negative pressure issues

[iceman]

As you can see in my Sig I have a lot of stuff , not including bathrooms, and other household app. How do I bring outside air in? My fireplaces are in an interior chimney so have no clue on how to get outside air to them... I am gonna try and add a outside kit for my pellet stove but 18 inches of concreteand brick is not fun trying to get through...my house pulls cold air in through my forced air system in the winter .. I have had an hvac company come and check it out and they said the system was fine with no leaks.... basically the air exchanger isn't airtight and it is pulling air from around the filter, if I block the vent it just moves to the next one . So I was wondering how the heck can I change the pressure in my house? I think I will be forced to leave Windows cracked this winter!?!

 

[Jags]

First, I would start by leaving the huskee splitter outside. They consume alot of oxygen.

 

[iceman]

First, I would start by leaving the husky splitter outside. They consume alot of oxygen.

Lol! She claims she works just as hard as I do splitting wood and because of this she like to stay in during the winter....

 

[Todd]

Maybe one of these might help?

http://www.condar.com/asv.html

 

[Jags]

First, I would start by leaving the husky splitter outside. They consume alot of oxygen.

Lol! She claims she works just as hard as I do splitting wood and because of this she like to stay in during the winter....

Hey Iceman, how big is your house??

Obviously you can rule out the electric radiant, so your focus needs to be on the other appliances. Anything with forced air (pellet stove, furnace) is gonna typically be a bigger culprit because of the mechanically induced draft. I would start with those. The stove has quite a bit of volume, but very low pressure. Forced induction will typically have higher pressure (relatively speaking).

 

[vvvv]

the neg pressure created by venting appliances will be relieved by fresh air pulled in thru infiltration from the outdoor, so whats the prob?

 

[Jags]

the neg pressure created by venting appliances will be relieved by fresh air pulled in thru infiltration from the outdoor, so whats the prob?

Too much air going out - not enough coming in.

 

[ANeat]

If the walls are too much trouble would going thru the floor be an option?? Basement? Crawlspace?

 

[vvvv]

the neg pressure created by venting appliances will be relieved by fresh air pulled in thru infiltration from the outdoor, so whats the prob?

Too much air going out - not enough coming in.

no prob unless something is backdrafting. infiltration of outdoor air thru wallcracks & such is good because it dries the area of infiltration whereas in exfiltration, the warm air would make the same areas wet.

 

[begreen]

Pook, in another thread you are extolling the virtues of venting your dryer into the basement and sealing the cracks via freezing moisture due to exfiltration. Both are a bit silly. Sucking in cold air to a basement is not a good idea, especially if there is no heat down there because of the wood stove upstairs..

iceman, can you duct the OAK through the sill instead of the foundation wall?

 

[Jags]

no prob unless something is backdrafting.

Pook - I think that is ultimately the problem.

 

[iceman]

Pook, in another thread you are extolling the virtues of venting your dryer into the basement and sealing the cracks via freezing moisture due to exfiltration. Both are a bit silly. Sucking in cold air to a basement is not a good idea, especially if there is no heat down there because of the wood stove upstairs..

iceman, can you duct the OAK through the sill instead of the foundation wall?

where the pellet stove is no, that part of the house is on a slab... my chimney is almost in the middle of my house this is an old shot of my house and a shot of the chimney and a shot of the back... the pellet stove is coming out on the same side as the garage.... its by the last window in the corner there...

 

[vvvv]

Pook, in another thread you are extolling the virtues of venting your dryer into the basement and sealing the cracks via freezing moisture due to exfiltration. Both are a bit silly. Sucking in cold air to a basement is not a good idea, especially if there is no heat down there because of the wood stove upstairs..

iceman, can you duct the OAK through the sill instead of the foundation wall?

dryer blowing into basement is simplification of how hot air can be blown downwards. air migration thru exterior walls due to pressure differentials are simple science. OP never stated what the problem was & if no backdrafting exists, its "silly' unless pipes freeze

 

[iceman]

no prob unless something is backdrafting.

Pook - I think that is ultimately the problem.

my fireplace in the basement, is weird.. you cant see the smoke but you can smell it upstairs... BUT if i take a flashlight and look from the side you can see smoke coming out .. its not visable to the eye from dead on ...even when i crack the door in the basement it still happens...
BUT upstairs in my kitchen (the same floor the summit is on) so much cold air comes through the vent in the ceiling its ridiculous! even if i close the vent it still comes down.. i have stuff it with towels, tape, tee shirts.. once it is sealed the air just comes out in another vent along the line ...
now the problem is as i have sealed things, of course air will come from anywhere... but when it tries to come through the opposite end of the house it makes it much harder to heat those rooms.... the condor might be my only option... but as you can see anything i do structure of the house isnt easy as it is brick all the way around... which pretty much means its permanent once i do it..

 

[begreen]

What is this ceiling vent? AC, heat, fresh air? Does the hvac system have a fresh air make up system (air recovery) connected to it?

 

[vvvv]

basement fireplace smokes when theres a fire in it?

 

[Wood Heat Stoves]

are there any upstairs vertical kitchen or bathroom vents?
often these can have butterfly dampers installed to stop passive venting

any central heating ducts that could be leaky?

ceiling lightfixtures?

upstairs doors or windows?

some additional info here
http://woodheatstoves.com/smoking-chimneys-draft-troubleshooting-p-12038.html
i'd link the pdf directly, but it has in the addy

 

[semipro]

Can you get make-up air from the roof? I once had a direct vent gas stove that pulled air from a rooftop fitting and exhausted there also.

 

[iceman]

What is this ceiling vent? AC, heat, fresh air? Does the hvac system have a fresh air make up system (air recovery) connected to it?

the ceiling vent is heating/cooling... so it comes outta the first supply to the kitchen which is the first one off of the supply line.. if i block it up it just moves down to the next one

 

[iceman]

basement fireplace smokes when theres a fire in it?

yes, but you can only see it if you are on the side, its not a lot like clouds coming out but is consistant enough to sell up my house

 

[iceman]

Can you get make-up air from the roof? I once had a direct vent gas stove that pulled air from a rooftop fitting and exhausted there also.

i would like to but mine exhaust through the chimney ... that one chimney you see has 5 working flues

 

[iceman]

What is this ceiling vent? AC, heat, fresh air? Does the hvac system have a fresh air make up system (air recovery) connected to it?

the ceiling is the supply for my heating/cooling .. the kitchen is the first one from the air exchanger.. if i block it up it just moves to the next vent...

i dont blieve there is a make up air recovery as it is in my attic/ crawl space area ... which if you look in the picture the big side of my house with the garage has soffit running all the way around it.. the attic area has plenty of ventilation

 

[begreen]

What is curious is that you feel air flow when the system is off. That's why I asked about make up air. Normally an hvac system is a closed loop. If the power is off to the system, there is normally no airflow.

The house definitely sounds like it is experiencing the stack effect. Is there a whole house vent or attic fan? Are there an upstairs window open? Are there a lot of unsealed recessed ceiling cans in some rooms?

 

[iceman]

What is curious is that you feel air flow when the system is off. That's why I asked about make up air. Normally an hvac system is a closed loop. If the power is off to the system, there is normally no airflow.

The house definitely sounds like it is experiencing the stack effect. Is there a whole house vent or attic fan? Are there an upstairs window open? Are there a lot of unsealed recessed ceiling cans in some rooms?

whole house fan yes... but i fill it with insulation (up in the attic) and cover the front with shrink plastic.... upstairs windows are closed... there are some recessed lights that do have the holes in them but should be covered with insulation...
that was my thought before (lights.. ) but if they were sealed wouldnt air still be getting sucked in from somewhere else?

 

[vvvv]

any exterior chimney is a poor drafter & the house itself has a chimney effect but if u can crack a window near the fireplace & it works then...
if u had a neg. pressure prob i'd guess your cellar fireplace would stink during the summer when vents are running & windows aint open?
FYI= old wisdom sez NEVER TRY TO HEAT A HOUSE FROM THE S SIDE , this is because the prevalent N winds of winter result in N-S airflow in a house.
u have complicated scenario though interesting