APPROVED DOCUMENT F AND ROOFLIGHTS - VENTILATION AND ROOFLIGHTS

When dwellings were built with open fireplaces and chimneys, high rates of ventilation inside the property tended to result – especially when a fire was lit or it was windy outside. Air was drawn out through the chimney was replaced by fresh air infiltrating through the leaky building fabric. While nobody can deny the satisfying feeling of standing next to a roaring fire on a cold day, we all recognise this scenario as belonging to a past time. As well-ventilated as the homes of old might have been, they were also harder to heat and keep warm. For that reason, generally speaking, homes are no longer built with functioning fireplaces or chimneys.