A major conference in London has again underlined the importance of indoor air quality in schools and other educational buildings.

HVACR industry association Eurovent used its IAQmatters event on January 22 to explore the link between indoor air quality (IAQ) and the health, wellbeing and educational outcomes of students.

Breathing achievement into every classroom, organised in partnership with the Building Engineering Services Association (BESA) and the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE), examined ways to improve the achievement and wellbeing of children and adults in education, reflecting on how to turn research findings into practical, real-life solutions.

Adam Taylor, chair of BESA’s Indoor Air Quality group, said: “There are no silver bullets to addressing IAQ – and no ‘magic box’ air cleaning solutions. Improving IAQ is a building engineering issue that calls for solutions that can be applied throughout entire buildings.

“Individual products do play a big part in this, of course, but they must be part of a joined-up, whole building solution based around fully designed, professionally installed and commissioned systems that are then maintained throughout their lifetime and supported by ongoing measuring and monitoring of airborne contaminants.”

We install, service, and repair ventilation units

Batchelor Air Conditioning & Refrigeration has extensive experience of delivering complete ventilation solutions from leading manufacturers.

Here we provide an overview of Mechanical Heat Recovery Ventilation (MHRV) suitable for schools and many other applications. More than one unit can be installed for larger projects where air handling units may not be suitable.

MHRV units are designed to extract stale indoor air and bring in fresh, filtered air. The units can be ventilation only or integrated with a DX coil to provide air conditioning. They can be standalone units or fully integrated as part of a total HVAC solution.

MHRV units offer ‘free cooling’ and ‘heat recovery’. For example, if the air outside is colder than the inside room temperature, select heat recovery mode (sometimes referred to as heat exchange mode) and the incoming cooler air will exchange heat with the warmer rejected air, raising the clean, fresh incoming air temperature. Or, in the summer months, keep the cooler air coming in without increasing the temperature with the bypass mode. See diagram below.

air quality

Some manufacturers use the term total heat exchange. This means that the heat recovered in heat recovery mode is sensible and latent (heat and moisture recovery) and determined by the type of heat exchanger used inside the unit. This filter will need replacing to ensure the quality of air.

LG Energy Recovery Ventilation, or ERV, features a CO₂ sensor and air purification system. It can be used as a standalone unit or added to an LG VRF system.

Mitsubishi Electric Lossnay ventilation units are ultra-quiet. They have a third filter slot for an optional NOx filter to further improve IAQ and the commercial range includes a reduced-height unit for installation in ceiling voids.

Daikin ventilation units can also be combined with the manufacturer’s Sky Air or VRV systems. All units offer heat recovery mode and can recover up to 81% of outgoing heat. Units start as low as 10 m3/h spanning across domestic and large commercial applications.

Taking control of your school’s ventilation

We can advise which type of unit would suit your application and budget. We can also help you to take full control of your school’s HVAC system. Read our blog post on how today’s advanced controls can maximise system efficiency and reduce energy bills.

Whether you are looking to install new ventilation, upgrade your controls or need advice on a service and maintenance package, please get in touch to discover how our expertise can help your school. Use the contact form, call 01234 712 901 or email info@batchelor.co.uk.

Further reading: Benefits of different types of ventilation.