Best use of an air exchanger in a basement?

August 18, 2015 11:41 AM

Mini-mogur now has her own basement apartment (yay!) which is a new build with its own air exchanger. Weirdly for a basement apartment, though, it's really hot in her place (boo!). What's the best setting on the air exchanger to use (we have a choice of "Summer", "Mid-range" and "Maximum fan", which I think is mainly used just to get rid of fumes) for this time of year (Canada, summer, hot-by-our-standards)?

She also has a portable A/C in her bedroom, but it's still quite hot, if that helps any.

posted by Mogur to Home & Garden (6 answers total)

Can you post which model of air exchanger it is and how it is installed (i.e. where do the ducts go)? Are all the windows closed?
posted by ssg at 11:45 AM on August 18, 2015

Also, is it hotter inside the apartment than the outside air at night? During the day?
posted by ssg at 11:49 AM on August 18, 2015

Best answer: What happens if you just leave it off? It seems to me the place is hot because you're "exchanging" hot air into it from outside, which makes the AC work harder than it otherwise would have to. Unless there are musty basement odors that constantly need to be purged, I'd leave it off, draw the shades on any sunny windows, and blast the AC to keep it as cool as you wish.
posted by beagle at 2:15 PM on August 18, 2015

Response by poster: It's a Ven-Mar, ducted to low on the outside of the house. I am going to clean the filters tomorrow, as I suspect they've never been cleaned (we just bought the house 2 weeks ago). We also bought a small dehumidifier, as it's muggy down there.

Good point, re making the ac work too hard. I will give that a shot, too.
posted by Mogur at 5:35 PM on August 18, 2015

It sounds like you have an ERV or HRV, but Venmar makes both, plus plain air exchangers, I think. It makes a difference which one it is, especially if humidity is an issue. Can you check the model number?
posted by ssg at 5:52 PM on August 18, 2015

Response by poster: ssg, I'll take a look at the model number when I go to clean the filters tonight.

beagle, last night I tried switching to recirc (and did a couple of other things with sealing a window) and this morning mini-Mogur complained that it was too cold in her apartment! Thanks!
posted by Mogur at 4:51 AM on August 19, 2015