepare thoroughly for this event. To do this, you will need the tools and fixtures described above, as well as a reliable stepladder.
Tsugunov Anton Valerievich
Reading time: 4 minutes
Residents of apartments rarely remember about normally working ventilation. But if the windows begin to fog up in the rooms, the smell of dishes being cooked in the kitchen spreads freely throughout the apartment, water constantly appears on the walls in the bathroom, the air is stuffy and stuffy, then the ventilation system has stopped working normally. In order not to risk the health of the people living in the apartment, the condition of the furniture and other interior items, it is better to eliminate the causes of these problems as quickly as possible. This may require cleaning.
Checking the operation of the ventilation system
Before proceeding to action, you should check how the ventilation in the house works. Doing it yourself is not at all difficult.
On the forums, it is advised to check with the flame of a burning match or lighter. With a normally operating hood, the flame should deviate towards the ventilation grille. Many people remember similar pictures from Soviet times, calling to check the draft in the gas column and the hood in the kitchen.
Representatives of utilities, especially gas workers, strongly oppose the method of checking the operation of ventilation in an apartment with a lighter. AT residential buildings with main gas pipelines, gas leaks are quite possible, which should just be pulled into a common ventilation pipe. In this case, it is possible to provoke an explosion of a combustible mixture, which will lead to the most unfortunate consequences. Therefore, it is recommended to do the check in a safer way.
Similarly, you need to do with all the ventilation grilles to get the full picture. In most apartments, they must be in the kitchen, bathroom or bathroom.
Causes of clogged ventilation
The most common problem leading to malfunctions in the ventilation system is clogging of the channels that conduct air. Most often this happens due to the long-term accumulation of fat, soot and dust inside them, because most of the residents apartment buildings are limited to wiping the outer part of the gratings.
In old houses brickwork air ducts are destroyed under the influence of time and water getting inside, seeping from above or evaporating from the bathroom, and brick fragments can fill up the ventilation shaft, interfering with air exchange. It is not uncommon for unscrupulous tenants, wanting to improve their apartment and expand their living space, destroy the ledge in which the ventilation shaft passes, blocking the access of air to the apartments of the rest of the inhabitants of the house. Uninvited tenants also contribute to blockages in ventilation: birds or wasps.
Residents of multi-apartment residential buildings should remember that representatives of special services should be involved in cleaning the main air duct. So if the ventilation does not work due to clogging, you should contact the management company that services the house. The maximum that residents can do on their own is to clean the ventilation ducts leading from the apartment to the common duct.
How to clean ventilation
After checking each hood in the kitchen, bathroom and rooms, it will become clear which channels are clogged. If ventilation does not work in all rooms, most likely the problem is in the common channel and nothing can be done on your own, if only in one - there is a local blockage that can be eliminated. For this you need:
- Take off decorative grille and clean it from accumulated deposits. In this case, it is quite possible to use neutral detergents.
- Carefully remove dust, dirt and soot from the walls of the ventilation duct with a scraper, and then pull it out with a vacuum cleaner.
When cleaning, do not use aggressive chemicals that can corrode and damage the walls of the shaft. It is unacceptable for debris from the ventilation duct leading from the apartment to enter the common duct. When cleaning, care must be taken: sometimes nests of wasps or hornets are found in the ventilation.
Ways to improve ventilation in the apartment
What to do if cleaning the ventilation did not help? It is possible that the air circulation inside the apartment itself is disturbed. Having dealt with the causes of this violation, it is possible to improve the ventilation of the air in the living room.
Violation of air circulation between separate rooms
The first step is to repeat the test with a strip of paper, but at the same time open all the interior doors. If the paper is attracted under such conditions, then the air circulation between separate rooms apartments. To improve it, it is recommended that when installing doors, make a gap between their lower edge and the floor of several centimeters.
If the doors are already installed or you don’t want to make such a gap, for example, in a bathroom or a bathroom, then you can drill a series of holes in the door, tilting inward. Subsequently, they should be decorated with a fine mesh. This design will provide ventilation with tight closed doors and will not violate the privacy of people in the bathroom or bathroom.
Airtight double-glazed windows
Another reason for the violation of ventilation can be the installation of plastic windows with double-glazed windows. In Soviet-built houses, the tributary fresh air from the outside was implied through small cracks and gaps in wooden window frames. Well established plastic windows in a fully closed state exclude such replenishment. As a result, the ventilation in the apartment is also disturbed. Therefore, if you are thinking about installing double-glazed windows, then preference should be given to models with a micro-ventilation system.
Already installed double-glazed windows, devoid of such functional features, are easy to modify on their own. There are inexpensive ventilation valves installed on the window frame and sash.
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According to the current sanitary standards apartment buildings should be equipped with ventilation, in which polluted air is removed from the kitchen and bathroom, and clean air is supplied to the living rooms.
The ventilation of houses built in the last century is based on natural draft. Modern residential complexes are put into operation with roof fans and forced air exchange systems. About how the ventilation system in an apartment building is arranged, how to clean and improve it, read on.
The need for ventilation in an apartment building
When washing, washing dishes and taking a shower, water vapor is released into the air. Particles of pile from clothes and carpets, epithelium and hairs of pets form dust. During cooking, odors and tiny droplets of fat evaporate.
If an apartment building is not equipped with a ventilation system, all human waste products remain in the premises. Conditions dangerous for people's health and safety of their property are being created. Mold eats into walls and furniture, and occupants suffer from allergies and asthma. In such apartments, babies and the elderly feel the worst.
Functions of ventilation in a residential area:
- Ensure the penetration of clean air into the apartments;
- Together with the exhaust air, remove dust and other impurities harmful to health;
- Regulate humidity in residential and utility rooms.
If during cooking with an open window, odors spread to neighboring rooms, the ventilation system in an apartment building is not working satisfactorily. Another indicator that the ventilation in the house is not working is an intense accumulation of dust in the corners, on the ventilation grill and under the ceiling. Within a day or two after cleaning, you can notice clouds of dust under upholstered furniture.
Most often, residents of the upper floors suffer from this. Explained bad traction insufficient distance between the ventilation grill in the apartment and the end of the ventilation duct. Normally, it should be at least 2 meters. Often this condition is not met due to the presence warm attic in an apartment building and ventilation does not work as planned by the designers.
The principle of venting air
Most of the complaints about work are caused by ignorance of how ventilation is arranged in a panel house.
There are 2 schemes for removing dirty air from apartment buildings:
Scheme 1. The ventilation duct reaches the attic, here it goes into a horizontal box
Several sealed boxes are combined into one shaft, ending above the roof. With this principle of ventilation in an apartment building air masses from all floors they rush to the horizontal box, from there to the common shaft and to the street. In the process of movement, the air hits the surface of the box and an area is formed high blood pressure. Air rushes into the nearest hole leading out.
Sometimes the nearest exit is the ventilation duct of the fifth floor. Normally, this should be a common ventilation shaft. Even with an optimal cross-section of the horizontal duct, back draft can be observed if the duct cover is set too low. The air bounces off the lid and "squeezes out" the smells coming from below into the top floor kitchens. To avoid such an undesirable effect, 2 methods are used:
- Method 1. It is necessary to increase the diameter of the horizontal box in the attic by 2.5 times. In addition, "cuts" are installed inside the box. All alterations must only be carried out by trained persons. You must first consult with a specialist, since it is not always possible to use this method to improve ventilation;
- Method 2. The ventilation ducts of the last floor are arranged separately, they are brought into the ventilation shaft above the duct. A separate channel should be well insulated.
Scheme 2. All ventilation ducts lead to the attic
The attic room is used as an intermediate chamber. A single ventilation shaft leads through the roof.
This method of air removal is very common in modern construction.
Most often, there is no reverse thrust in the network, but on the upper floors it is very weak. This is explained by the low height of the vertical channel (no more than 40 cm). When the attic doors or between the sections are open, there is practically no air movement either.
The standard diameter of air ducts with such a ventilation system in an apartment building is 140 mm. To improve its operation, the outlets of the channels are extended due to the pipes put on them. The joints are sealed. It is enough to add 1 meter of pipe and tilt it slightly towards the central shaft.
Apartment supply and exhaust ventilation
AT high-rise buildings ventilation system inflow-blowing is equipped in each apartment. The following scheme is usually used: toilets, bathrooms and kitchens have exits exhaust channels, a fresh air supplied through the vents.
So that air can circulate freely throughout the apartment, under interior doors gaps of 1 - 2 cm are left.
Such a plan for the operation of ventilation in an apartment building is quite simple, but not always effective.
If the windows in the apartment fog up, periodically smell unpleasant - you need an apartment building. Often natural ventilation in an apartment building does not work due to contamination. But residents do not have the right to clean the ventilation in apartment buildings. Repair work also performed by experts. So how to clean the ventilation in the apartment?
Professional ventilation cleaning
Specialists in apartment buildings using professional equipment. First, a diagnosis of the ventilation of an apartment building is carried out. As a rule, a video camera is involved for this. It detects places of accumulation of debris and dust, destruction. Then the pneumatic brush machine removes all the dirt. At the same time, you can disinfect the mine.
You can conduct an examination of the ventilation of an apartment building in the simplest way: bring a burning candle or match to the ventilation grill. If the flame deviates towards ventilation, then all is not lost. The vertical location of the flame indicates that the natural ventilation in the house is really not working. When examining ventilation, it is necessary to check all ventilation grilles in an apartment building.
Self-cleaning ventilation
Residents of apartment buildings can dismantle the ventilation grill in their apartment and clean the accessible part of the shaft with a broom or vacuum cleaner.
Before you clean the ventilation in an apartment building yourself, it is advisable to wear protective equipment: gloves, a respirator, goggles. Sometimes a perfectly serviceable and clean system does not work effectively.
In this case, you need to resort to additional means:
- supply valves;
- exhaust fans.
They make it possible to regulate the inflow and exhaust of air from the apartment, they are inexpensive and quite easy to install.
Basement and basement ventilation
The basement is one of essential elements ventilation system of an apartment building. After all, the ventilation shafts, penetrating all floors, begin precisely in the basement.
As a rule, an apartment building is organized on natural draft.
To remove raw air from the basement, common ventilation ducts are used, which exit through openings on each floor and in each apartment.
The influx of fresh air is equally important for the ventilation of the basement of an apartment building, where it is often damp and cold. This purpose is served by vents or holes in the walls of the basement, located slightly above the ground. The number of products is calculated based on the area of the building.
The area of the vents is 1/400 of the area of the building.
If the building is located in an area with a high content of radon or a limiting radiation background, the area of the vents increases to 1/100 of the area of the building.
The area of one vent can vary from 0.05 to 0.85 sq. meters.
Products with a diameter of 30 x 30 cm must be reinforced.
The shape of the ventilation holes can be any, but most often they are made rectangular or round. This form is easier to perform and looks better.
Air must be evenly distributed around the perimeter of the foundation to avoid the formation of windproof areas.
The distance from the corner to the nearest vent is 90 cm. It is advisable to make an even number of vents and place them opposite each other. The distance to the ground is at least 20 cm. If you lower the holes below, they may be flooded with rain or spring floods.
The higher above the ground are ventilation holes, all the better.
If the foundation of the house has internal load-bearing surfaces, air vents should be made in them so that the entire ground floor apartment building.
The vents must not be closed, otherwise the whole principle of the ventilation of an apartment building will be violated. From penetration into the basement of cats and rodents, the holes are closed with a metal mesh.
So, the ventilation of an apartment building is one system, the device of which begins in the basement and ends above the roof. Any attempts by residents to interfere with its work on their own, such as cleaning the ventilation in the apartment, dismantling its elements or altering it, entail administrative responsibility!
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