Air curtains: Features and applications
Within the extensive range of air conditioning systems that we can use in order to create a comfortable climate in the entrances and inside a room, protect ourselves from heat or cold, repel insects or prevent the entry of dust, smoke and contamination . There are the unknown and very everyday air curtains.
In this article we will explain what the air curtains, what are their most notable applications and technical characteristics and how they contribute to improve energy efficiency when installed in a room or in a building.
What is an air curtain?
Air curtains are ventilation devices that release a jet of air creating an invisible barrier between inside and outside achieving that the thermal conditions or different environments can be maintained without losing energy and allowing the passage or access to a specific place of people and vehicles.
Then… What are air curtains for? The main function and objective is to avoid energy losses in premises by means of an air screen in spaces where there is a continuous movement of people, which are completely open or in which a continuous opening of the access doors is carried out, avoiding heat losses provided by the air conditioning equipment available in the building, premises or a home.
Therefore, help to maintain the temperature and comfort conditions inside of the same, obtaining important savings in the consumption of heating and refrigeration with the consequent economic saving.
What are the main advantages of air curtains?
The air curtain It has multiple applications and advantages, not only for commercial premises, offices, administrative buildings, etc. So let's go over the strengths …
Savings and energy efficiency:
- The air blast equipment help to maintain the conditions of comfort inside.
- Reduction of energy losses from inside the premises.
- By reducing these losses, it allows the installation of less powerful air conditioning equipment.
- They prevent the entry of toxic and unwanted elements through infiltrations from the outside.
- The air curtains for doors reduce energy consumption and CO2 emissions.
- It does not generate noise pollution because they work silently.
Remember, air curtains reduce energy consumption!
Hygiene and health:
- They prevent the entry of dust or other particles through the doors or access holes.
- They prevent the entry of insects or other types of pests.
- In public areas it allows to separate rooms between smoking and non-smoking areas.
- They help maintain indoor air quality.
Other advantages:
- In case of fire, they allow the evacuation of occupants through the exits to the outside without difficulty.
- It does not generate noise pollution as it works silently.
- They improve visibility to avoid any collision since there are no obstacles or barriers.
- They can be installed both horizontally and vertically, depending on space conditions.
- Are air equipment easy to install and simple maintenance.
Air curtain operating systems
It is a compact equipment that has an air intake grille (which acts as a filter in some cases and protects the rest of the equipment from the entry of dust), so that once the air enters it is compressed by fans that it has inside and directed by the nozzle towards the lower area of the hole where it is placed.
In most cases, the vertical air curtain They are installed in the upper part of the shaft and blow the air downwards, although they can also be installed on the sides to blow the air towards the sides of the shaft. The image shows two different mounting and installation cases, with the air curtain horizontally and vertically.
What types of air curtains are there?
Although technology every year provides new types of machinery that are increasingly efficient and that provide new capabilities or are complemented by others. Broadly speaking, depending on the device that we are going to use and its location, we have the following ranges:
Depending on the type of air movement they provide, there are also two types of air curtain equipment different; those of recirculation and those of no recirculation.
1.- Recirculation air curtains
In the former, the environment is collected and channeled to return to the air curtain and they are much more efficient and more expensive. These are the best air curtains!
1.- Non-recirculation air curtains
In this case, the air is discharged directly to the environment, being less efficient but the installation is cheaper.
Regarding their operation, they can be continuous or activated automatically when the doors are opened by means of a home automation equipment. So, in this case, it will have sensors that allow it to detect when the door is open and start the equipment.
What are the most common applications of the air curtain?
They can be applied to any type of premises, establishment, building or facility that, due to its needs, requires maintaining air conditioning, health and hygiene conditions, etc., highlighting the following:
- Commercial premises, shops, supermarkets, shopping centers, etc.
- Warehouses, cold rooms, freezers, ovens.
- Hotels, restaurants, gyms, cinemas, etc.
- Airports, train stations, metro, etc.
In the following Airtecnics video we can see several different cases of premises in which they have been placed:
Factors to consider when choosing an air curtain:
The following conditions must be taken into account when choosing the type of vertical air curtains more suited to the needs of our premises:
- Door or hole width.
- Installation height from the discharge diffuser to the ground.
- Location of the building, in order to select the ideal level of protection against inclement weather.
- Characteristics of the door where it is going to be located, if it is a folding door with manual, automatic or rotating opening, if it will always remain open, etc …
- Pressure differences between inside and outside.
- Possible presence of several doors in the same plane or in different planes.
- Technical characteristics and type of indoor air conditioning equipment.
- Type of activity that takes place in the premises, as well as other factors such as its decoration.
- System for placing them, recessed or hanging, with horizontal or vertical installation, with or without heating.
We must assess what requirements our curtain must meet since there may be a very varied combination of cases in the aforementioned aspects, depending in many cases on conditions such as the difference in temperature with the outside, the presence of air currents or strong wind, pressure differences, etc.
Regarding the ideal or more adequate placement of the same, there may be several cases, so that we can have situations that may be more or less favorable, which depends on the presence of other doors or openings to the outside that the premises have. , as shown in the picture.
Note: The images provided in this post are from the Airtécnics portal. And let's remember that they are a good alternative to AA equipment, as we discussed in the article on the damage it causes and consequences of air conditioning when we use it ineffectively and consistently.
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