What’s a Suncourt Airiva Heat Recovery Ventilator?
Suncourt manufactures two heat recovery ventilator models also known as an HRV, Air to Air Heat Exchanger, or whole house ventilator. The Airiva Heat Recovery Ventilator is used for mechanical ventilation of a home or light commercial space.
What do I use an HRV for?
Many older generation homes had cracks and small openings that allowed outside air to enter the home and naturally ventilate it. (Think of grandma’s drafty old house in the wintertime) Today’s modern, more energy efficient homes are tightly sealed to keep heated or cooled air from escaping to save energy dollars. Tightly sealing a home or building comes at the price of proper ventilation or air exchanges inside the home. An HRV is required to provide needed ventilation in a tight home or building.
Should I care about the number of air exchanges I get per day?
Yes you should. Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) issues are in the news more and more. The EPA states that indoor air quality is one of the top 5 environmental issues. In addition, the EPA says that IAQ can be 5 to 10 times more polluted than outdoor air, even in cities where air quality is poor. Improper ventilation in homes and buildings is being linked to respiratory problems like asthma and rising rates of sickness. It is also linked to mold. The moisture we put into the air from such activities as breathing, showering, cooking, etc. has no way to escape. Excess moisture on your windows is another sign of improper ventilation. Many things in your home outgas toxins into the living space such as chemicals used for cleaning, new carpeting, paint, certain types of wood in cabinets and furniture, the list goes on and on. Consider that you are breathing this air over and over again when you are not getting proper air exchanges in your home. The Airiva Heat Recovery Ventilator also can reduce toxic levels of Radon or Carbon Monoxide gas in your home by exhausting this air from your home while bringing in fresh air from outside.
How does a Heat Recovery Ventilator Work?
An HRV brings fresh outside air into your home and exhausts the stale toxic air from inside the home. Can’t I just open some windows? Yes you can if you live in an area that has temperate weather year round. Think about the number of days per year that the temperature ouside is the same as the temperature inside. A heat recovery ventilator also helps maintain your security by bringing in fresh air while the windows and doors are locked. The Airiva HRV has a central core made of polypropylene that is a very efficient material for transferring energy or temperature. The core is made up of separate channels so that the fresh air stream and the stale air stream can pass through the core without mixing. While passing through the core, energy or heat is transferred from one air stream to the other. This means that the heat from your outgoing warm house air is captured by the core and transferred to the incoming fresh cold outside air in the winter. In the summer, your stale outgoing cool inside air cools the incoming fresh warm outside air. In a typical installation, the Airiva HRV has an efficiency rating of roughly 70% to 80% depending on model and type of installation.
Which Airiva Heat Recovery Ventilator model is right for me?
The Airiva Heat Recovery Ventilator model HE100 produces an airflow of about 100 CFM in a typical installation. The HE100 HRV will give at least 8 full air exchanges in homes up to 2500 square feet. The Airiva Heat Recovery Ventilator model HE150 produces an air flow of about 120 CFM in a typical installation. The HE150 HRV will give at least 8 full air exchanges in homes up to 3000 square feet.
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