Most often, city apartments today have sealed plastic windows. Yes, and wooden entrance doors, property owners in high-rise buildings have long been replaced by insulated metal ones. A common house exhaust system is responsible for the discharge of exhaust air in such residential premises. The risers in high-rise buildings pass in all porches on all floors. But fresh air to enter the apartment because of the plastic windows and doors of a modern design is simply nowhere to go. Therefore, the owners of such real estate need to attend to the installation of additional supply devices that will be responsible for high-quality ventilation.
Types of supply equipment
In small apartments with plastic windows, the air flow is usually provided using special valves. Such devices are simply inserted into pre-made holes in the wall.
Owners of urban real estate of a large area are more likely to use more sophisticated equipment - air handling units to ensure air flow. For a large apartment, they are better suited because they provide much more efficient ventilation. Air injection into the premises when using PU is a result of the fans.
Owners of urban real estate today usually use special household compact equipment of this type. There are two types of such PU on the market. A supply unit for an apartment can be purchased, for example:
Most often, the first type of equipment is installed in apartments. Such installations are cheaper and quite capable of ensuring normal air exchange in all rooms at once. When using them, you just need to ensure the free movement of air through the rooms. If there are no gaps under the interior doors in an apartment with such a PU, holes are made in the bottom of their canvas below, which are subsequently covered with decorative grilles.
But for large urban residential real estate you can purchase, of course, and a more expensive universal PU. Such equipment provides more efficient ventilation and is mounted in rooms with the simultaneous installation of air ducts.
Of course, it’s worth choosing an air supply unit for the apartment with heating the air coming from the street. Almost all modern models of such equipment have such functionality, both ordinary and universal.
Supply ventilation design
Thus, the choice of specific equipment for creating a pleasant microclimate in a city apartment depends primarily on its area and volume. For a small Khrushchev, for example, it is necessary first of all to calculate the required number of valves, and for a large one, the productivity of PU.
The latter indicator in modern household PUs is usually regulated. However, it is nevertheless necessary to select an air supply unit for an apartment in productivity in such a range that it subsequently provides at least one air exchange in the rooms.
Where to place
Also, when designing, of course, you should decide on the place of installation of the valves or PU. Conventional, not too powerful PUs in most cases are mounted directly in the apartment. Such equipment has a rather aesthetic design and is usually hung in one of the rooms next to a window or a balcony door.
More cumbersome and noisy universal, supplemented by air ducts, air handling units for apartments, as already mentioned, are used less often and are most often mounted on the ceilings of loggias. Sometimes they are hung on the facade of the building next to the window.
Supply valves in urban apartments are most often mounted under windows behind heating radiators. This arrangement subsequently provides heating of the air coming from the street in winter. Sometimes valves in apartments are mounted and simply on the wall next to a window or radiator.
Installation calculation
In order to choose the right universal PU, you should first determine the volume of the apartment. That is, just multiply its height, width and length. For example, for an apartment with an area of 30 m 2 with a ceiling height of 3 m for a single air exchange, you should choose an air supply unit with a capacity of:
Sometimes ventilation units are also selected for the apartment , capable of providing double air exchange. In our example, the required PU capacity will be equal to 180 m 3 / h, respectively.
Calculation of the number of valves
With such devices in the kit, as in the case of PU, there is an instruction in which their performance is indicated. It is quite difficult to accurately calculate the number of valves needed for an apartment. The fact is that the companies that produce it indicate the performance of such equipment with a fully open damper. In urban apartments, due to not too much pressure, the valve shutter is almost always in some of the intermediate positions. That is, the valve performance can vary in a rather large range, depending on pressure differences.
Typically, owners of urban real estate do not spend time on complex, accurate calculations of the number of valves, but simply install them, one for each person living in the apartment. Such a number of holes in the outer walls for effective ventilation in most cases is quite enough.
The technology of installing supply air valves in the apartment
The installation work of such equipment is usually done as follows:
marking in the form of a circle on the wall;
according to the marking, a series of holes are drilled in the wall with a punch using a punch;
with the help of a hammer and a chisel, wall material is knocked out within the contour of the circle;
the infiltration pipe is wrapped with an insulator and inserted into the hole so that it protrudes slightly into the room;
soundproofing material is inserted into the pipe;
lubricate the contour of the hole and the edges of the decorative lattice of the valve with silicone sealant;
insert the grill into the duct;
Mount the insides of the valve.
At the final stage, the filter washer is attached to the inner wall.
Installation of forced ventilation in the apartment step by step
Installation of ordinary, not too powerful, PU in the premises of urban residential real estate is carried out approximately according to the same technology as the valves. First, in the room, according to the size of the installation, holes for fasteners are drilled on the wall. Next, the output under the installation pipe is knocked out. In the next step, the PU is simply hung on the wall. The pipe is then displayed on the street.
Installation of universal installations is carried out according to a more complex scheme. In this case, also the PU itself is pre-mounted on the loggia ceiling or the facade of the house. Next, the main duct is connected to it. Then:
a sleeve stretches across the apartment;
from the main duct through tees, branches are laid in different rooms.
Useful Tips
Thus, when using modern equipment to make the microclimate in the apartment more pleasant and healthy is completely uncomplicated. It will be quite simple to install both valves and compact PUs with your own hands. But in order for the fresh air ventilation in the apartment to work as efficiently as possible later, when installing equipment and designing, it is worth adhering to the following recommendations of specialists:
When choosing a PU, you need, among other things, to pay attention to its functionality. It is desirable that it be additionally equipped not only with an air heater, but also with a humidifier, as well as with a system for automatically changing parameters, for example, on weekdays.
When installing universal controllers, air ducts should be laid in such a way that the number of turns is minimal. Otherwise, the ventilation system in the apartment may turn out to be too noisy.
More sophisticated and expensive equipment
For very large urban real estate, experts advise to purchase not a supply, but a supply and exhaust unit. For an apartment of a significant volume, such equipment is best suited insofar as when it is used, the exhaust air from the premises will also be removed by force.
The installation of the supply and exhaust installation in the apartment is made with the additional laying of the exhaust ducts. The equipment responsible for the removal and supply of air, in this case, is often assembled in one housing.
Experts also advise purchasing a supply and exhaust system for an apartment with a recuperator. In this case, the air entering the premises will subsequently be automatically heated from the exhaust air. Inside the recuperator there are many plates through which heat is transferred from one stream to another. Such additional equipment works without connecting to the mains.
At the same time, the supply units for apartments with recovery providing artificial air venting are, of course, more expensive than conventional ones. However, such equipment will allow property owners to additionally save on heating and the electricity needed to heat the air coming from the street.