ERV in Cold Wet Climate
christopherramos
| Posted in General Questions on
Hi everyone. The climate here in Southeast Alaska is notoriously wet. Our outdoor relative humidity is ~80% year round, and our 1% Cooling and 99% Heating temperatures are 69F and 19F respectively.
What effect would an ERV have on indoor humidity levels in such a wet climate? And would special precautions be needed to prevent condensation? I am particularly concerned about exhausting bathrooms.
I’ve seen lots of discussion on ERV’s in cold & dry climates, but none for cold & wet climates.
Thank you,
Chris
GBA Detail Library
A collection of one thousand construction details organized by climate and house part
Search and download construction details
Replies
ERV's will outperform HRV's in humid climates all else being equal. Being so cold, there is a possible chance of ice forming on the inlet or inside the core. I think there are plenty of threads about this already. I believe the newer models do a better job of resisting freeze but it could still be a possible problem.
Cold air doesn't hold much moisture, so when you take that 80% RH cold air and warm it up to room temperature it will be very dry.
Winter here tends to be pretty high RH as well, currently 32F and 70% RH outside. My ERV works just fine and if I over-ventilate, it will still reduce the indoor humidity bellow comfortable levels.