Yeah, HRVs are helpful, but they're not a silver bullet. Had moisture issues myself and thought ventilation would fix it—nope. Turned out my gutters were clogged and the grading around the house was off, letting water pool near the foundation. Once I sorted that out, things improved fast. Definitely worth checking your exterior drainage before throwing more money at indoor solutions...
Good point on the drainage—I had similar headaches with my 1920s place. Thought insulation and sealing everything up tight would fix my heating bills and damp issues, but nope. Turned out the old stone foundation needed repointing and some exterior waterproofing. Once that was sorted, the indoor climate improved dramatically. Curious if anyone here's tackled exterior waterproofing or foundation repairs before diving into insulation upgrades...seems like a logical first step, especially with older homes.
You're spot-on about tackling the foundation and waterproofing first. I've seen a lot of folks jump straight into insulation upgrades hoping it'll solve everything, but if moisture's creeping in from below, you're just sealing in trouble. Had a client last year with a 1930s bungalow—same story. Once we addressed the exterior drainage and repointed the foundation, the difference inside was night and day. Insulation afterward was icing on the cake, but definitely not step one...sounds like you're on the right track.
Went through something similar with my old farmhouse—thought insulation would fix the drafty rooms, but nope. Had to tackle drainage and waterproofing first. Once that was sorted, insulation made a huge difference. You're definitely doing things in the right order...worth the extra hassle for sure.
Totally relate to this—worked on a cottage last summer that felt like an icebox no matter what we did. Turns out, sealing up the moisture issues first was key. Once that was handled, insulation finally did its job. You're on the right track, hang in there...it pays off.