Ventilating, airing, purifying. What’s the difference?

How do you ensure that the indoor air in your home is healthy? Is it better to ventilate, air or purify the air? And what is the difference between these different approaches? Allow Daikin to explain.

Ventilating, airing and purifying

The house is a place where daily activities are as numerous as they are varied. We cook, wash, sleep, breathe there. It’s where we live! However, we tend to forget that all these activities pollute our home’s indoor air. Scientific studies even show that the air we breathe at home is, in some cases, up to five times more polluted than outdoor air. The result? We develop allergies, are tired, and suffer from many other complaints. That’s why it’s important to adequately replenish the air in our homes. Okay, but how do we do that? Is it better to ventilate our homes, air them or purify the air? And what is the difference between these methods? Don’t panic, Daikin can answer your questions.

By no means the same thing!

The verbs to “ventilate”, “air” and “purify” are not synonymous when it comes to the replenishing your home’s indoor air. They do describe three ways of refreshing the air, but there are subtle differences:

• Ventilating: Ventilation of a residence is a continuous process that takes place day and night. Using a ventilation system, stale indoor air is extracted from the home and replaced with fresh, healthy air. Ventilating your home allows you to get rid of allergens, moisture and microbes that are present in the air.
• Airing: airing is a temporary measure that consists of creating an air current inside your house. When you open your windows and/or doors, the stale air is extracted and carries with it the harmful substances it contains.
• Purifying: to purify your home’s indoor air, you’ll need an air purifier. This electrical appliance removes bad odours and harmful substances, often causing allergies, from the room in which it is installed. Using Streamer technology, ions are propelled into the stale air and transform the harmful substances into proteins, which are then removed by oxidation.

Which is the best technique?

When we find that a room lacks oxygen or smells musty, we usually open a window, thinking that the air will be properly replenished. However, this is far from being the case, particularly in new builds and recently renovated homes where the level of insulation is extremely high. To remedy this problem and ensure effective replenishment of the indoor air, the most effective solution is therefore to ventilate your home correctly. To do this, a ventilation system is essential! All of Daikin’s ventilation systems also use heat recovery, so that the fresh air that enters the home is always warm, unlike the air that enters through an open door or window. So there’s no need to turn up the heat when you’re airing a room and worry about your next energy bill.

Do you want to be sure you are breathing the purest air there is? That’s why it’s advisable to combine your ventilation system with an air purifier. This device optimises well-being and purifies large volumes of air without emitting any noise. Daikin even offers devices combining air purification and humidification ensuring you are breathing air at the ideal humidity level.

When should you air your home?

In principle, installing a ventilation system and/or an air purifier will relieve you of the need to air your home, but an additional supply of fresh air may still be useful in some cases:

• When you have just used paint, glue or other chemicals in your home.
• Every morning, after you get up.
• When you organise parties with lots of people present.

In these few cases, airing your home for a quarter of an hour is more than enough. Leaving your doors and windows open any longer could cool your home’s walls, which would require more time to heat them up again (and will also cost you more money). Don’t forget to turn off the heating either when you air your home, to help save the environment and money on your energy bill.

Do you also want to enjoy a pleasant indoor climate and fresh, healthy air? Contact us for more information about our ventilation systems and air purifiers.