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Air circulation enhancements for ductless mini-split.

RMGheHhbJx | Posted in Green Building Techniques on

I have a Sips house in rough and I am using two Panasonic Whisper Green fans, one to ventilate the home and the other to circulate the conditioned air from the ductless mini-split in the main living area back into the bedrooms.
The fans will run continuous at 50, 70, 90, and 110 cfm and can be turned on high with a separate switch to 130 cfm.
The ventilation fan picks up in each of the two bathrooms and the laundry room with adjustable ducts. I plan to ventilate 20 cfm continuous in each bathroom and pick up another 10 cfm from the laundry which will meet my ventilation levels for this 1560 sq ft home.
I plan on circulating 20 cfm to each of the smaller bedrooms and 30 cfm to the master bedroom to distribute the heating and cooling from the mini-split. As both fans are adjustable, I can vary the air delivery to some degree.
All ducts are in dropped ceilings inside the envelope of the home except the exhaust duct.
Has anyone else had experience with any of this? Any comments?

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Replies

  1. kevin_in_denver | | #1

    Yes I have. Open doors can distribute heat even quicker than 20cfm fans. An open door can swap over 100 cfm, and it doesn't even need a thermostat. The heat knows where to go and how fast to go.

    "Superinsulated homes tend to be isothermal"

    The fans you are talking about could be used to filter or humidify the air, so I would still recommend them.

  2. GBA Editor
    Martin Holladay | | #2

    Tyson,
    The Wisdom Way Solar Village in western Mass. used Panasonic fans to move heat from a room with a single-point heat source to bedrooms. The systems work. As Kevin noted, the fans are unnecessary when bedroom doors are left open.

    More information:

    http://www.nrel.gov/buildings/pdfs/45865.pdf

    http://www1.eere.energy.gov/solar/review_meeting/pdfs/prm2009_aldrich_wisdom.pdf

    http://www.homeenergy.org/article_preview.php?id=597&article_title=Wisdom_Way_Solar_Village

  3. RMGheHhbJx | | #3

    Thanks Martin. Home will be powered up in a day or two. I will activate fans, test airflow, static pressure and watts. Hoping for a good result.

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