Interzone air movement and its effect on condensation in houses

 The work is concerned with measuring interzone air movement and investigating its effect on condensation in a traditionally built house. Air flows through a doorway between the lower and upper floors of a house were measured using a single tracer gas technique. To study the effect of temperature difference on interzone air flows, the lower floor of the house heated to various temperatures in the range of 18-350C using thermostatically controlled heaters. The upper floor was unheated, Two portable SF-systems fitted with electron capture detectors were employed for the measurement of interzonal air flow. The concentration of tracer gas and the temperature difference between the two floors were used to estimate the heat and mass transfer through the doorway, Results were compared with the values predicted by the existing algorithms for two zone enclosures. The doorway coefficient of discharge was found to be a function of the temperature difference between the floors of the house, In the second part of the paper) the effect of interzone air movement on condensation is considered. A two-zone moisture transfer model was established- and the effect of a kitchen extract fan oa the air flow patterns in the house is discussed.