Oh ok, what does one of them look like? I don't suppose you can describe what one looks like?
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Home energy efficiency
- Thread starter Pow-Lo
- Start date
That should be fused down as well. Mr Turpin should have connected it via something that looks similar to this.
I'll go up in the loft and have a look tomorrow. I've been up once already and couldn't find anything at all.
It could be hidden in the loft or possibly
in the meter cupboard.
Hopefully it's not piggybacked onto
the ringmain without a fuse spur switch.
It should be clearly marked mate if it's not right next to the unit and obvious what it does. Good luck.
At the risk of stating the bleeding obvious, which in fairness is required in this case
, track the power cable back from the fan unit - I believe, but stand to be corrected, that Building Regs state something along the lines of ‘the isolation switch should be readily accessible’ but there is a fair chance it’ll be in the loft as that’s the easiest way of doing it.
I asked Mr. Turpin on the phone and he said there was no switch to turn it off. Is that a breach of building regs and if so, is there much I can do about it?At the risk of stating the bleeding obvious, which in fairness is required in this case
I'd say it is. I have one of these in one of my rentals and I've just looked in the installation instructions. It clearly states that it should be wired via a means of disconnecting it from the mains - ie a switch of some sort. You must be able to isolate it in an emergency as suggested by the other Mr Turpin in a previous post. But also to carry out any maintenance that might be required.
As an aside I did have some tenants who decided they could hear it humming at night and switched it off. The loft was running in condensation within a week. I suggested they turn it back on or go and live in the park.
The power consumption on these units is low. Between 15 and 30 watts typically so I doubt it's adding much to your power costs.
As an aside I did have some tenants who decided they could hear it humming at night and switched it off. The loft was running in condensation within a week. I suggested they turn it back on or go and live in the park.
The power consumption on these units is low. Between 15 and 30 watts typically so I doubt it's adding much to your power costs.
It is a very simple job to put a dual pole switch in. literally cut the cable to the unit and join it together again with the switch unit. I don’t think a sparks will charge for more than an hour of labour, switch is around a tennerish.
I have a tenant who switches the movement controlled extractors in the bathrooms off all the time as ‘they are noisy, despite them being switched on again at inspections. I explained why they were there - house is only about four years old so essential - I also explained that the next rent increase would be 10% if he didn’t comply (I haven't increased the pandemic as he is self employed in a business that has been impacted) and the bathrooms would require an expensive deep clean which will come from his deposit come the time he vacates. I would guess that did the trick.
I don't understand why there is condensation in the loft. That should ventilated at the eaves or vents in tiles and/or at ridge tiles.
Ok, I’ve just been up in the loft and there is no switch. There is a switch outside the loft, which I incorrectly assumed was a light for the loft. The switch seems to make the vent fan work at a higher speed!At the risk of stating the bleeding obvious, which in fairness is required in this case
I’m going to call the manufacturer now and see what they say. Mrs P looked on their website and it seems they only supply them but fitting is undertaken by an the buyer’s choice of electrician. If that’s the case, I might well be calling my solicitor if it hasn’t been installed properly although I doubt she can do much about it now.
See post immediately above.
I’m not worried about the cost of it, it’s more that it’s flooding the upstairs with freezing cold air. Also, I’m now mildly concerned that I can’t turn the f’ing thing off in the event of an emergency.
No me neither. It's an old building and does have a few holes for ventilation in the loft. But they don't seem to work without help from the positive air pump. It works and I don't pay the electric bill so why worry.
I'm guessing the previous owner fitted it themselves then. Or got a mate in who knows what he's doing. Not.
It's not worth the stress ringing the solicitors. Just get a reputable local sparky in to have a look and fit an isolator switch if required. It's a quick and cheap job and you can put your feet up.
Wonder if the outlet was through a vent tile?
I still don't get why the air is pumped into the house and not to the outside!! Is there a filter in the unit??
I'm no expert but the theory is that they draw air in through the loft and create a positive pressure in the building which moves air out through the trickle vents and other various holes which older properties tend to have. I think the fact that it keeps condensation down in the loft is just the fact that it's moving air in the loft space. Sounds like a load of witchcraft to me but it was already installed and it does keep the loft dry.
Positive Pressure Ventilation in Your Home
Can positive pressure ventilation improve the air quality and reduce condensation? Get all the answers here including the advantages and disadvantages.
www.eco-home-essentials.co.uk
This explains it in more detail.
Pow-Lo ’s hovel is over 100 years old so it is highly unlikely there is any felt under the roof slates….if so ventilation in the attic isn’t going to be an issue.
As I understand it the pump thing simply pulls filtered fresh air into the hovel and as above that will push stale air out through probably dozens of ‘character’ cracks and gaps. While there is probably benefit in terms of humidity control by definition it’s not only pulling in cold air but also pushing warm air out. That may be at least partially responsible for the heating bills?
if a survey was done it might be interesting to see if they made any comment..pound to a penny they didn’t….
Do you know what the EPC rating was when you bought it (you should)? Expect it was pretty bad, as you would expect for a property of that age.
As I understand it the pump thing simply pulls filtered fresh air into the hovel and as above that will push stale air out through probably dozens of ‘character’ cracks and gaps. While there is probably benefit in terms of humidity control by definition it’s not only pulling in cold air but also pushing warm air out. That may be at least partially responsible for the heating bills?
if a survey was done it might be interesting to see if they made any comment..pound to a penny they didn’t….
Do you know what the EPC rating was when you bought it (you should)? Expect it was pretty bad, as you would expect for a property of that age.
I went up into the loft and there’s definitely no isolation switch. I called the technical department of the manufacturer and he said that there should be but some electricians can be a bit lazy and wire the unit into an existing circuit without fitting a switch. I told him that all I could find was what looked like a transformer and a fuse box and he said to pull the fuse, which I’ve done and the fan has now stopped. Job done.
I‘ve called an electrician and waiting for him to get back to me; we have a few jobs that need doing anyway.
The surveyor did mention it and went on to warn us to be aware that there might be, or have been, damp. We’ve had three instances of damp, one from stupidity and two from incompetence. All have been rectified by us. The previous owners, whilst academically pretty bright, had zero common sense and most likely had it fitted instead of attempting to find out where the damp was coming from.
EPC rating is E or F. I get confused between our council tax banding and EPC letters, can never remember which is which.
The loft is very well ventilated but another layer of insulation wouldn’t go amiss.
Sorry if sucking eggs here….Re,the loft ‘being well ventilated more insulation won’t go amiss’ the purpose of the insulation to to keep cold air away from the ceilings and not to stop ventilation. Whoever adds the extra insulation (it’s an easy diy job) needs to take care not to stop ventilation through the attic or you will have problems.
woukd be interested in seeing the ‘transformer’ - any chance of a picture?