Heating real estate is one of the most important topics that is currently discussed not only in the context of ecology, but also in the context of savings and reducing the costs of maintaining the facility. What is mechanical ventilation with heat recovery? And what is the difference between mechanical and gravitational ventilation?
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Air handling unit with heat recovery
Mechanical ventilation with heat recovery is another term for heat recovery. In optimal heating, the exchange of air is very important - it is removed from the inside of the building and replaced with fresh air from outside. Thanks to mechanical ventilation, the ability to exchange air is the same all year round, regardless of the weather conditions outside. A recuperator is a special technique that enables heat recovery from the air that is removed from the room. This energy is used to heat cold, fresh air before it enters the room. In addition to reducing heat loss, the use of mechanical ventilation improves air quality, which has a very beneficial effect on health. In facilities where mechanical ventilation is used, the amount of moisture in the rooms, as well as odors and carbon dioxide, can be reduced.
The air from outside is sucked into the ventilation ducts, through which it enters the heat exchanger - recuperator. Then it is heated, responsible for the warm air that is then removed outside the building. The recuperator allows you to recover thermal energy, thus reducing heating costs. Heat energy is released in the recuperator without mixing air masses. This is possible thanks to the special design of the entire system, thanks to the inlet and outlet ventilation channels.
The heart of the entire system is the ventilation unit . The device, which is powered by electricity, is responsible for air exchange in the room and the entire facility. Each recuperator has the so-called heat exchanger, depending on the office model, these may be counter-current, rotary or cross-flow heat exchangers. There are filters in both the inlet and outlet channels to clean the air. This is of great importance for health. Energy recovery and warming of the air sucked in from outside make it relatively easy to eliminate the problem of excessive air cooling. In practice, this means that less energy will have to be used to heat the air supplied to the room, which allows for real savings in heating costs.
Gravitational and mechanical ventilation - differences
In the past, only gravity ventilation was used in construction, but now it is increasingly replaced by mechanical ventilation with heat recovery. Gravitational ventilation uses the laws of physics related to the temperature difference between the air inside and outside the building, density and pressure. For the whole thing to work effectively, it is necessary to use appropriate air vents in the windows and ventilation ducts. Air exchange will only be effective if the ventilation holes are not covered in any way. The greatest advantages of gravity ventilation include low implementation and maintenance costs, but there are also significant disadvantages. In gravity ventilation, it is difficult to predict how the exchange of air masses will take place in practice. The process depending on physical factors is difficult to predict. It may also be responsible for large heat losses, which is an extremely uneconomical solution. In mechanical ventilation with heat recovery, air movement and exchange is possible thanks to special fans.
Mechanical ventilation allows you to control the intensity of airing, and the weather conditions outside have no impact on the effectiveness and efficiency of the exchange. The mechanical ventilation system with heat recovery will certainly be appreciated by allergy sufferers, because special filters help purify the air not only of allergens, but also of viruses and bacteria.
It is best to decide on mechanical ventilation at the building design stage, then you can make a precise design and avoid many construction problems.