ERV Energy Recovery Ventilation Systems Reduce Long Term Costs and Improve Indoor Air Quality

ERV Energy Recovery Ventilation Systems Reduce Long Term Costs and Improve Indoor Air Quality

Is the indoor air your breathe is as fresh and healthy as it can be?

As building science professionals have known for some time, an effective ventilation strategy is an absolute requirement for all homes. Mechanical ventilators exchange air inside the home with fresh air from the outside. This helps to reduce indoor pollution levels, and greatly increases the comfort level inside the home.
Many ventilation designs are including Energy Recovery Ventilators (ERVs) to improve the system efficiency. Besides providing controlled ventilation, ERVs are able to filter, humidify, dehumidify, heat, or cool the incoming fresh air. The most popular design of ERVs utilizes a desiccant wheel to remove both heat and a significant amount of moisture from the incoming air, which reduces the load on the air-conditioning system. But while ventilators and ERVs can add tremendously to the comfort and efficiency of a home, they must be installed correctly.
One of the more recent developments in the ‘green’ technology industry is the creation of environmentally-friendly buildings that use energy-efficient technologies to reduce power consumption.
Energy consultants point out that creating ‘green’ buildings and improving the air quality inside such facilities utilizing ERV can and do go hand-in-hand. ERV Systems that reduce demand for energy while improving ventilation are increasingly in demand.
ERV – Energy Recovery Ventilation systems saves energy, increases indoor air quality, reduces contaminates and odors.
The use of ERV technology “energy recovery ventilation systems,” or ERVs. Such systems are designed to reduce energy consumption and improve indoor air quality (IAQ) by capturing and recycling building energy to humidify, pre-cool or dehumidify incoming air.
ERVs, the research first said, are most popular in areas with more extreme outdoor temperatures, like Northern states where winters can get quite cold, or Southern states where very warm temperatures and high humidity demand more energy consumption to maintain comfortable indoor environments.
“The focus on IAQ is another key trend benefiting ERV, as people become increasingly conscious of the importance to maintain air quality through properly designed and managed HVAC systems,” Energy consultant said in the energy audit survey.
Market growth for ERVs, Energy consultant said, is driven largely by energy conservation policies that are challenging building custodians to reduce energy consumption for indoor climates. The firm cited as an example the 90.1 standard from American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) which currently dictates “energy recovery systems for applications of 5000 cubic feet per minute (cfm) and larger with 70 percent outside air (OA).”
ASHRAE 90.1 is a standard that specifies at least 50 percent total effectiveness for ERVs, Energy consultant said.
The Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency also have various standards and regulations regarding energy recovery and IAQ.
Energy Consultant said two main obstacles lie in the way of more widespread use of ERVs: lack of knowledge and the need to reduce operating costs in the short term. Since building owners and facility managers rely for the most part on contractors to select and install heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) equipment, if the contractors are not up-to-speed on ERV developments they may pick products that aren’t as energy-efficient as they could be.
Also, Energy consultant noted, HVAC contractors work within budgets and therefore tend to buy equipment based on its price rather than long-term cost benefits. It therefore is important to educate contractors about ERVs, and some of that burden falls on manufacturers. The Green Building Council is also playing a role through its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program that evaluates buildings to determine the environmental performance during their entire lifecycle.
ERVs aren’t just good for the planet; they’re good for people, too.
“The focus on IAQ is another key trend benefiting ERV, as people become increasingly conscious of the importance to maintain air quality through properly designed and managed HVAC systems,” Energy consultant said in the report.
When IAQ isn’t managed properly, people living or working in unhealthy buildings can develop sick building syndrome from pollutants in the air they breathe.
“With half of all illnesses attributed to indoor airborne contaminants, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has declared IAQ a public health priority,” Energy consultant said. “Ventilation with outdoor air is the only strategy that can simultaneously reduce the levels of all indoor pollutants.”

by: YJay Draiman, Energy analyst – Northridge, CA

Energy Efficiency

Energy Efficiency

I don’t care if it’s new, old, or renewable energy, why apply it at a 50 to 60% efficient process rate. You might as well throw the money down a toilet, because you’re wasting the countries tax dollars and not solving the main problem. You measure the efficiency of boilers,cloths dryers, furnace heating devices to the homes, refrigerators, and now you are talking about rating homes. Why not rate the efficiency of how the energy has been applied to our Industrial Processes that made this nation what it is today, when natural gas was only 0.25 to 0.50 cents per MCF and how it was appied didn’t amount to that much as long as the owner got the output from the Process he was after. There are model energy application systems that have increased the Process efficiency to dry, fire and cool brick at a 15 to 20% reduced fuel rate, while increasing the potential output of the retrofitted Process by 30 to 40%, running at a Process Efficiency of 80 to 90%. The technology is available today to do that in the Brick Industry. I’m quite sure the same model could be applied to all Industries, but it has been primarily developed for the Stuctural Clay Brick Industry the past twenty to thirty years.

What Exactly Is Renewable Energy?

What Exactly Is Renewable Energy?

2008 has been a pretty wild and productive year as far as energy goes, as we have a pretty big problem right now, and no one seems to be able to agree on exactly how to solve it. Luckily, we do have some options on the table, and after all the smoke and dust clears, perhaps we can figure out which method(s) are most economical and most efficient. I’m speaking of renewable energy, which is quite different than fossil fuels in one main and obvious regard – we can renew it (hence the name renewable energy).

Currently, there are five viable sources of renewable energy that we as humans can take advantage of, and a short description of each:

1. Solar Energy – Ah, the power of the sun. Unless you’ve lived in a cave all of your life, you probably have a good idea that solar energy is energy collected from the sun and used later for electricity and heating. Obviously the sun is quite large, and in most parts of the world, you can collect a rather large amount of solar energy assuming you have the equipment. The technology required to harness the sun’s energy is getting less expensive by the year, and it’s a viable alternative source that we must consider taking advantage of if we want to live to see 50 years from now. More individuals and even business owners are taking advantage of it these days to fight the skyrocketing costs of electricity bills, and of course, for the tax benefits.

2. Geothermal Power – If you weren’t aware, we have this really hot thing in the middle of the Earth. It’s called the “core”. Anyway, deep inside the Earth, there are all sorts of things going on, and the one we’re most interested in is the heat. There is more than an abundance of natural heat down there, and when we harness and utilize that heat for energy, that form of energy is called Geothermal energy. More and more these days, homes and businesses are using geothermal heating systems to save on energy bills and to do their part in “going green”. Geothermal is actually a really great form of energy, since it doesn’t produce any pollution or greenhouse gases, but the only drawback is the initial cost to install the equipment to harness it. Not to mention, you have to live in a place that has the right geological properties in order to use it.

3. Wind Power – Wind energy is another one of those renewable sources that is very, very environmentally friendly, and actually has been used for quite some time. Generating electricity from wind is pretty straight forward – basically, electricity is produced when wind blows a massive turbine that spins to create the electricity. The equipment is somewhat expensive still, but over the course of the next ten years or so, that may change. One other drawback is that if it isn’t windy outside, then guess what – no wind, no power. Luckily, battery technology is very good in that turbines can store energy for days that have less wind than others.

4. Hydro Power – Another widely used source of renewable energy, hydro power is harnessed by using the flow of water to move turbines to create electricity. Water has been used for quite some time to make electricity, but died out a bit when fossil fuels became more popular. However, hydro energy is still used today, with about 7% of the energy in the US being powered by hydro electric power plants. Hydro power plants are typically found on large bodies of water (like big rivers), so geographically, you’ll only find them in states that can support them. Again, as technology develops, we’ll probably see a more widespread use of hydro power in the future, as it is a clean burning and natural way to power homes and businesses.

5. Bio Energy – Creating energy from plants and grains seems to be all the rage these days. Biodiesel, corn gasoline, and other forms of bio energy are being utilized all over the place to help combat out of control gas prices. Ethanol, which is basically gas made from corn, is widely used to power vehicles, and costs quite a bit less than regular gas. Many manufacturers are crating ethanol ready cars and trucks, and consumers seem to buy them more and more. There are all sorts of grains, plants and other naturally occurring gifts from Mother Nature that we can use to create different forms of bio energy, and as we move into the future, don’t be surprised if by the year 2020, you’re powering your car on carrots and beans.