Ventilation Systems in Northern Utah

Does your house feel stuffy, smell stale or fog up its windows in winter?

Stuffy rooms, stale smells and foggy winter windows usually mean your home is not trading enough indoor air for fresh outdoor air, and a ventilation system fixes that. Ventilation means moving stale, damp air out of the house and bringing filtered outdoor air in. Older homes leaked enough air through gaps and cracks to do some of this on their own. Newer and tighter homes keep heat in well, and they also keep cooking smells, shower steam and household fumes in. We install and repair whole-house ventilation systems, called ERVs and HRVs, along with the kitchen and bathroom exhaust fans that clear moisture and odors where they start.

Warning signs of poor ventilation

Water on the inside of your windows

When cold glass collects water drops or frost on the inside, the air in the house is holding more moisture than it can get rid of. Over a winter, that water stains sills, peels paint and feeds mildew in window corners.

Odors that hang around for hours

Fish from last night's dinner, a pet smell or a basement that always smells musty all point to air that is not being replaced. An air freshener covers the smell for a while, and the stale air stays put.

A closed-up house during inversion season

When a winter inversion holds haze over the valleys, most families keep doors and windows shut for weeks. Without a fan system bringing in filtered air, the same air circulates through the house day after day, and rooms feel heavy by evening.

Bathrooms that stay damp

A mirror that stays fogged, mildew on the ceiling or paint that bubbles near the shower tells you the bath fan is falling short. It may be too small, clogged with dust or not vented outdoors at all.

Common causes of ventilation problems

Homes built tight to save energy

Better windows, sealed attics and added insulation cut drafts and heating bills. They also cut the small air leaks that used to freshen the house, so moisture and odors build up unless a fan system takes over that job.

Exhaust fans that end in the attic

Some bath and kitchen fans were installed with ducts that stop in the attic, or the duct has come loose over the years. The damp air then condenses on cold roof boards and insulation instead of leaving the house.

Range hoods that only recirculate

A hood that pulls air through a filter and blows it back into the kitchen catches some grease. Steam, smoke and cooking smells stay in the room.

Old fans that are loud and weak

Fans wear out. Dusty blades, a tired motor or a stuck backdraft damper, the flap that keeps outdoor air from blowing back in, can leave a fan noisy while it moves very little air.

What to expect from a ventilation visit

We start by asking what you notice and where: which rooms feel stuffy, which windows sweat and which smells linger. Then we walk the house. We check how each bathroom and kitchen fan is ducted and whether it reaches the outdoors, measure humidity in a few rooms, and look at your furnace or air handler and ductwork, since a whole-house system often connects to them. Then we explain what we found, lay out your options and give you the price before any work starts. Depending on the house, the fix is one of these or a mix:

• ERV (energy recovery ventilator): a whole-house unit that pulls stale air out and brings filtered outdoor air in. Inside, the two airstreams pass through a core that moves heat and some moisture between them, so the fresh air comes in close to room temperature.
• HRV (heat recovery ventilator): works the same way but moves mostly heat, with little moisture. It suits homes that run damp in winter.
• Kitchen exhaust: a range hood or exhaust fan ducted to the outdoors to carry away smoke, grease and cooking smells.
• Bathroom exhaust: a fan sized for the room, with a sealed duct to the outdoors, to clear shower steam before it soaks into drywall and paint.

For an ERV or HRV, we mount the unit, run the fresh-air and exhaust lines to the outdoors, connect it to your ductwork or to its own vents, and balance the airflow so the house is neither pushed nor pulled. For exhaust fans, we repair or replace the fan and fix or reroute any duct that does not vent outside. Before we leave, we show you the controls and how to clean or change the filters. Repairs come with a warranty on parts and labor, and new installations come with a workmanship warranty.

Ventilation systems across Northern Utah

We install and repair ventilation from our home base in Brigham City. Every town we serve has cold winters, when houses stay shut for months, and hot, dry summers with seasonal dust and, some years, wildfire smoke.

Box Elder County: Brigham City, Perry, Willard, Mantua, Corinne and Tremonton. Freeze-thaw cycles and sub-zero nights mean long heating seasons, and that is when moisture builds up indoors.

Cache Valley: Logan, North Logan, Smithfield, Hyrum and Nibley. Winter inversions keep windows closed for long stretches, so filtered fresh air from an ERV or HRV matters more here. See ventilation systems in Hyrum for more on that town.

Weber and Davis County: North Ogden, Ogden, South Ogden and Layton. Older homes in established neighborhoods sit alongside newer subdivisions, and both can need better ventilation for different reasons: worn or missing fans in one, a tightly sealed shell in the other.

Related services

Ventilation brings fresh air in, and your ducts carry it through the house. If supply or return ducts leak or have pulled apart, duct sealing closes the gaps, and air duct cleaning clears out built-up dust and debris. Not sure what is behind the stale air? An indoor air quality assessment checks humidity, filtration, airflow and fresh-air paths first. Our indoor air quality services also cover humidifiers, dehumidifiers, air purifiers and UV lights. To keep fans, filters and the rest of your system checked every year, the VIP Maintenance Plan costs $240 a year and includes one 2-hour visit a year covering an 88-point HVAC and plumbing inspection, a 1-inch filter replacement and a written report, plus 10% off repairs and priority scheduling.

Schedule a ventilation visit

Call (435) 730-2536 Monday to Friday, 8 AM to 6 PM, or schedule online. We offer free estimates on new system installations, and financing is available through our lending partners. Your Comfort Heating & Air is licensed and insured. Let us know which rooms bother you most when you call.