Overview of the UK Residential Ventilation Market and Initiatives to Improve the Quality of the Installed Systems

New homes currently being built within the UK all incorporate some type of ventilation system, the majority of which are of the fixed mechanical fan type. These generally come in three generic designs known as single room background ventilators, continuous mechanical systems and continuous mechanical systems with heat recovery. Installation, inspection and commissioning of these systems is covered by Building Regulations, and there are training schemes in place which allow individuals to become Competent Persons to undertake these tasks. Regulation 42 of the Building Regulations (2010) requires builders to provide evidence appertaining to the installation, inspection and commissioning process to be lodged with the Building Control Body within 5 days of the tests being carried out. The method of testing and reporting is described in a Domestic Ventilation Compliance Guide, but since 2010 there has been a growing body of evidence cataloguing problems with the quality of work being undertaken. This has led to organisations such as BSRIA developing initiatives to assist all the parties involved in the design, installation, inspection, and commissioning processes to improve their outputs.