Short answer
Most houses in Sweden need no recurring OVK: one- and two-dwelling houses are exempt from recurring inspections. An initial inspection, before a new system is first used, is only required if the house has balanced ventilation (FT), an exhaust air heat pump (FX) or balanced ventilation with heat recovery (FTX). Houses with natural ventilation or mechanical extract without heat recovery are exempt from that too. Some terraced houses with a shared ventilation system fall under different rules than detached one- and two-dwelling houses. If you are unsure, contact the municipal building committee.
When is OVK required for a house?
OVK, the mandatory ventilation inspection, checks that the ventilation works as it should. The rules are in the Planning and Building Act, the Planning and Building Ordinance and Boverket’s regulations. The building owner is responsible for having OVK done where required, and it is carried out by a certified ventilation inspector.
A one- or two-dwelling house is not covered by the requirement for recurring inspections. An initial inspection is required before a new ventilation system is first used, for example in a newly built house, but only for FT, FX and FTX systems. Natural ventilation and mechanical extract without heat recovery are exempt from the initial inspection too.
Look after the ventilation anyway
Even without an inspection requirement, the house and the people in it do best with ventilation that works. You can do most of it yourself.
- Clean the vents and air inletsOnce a yearVacuum or wipe the extract vents in the kitchen, bathroom and laundry room and make sure the air inlets are open and clean. Do not turn the vents: their setting is adjusted for the right air flow.
- Replace the heat recovery unit filtersAs the manual saysThe filters are replaced as often as the manufacturer says, usually once or twice a year.
- Clean the exhaust ventilation filterAs the manual saysExhaust ventilation units and exhaust air heat pumps have a filter that needs cleaning or replacing. The manual gives the interval.
- Have the unit and ventilation ducts cleanedEvery few yearsVillaägarna advises cleaning the unit, fans and ducts every few years. A ventilation company can do it and check the air flows at the same time.
Sources
- Boverket: Mandatory ventilation inspection rules (Swedish) (opens in a new tab)
- Boverket: One- and two-dwelling houses and OVK (Swedish) (opens in a new tab)
- Villaägarna: Checking the ventilation (Swedish) (opens in a new tab)
This guide is general information. What applies to your house can depend on the municipality, the type of building and the installations, and then the sources have the final word.
