Time to breathe: The lost art of airing our homes

Once a national obsession, airing our living spaces has become less common in modern, well-insulated buildings

Luften is the practice, identified by different names in many countries of throwing open the windows in the morning and evening. Pictures: iStock

Airing. Come April, it was once a national obsession. Airing beds, airing rooms, airing the entire house. The energy-efficient joys of heat pumps, high insulation and air tightness with new technologies are disconnecting us from the tradition of flinging windows wide when we scented Spring’s approach. 

Now, in the best “A” rated homes — fresh exchanges of air are not allowed to breeze in before the heat pump goes off. It’s invited in by the cubic litre as needed through fans and vents in the most humid quarters of the house. In Germany, the practice of “luften” (ventilation) or “Stoßlüften” (shock ventilation) has persisted. It’s proving a bit of a headache for the German government as they strive like all European authorities to improve on their national carbon emissions.