The pandemic that arose in 2019 forced governments to take strict lockdown decisions, making staying at home the only safe option to survive it. Since most people’s daily activities take place inside spaces, the atmosphere inside the home has a significant impact on the health and safety of the population, with indoor air pollution augmenting  damaging effects on health. Good home ventilation can help balance the right air indoors to enable physical and mental well-being. Read on further, for ventilation tips to help replace bad air with good, fresh air.

1. Windows placed diagonally with a buck mesh and sheer curtains inside allow for instant cross-ventilation in the interior for homes. It helps to keep the windows open without worrying about insects invading the indoors. 
2. Massive glass walls on the south and the west usually remain shut due to the heat intensity coming from those directions. It’s best to ensure that the prevailing wind direction of the site/city is taken into account and that fenestrations are placed in accordance to maximize the airflow.
3. Most traditional homes in hotter climates in India have some amount of perforated facade in their architectural design. Kerala has trellis sit-outs, while Rajasthan has sandstone jalis. In contemporary homes, one can choose from a range of options such as louvres, handmade ceramic tile jali, terracotta jali etc. For visual privacy and filtering air and light, getting one of these jaalis can be a good option; they force the wind into slits, thus increasing their speed (Bernoulli’s principle), ensuring excellent airflow inside the house. 
4. For stand-alone houses, a courtyard is one of the best ways to ensure that even the heart or the core of the house stays exceptionally well-ventilated. It also helps in cooling down a house and thus, saving your bills from escalating.
5. Designing the kitchen in the sunniest corner of the house, ensures that it stays dry. Exhaust fans draw air from a particular location and vent it to the outside. Powerful exhausts in the kitchens and toilets of the house are a must, and openable windows, if the location permits for it.
6. Natural Elements- Keeping windows open in the morning and evening, helps cool the house down considerably. Installing potted plants near the western or Southern windows can help in cutting down the heat. Even a tiny water body near a window with a good breeze can cool the breeze that enters the home. 

Ventilation is essential for comfort in the home; proper ventilation prevents air pollutants from affecting the health of the family and home. Without adequate ventilation, a home or building can become a house of static air, where bacteria and carbon build-up, making the indoor air unsafe. Like we do breathing exercises to have good health; similarly, buildings need to breathe in order to live well, and have amplified performance.