2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Having grown a good harvest, it is very important to preserve it. For the storage of vegetables, fruits, pickles and jams, gardeners allocate cellars or equipped basements. In ordinary cellars, especially in an apartment building, the air humidity is usually increased. Therefore, be sure to create optimal conditions for storing your crop. The best option for preserving vegetables is to ventilate the cellar and ensure the temperature and humidity parameters in it. For this, it is necessary to create supply and exhaust ventilation. A proper ventilation system will prevent the formation of mold and premature spoilage of vegetables
But if only humidity is regulated by ventilation, then the required temperature is ensured by good thermal insulation of the room and ventilation ducts.
Waterproofing
The main task when arranging a cellar for storing vegetables is insulation from moisture. It will not be difficult to make waterproofing yourself. First, prepare the walls for insulation and treat them with a special solution. If cracks have formed on the walls of the basement, they are crumbling, level and strengthen them with building material. The most common and inexpensive option is the use of cement mortar. From above, the cement is covered with a putty and fixed with a primer. Thoroughly prime joints, corners, seams and all moisture permeable areas. The next step is to cover the wall with insulating material. A large selection of waterproofing compounds is currently presented in stores. Each agent acts in a different way: some penetrate the wall surface, creating a waterproofing layer, while others, on the contrary, form a visible layer on the wall surface. A high-quality waterproofing material, along with protecting the storage from moisture, will not allow moisture penetration from groundwater or pipe breakthroughs. With capillary protection, which prevents the penetration of water through small cracks, it is better to treat the ceiling and floor in addition to the walls.
Ventilation creation
In addition, you can regulate the humidity in the simplest way, take a box with sawdust, quicklime and salt and put it in the basement, all these substances perfectly absorb moisture. But this method does not replace the hood, it is simply necessary, even the simplest design.
It is not difficult to make ventilation on your own, you only need to make a little effort and patience. Determine the size of the cellar and its height. Based on the data, make a simplified calculation of the minimum section of the ventilation duct by applying the formula: one square meter of the cellar requires 25-27 square centimeters of the duct. So that there is no smell of mustiness, mold and bacteria growth in the cellar, a specific air exchange rate is needed, it can go up to 2 - 4 times per hour. Keep in mind that excessive airing causes drying of vegetables, for this, correctly calculate the diameter of the duct. In most cases, 120 mm pipes are used in practice, which provide effective ventilation.
Do not make a mistake with the installation of the duct. It is better to place them in diagonally opposite corners for maximum circulation of the cellar volume. To create ventilation, PVC pipes are often chosen. The supply pipe is placed at a height of about half a measure from the floor, the hood is mounted in the opposite corner. The air circulates itself due to its different density: warm air from the cellar tends upward, cold street air goes down. This design is called natural supply and exhaust ventilation. It is advisable not to use asbestos pipes, they affect the lungs of a person, causing illness. Cover the exhaust duct with a "fungus", it will protect the ventilation duct from precipitation.
To control the air exchange processes, install louvers at the inlet of the exhaust air duct. At the end of autumn, the supply air duct should be closed in order to avoid a decrease in air humidity in the cellar and hypothermia of vegetable crops. Insulate the hood outside to prevent condensation from forming. Air ducts can be made by yourself using planed boards, up to 40 mm, in the form of square channels, carefully fitted to each other. Saturate duct boards with hot bitumen or paint over.
Thus, any gardener can make a supply and exhaust ventilation device. It is not difficult and does not require any special skills.
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