For centuries, homes were designed to suit the local climate, incorporating elements like verandas, overhangs, and breezeways to provide shade and promote natural cooling ventilation. This is no longer true and increasingly, houses are built airtight.
When the home is airtight, the makeup air might be drawn downward through appliance chimneys -- poisonous exhaust; you'll have to install a makeup air duct somewhere.
Ventilation can be achieved with the chimney effect, skylights or roof windows in an attic or cathedral ceiling or outblowing fans in upper level windows to exhaust air. Or place intake fans on the cooler side of the house and exhaust fans on the opposite side.
Double hung windows…create their own cross ventilation (or stack ventilation) by pulling outdoor air in through the lower half and exhausting indoor air through the top
A principal passive ventilation mechanism is stack effect -- the tendency of warm air to rise. Stack effect and pressure differentials will vary in their effectiveness at cooling a home based on a number of variables:
the difference in height between openings
the horizontal distance between openings
the number and sizes of openings
the relative placement and distribution of openings within the home and/or within rooms
the type of window operation (casement, double hung, awning, hopper, etc.)
climatic variables such as diurnal temperature swings
microclimatic and building conditions such as sunlight and shading
how effectively the openings are regulated
The most effective way to night flush a house with cool outdoor air is by using a whole house fan in a centrally located common area, drawing air from every open window, driving accumulated heat from the attic. Another option for whole house ventilation is to use an existing forced air duct system to circulate fresh air to rooms and exhaust indoor air out through the attic; circulation equipment installed in the attic draws fresh air through an intake port. Whole house fans can pre-cool the interior mass and thereby delay the need for air conditioning the following day.
