Heat Recovery

Synergy Heat Recovery

Q. How does the Synergy system actually work?

A. The Synergy system introduces fresh filtered air from outside into the home. At the same time it extracts stale moist air from within the home. Both airflows travel through a heat exchange core where the heat from the extracted air is imparted into the incoming air, pre-warming it before distributing it around the home.

Q.  What is the difference between Heat Transfer and Heat Recovery?

A.  Heat Recovery – is a ventilation system which extracts the warm stale air from your home, passes it through a heat exchanger which recovers up to 90% of the heat and transfers this heat into the filtered incoming air which is distributed throughout your home.

Heat Transfer – extracts the excess heat from your lounge (excess heat caused by an efficient heating device) and transfers all the heated air to the bedrooms.

Q.  Why are there two different types of in-line filters?

A. The G3 filters are coarse types to protect the system fans and heat exchanger core.  The F7 filter is designed to further filter the incoming air removing smaller particles such as pollen & dust mites providing clean filtered air to the home environment.

Q. What is meant by a balanced system?

A. The inlet air is introduced into the house at the same rate exhaust air is extracted from the house ensuring a continual supply of fresh air and the removal of stale air.

Q. Why would I want an in-line duct heater if I am recovering heat anyway

A. Heat recovery will warm incoming fresh air if this air is cooler than the exhaust.  In some scenarios the inlet air may be so cool that assistance is needed to ventilate at an acceptable temperature.  An optional in-line duct heater will temper the inlet air.

Q. What happens to the water which is removed?

A. Most of it will be exhausted directly out of the house in the form of water vapour but in some cases as the exhaust air is cooled to heat the inlet air water may condense on the heat exchanger core which is why it is important to have the drain connected.  Actually this condensation is a good thing as the process releases latent energy as water changes from gas to a liquid state which further heats the inlet air.

Q. I still have condensation on my windows, what is wrong with the system?

A. There could be several reasons.  The Fan Speed setting could be too low in which case the stale air is not being removed fast enough.  Try setting the Fan speed higher.  If portable LPG or natural gas heaters are used they can emit a lot of location specific moisture.  Make certain this moisture laden air can be easily exhausted. Also there might not be enough air coming into that room – try opening that vent more.

Q. What is meant by stale air?

A. Stale air not only consists of excessive moisture but also includes such things as dust, animal and cooking smells and even the carbon dioxide breathed out by the homeowners.  These are all unhealthy and affect the overall wellness of the inhabitants.  Exhausting the used stale air and replacing with fresh make up air is the best method of ensuring a healthy home environment.

Ventilate Your Home with Minimal Energy Loss

[Source: Mother Earth News]
Sealing air leaks and adding insulation are two important ways of conserving energy in your house. But some homes may be so tightly sealed that they don’t allow in enough fresh air for a healthy environment. To allow adequate fresh air into your house (without using extra energy to heat or cool the fresh air) you might need some type of ventilation system. Energy-recovery ventilators, also known as air heat exchangers, are mechanical ventilation systems that remove stale, polluted air from homes and replace it with fresh outdoor air.

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