Shut-off solenoid valves for curtains and air heaters

Every day, automatic garage doors and emergency doors are used many times in many places. The most important function is the drive, which is a kind of command center and is responsible for the reliable operation of the automation. When considering choosing the right drive, it is first of all worth answering the question: how many times on average will the gate or door be opened and closed? Why is this so important?

Let's imagine the following situation: after starting the drive, the gate rises, but at this time the thermal drive of the curtain control valve only begins its arduous work, lasting several dozen seconds. Then, cold air enters the room, effectively cooling it.

In turn, after closing the gate or door, the fans turn on, distributing hot air throughout the space until the building management system registers the temperature level previously set as appropriate, and this will take some time. This generates large losses of thermal energy and, consequently, results in high costs of heating buildings.

Check out Danfoss shut-off solenoid valves in the Onninen offer

In the case of facilities with a much larger number of automatically controlled gates and doors, such as car parks, railway stations or airport terminals, these losses are even greater. However, you can reduce heat energy losses and reduce heating costs by using Danfoss shut-off solenoid valves for curtains and air heaters.

Application of shut-off solenoid valves for curtains and air heaters:

• Automatic garage doors - underground parking lots
• Emergency doors (fire protection)
• Automatic doors (photocell) in facilities with variable traffic intensity, e.g. at stations
• Garage doors at loading ramps: logistics centers, warehouses

A typical application is automatic doors controlled by a photocell, which detects a passerby at a distance of approx. 3 m. A person covers this distance with 4-5 steps in about 3 seconds. When opening the door, the air curtain should create an effective thermal barrier.

How do shut-off solenoid valves work?

The essence of operation is based on the use of an electromagnet, which quickly changes the position of the regulating element, influencing the opening/closing of the medium flow through the valve. This phenomenon is commonly used, for example, in door locks and remotely controlled gates, and each of us has probably encountered them.

The main advantage of controlling solenoid valves and a motor actuator is the switching speed. This allows you to turn on the air curtain in less frequented rooms using a motion sensor that detects an approaching person, so the heating is only turned on for the time needed for a person to pass by, and not constantly. On a large facility with many air curtains, this results in significant energy savings.

Depending on the control system used, you can select a valve with the appropriate control voltage and coil power from a wide range of models, resulting in a solution that ensures instantaneous switching on and off of the flow. The opening time of the solenoid valve , depending on the pressure value, is from 0.05 to 0.2 s, while the opening time of the valve with an actuator is over 1 minute.

An example diagram of a heating installation using a solenoid valve in heaters of various power:

(*) - flow value for water at a differential pressure of 1 bar

Check out Danfoss shut-off solenoid valves in the Onninen offer