Installation of air-handling units. Fresh air unit

What to do if there was a shortage of oxygen in the house, the air is saturated with unpleasant odors, and the surfaces in the rooms are covered with condensate? Probably, the reason for this - insufficient level of ventilation of housing. Eliminate these negative factors allows the installation of air-supply units for air ventilation.

What is fresh air ventilation?

Supply air , or forced ventilation refers to devices that use air to exchange air in rooms by injecting streams with fans. The work of the latter creates areas of excess pressure, the presence of which contributes to the expulsion of exhaust air.

When the air handling unit is operated, the flows of the working air medium enter the room in several ways. Pass through the networked air ducts or penetrate through street entry points. The most effective scheme of supply ventilation is a combination of elements of forced and natural exhaust systems.

Types

Depending on the scale of the action, compact air-handling units are divided into general and local systems. Let's consider features of each of the presented solutions.

Local ventilation provides air exchange not in all rooms, but only in a separate part of the facility. Most often, such solutions are resorted to when it is necessary to clean up space in production workshops where a high concentration of harmful substances is observed.

In turn, the general air-handling unit allows the organization of fresh air supply simultaneously to all premises, without division into service of local zones.

Design

The main constructive elements of ventilation systems of the supply air type include the following:

• Fan - provides the movement of specified volumes of air in the room.
• Filter - cleans the space of dust, carcinogens.
• Silencer - allows to reduce the overall noise level during the operation of the system.
• Calorifer - heats the air distributed by the fan in the winter.
• Check valve - prevents the outflow of fresh, cleaned and heated air from the premises when switching off forced ventilation.

Features of choice

Defining criteria for the ventilation system of the supply air system is the maximum possible pressure in the system and the air pressure, which is capable of issuing the unit. Selecting an electric supply unit must also take into account the operating temperature range, the dimensions of the indoor unit. All the necessary parameters are calculated at the design stage.

Characteristics of the air-handling unit

What does the air conditioning have? It differs in such parameters:

• Air consumption - the volume of the working medium that the system can pump for an hour (measured in m ³ / hour).
• Pressure - the level of resistance of air ducts, which must overcome the installation at a given air flow rate.
• Parameters and source of coolant. As a means, which is responsible for the heating of airspace, there can be a heater or hot water flowing through the pipes.
• Source of refrigeration. Here, the characteristics of the chiller (refrigerating machine) or of the Freon circuit appear to be in the foreground.
• The level of autonomy is the parameters that the device is capable of supporting in automatic mode.

Helpful Tips

Installation of air-handling units in the form of a monoblock for general ventilation of premises requires a serious approach. Therefore, here you should pay attention to some important points. So, the hot water that comes from central heating can not be used to increase the temperature of the ventilated air. As practice shows, attempts to implement such a plan do not yield positive results. Ventilation inefficiently heats the air in the conducting channels with the onset of frost. The combination of systems negatively affects the efficiency of heating.

If the installation of air-handling units involves the installation of a refrigerating section, in this case the ducts of the forced air supply system are covered with heat-insulating materials. For these purposes, fit almost any common means of a thickness of at least 40 mm.

If the installation is supplemented with a water heater, a dual anti-frost protection is required. It is advisable to install the thermostat behind the heater and the sensor for measuring the temperature of the coolant.

After the installation of the air handling units has been carried out, it is recommended that they be periodically inspected and serviced. The main mass of failures that arise in the operation of such units is the result of untimely cleaning of the filters, balancing of the fans, checking the state of electrical components and the efficiency of the fans.

When planning the scale of the air-handling unit, it is extremely important to organize the correct movement of air flows. Fresh, cleaned air from the street should fall, first of all, in living rooms (living room, bedroom, nursery), then move to the corridor and go into the grilles in the kitchen and in the bathrooms. The development of a well-thought-out scheme by specialists during the installation of the air-handling unit eliminates the spread of polluted air and unpleasant odors through the premises.

Supply installation - price

At present, the cost of domestic ventilation units of compulsory action ranges from 1500 to 3000 rubles. To this sum it is necessary to add installation of the system by professional masters, which often costs 50% of the amount paid for the supply installation. The self-assembly of the vent valve allows you to save money . Let's figure out how to cope with this task.

Preparing for installation

Before installing the inlet valves it is necessary to make sure that the ventilation system of the building is functioning properly. To do this, it is enough to open the windows, then bring a piece of thin paper to the ventilation vent. If the ventilation is working properly, the latter will be pulled into the shaft. Use for this purpose matches or a lighted candle is unacceptable, since in the presence of combustible gases in the ducts, a fire hazard is likely to occur. If the segment is slightly attracted to the ventilation hole, care must be taken to clean the air-conducting paths.

Installation of fresh air ventilation

At present, compact supply systems of local action have become widespread. Such units are easy to install and have proved to be a reliable, energy-saving means for ventilation of individual rooms.

Local installations are really small. However, despite the small size, such systems provide a noticeable influx of heated or cooled, purified air into the room. Inside the compact box, there is a fan for supplying air from the street, a cleaning filter and automation that controls the operation of the devices.

For the installation of a local air-handling unit, the following sequence of actions is performed:

1. The installation site is selected. As practice shows, the installation of such systems seems to be the most rational in premises where a large crowd of people is observed.
2. To begin with, the appropriate markup is created, after which a hole in the wall breaks through.
3. The ventilation is installed on the front surface near the window or balcony, as high as possible directly under the ceiling.
4. After completing the opening, the telescopic ducts are installed. On the outside of the walls are put on protective caps.
5. Finally, the entire system is installed in the assembly.

As you can see, installation of a domestic air-handling unit is not difficult. The main task is to break through a fairly solid supporting wall. To do this, you will need to find the necessary equipment, tools, as well as personal protective equipment.

If you plan to work in a high-rise building, and reach for the place of installation from the outside through windows or a balcony there is no possibility, it is better to involve specialists in the implementation of the task.