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FV-10VEC2 ERV principle of operation?

joea99 | Posted in General Questions on

I’m brand new here, a homeowner with pretty fair “handyman” ability.

Was reading up on how to size a ERV/HRV and found the Panasonic PV-10VEC2 mentioned.

While reading the specs, it mentioned it’s “core” that aided in humidity recovery.   I wonder how this is done?   Anyone know or have a reference?

Years ago (too many) I bought at unit that promised humidity recovery that worked like a “desiccant wheel” where stale are ran through a mesh of material, pie wedge shaped pieces in a wheel, where the wheel rotated though the channel constraining the incoming fresh air, supposedly filtering incoming air and recovering humidity in one go. 

Poor design, poor choice on my part.  I felt it did not properly keep incoming air separate from contaminants contained in the stale air, especially pathogens, so, after much contemplation, never installed it.

How do these ERV’s manage to get that done safely, with regard to transfer of pathogens?

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Replies

  1. Trevor_Lambert | | #1

    The core of the Panasonic is likely no different than the typical, residential ERV core. It is made of a material that is moisture semi-permeable and air impermeable. This promotes moisture moving from the stream of higher concentration to the stream of lower concentration.

    I'm guessing the unit you bought was an Ultimate air, a company that pretty much went out of business early on in the pandemic. That spinning pie design is more common in commercial ERVs. So while I can't comment on how good or bad it is as a design, it seems like it can't be completely without merit.

  2. joea99 | | #2

    It is a RecoupAerator 190 by Stirling Technology. Just before the pandemic I was going to hook it up, finally, as "better than nothing", but my concerns about pathogen exchange stopped me.

    Looks like they have abandoned that line of products.

    1. Trevor_Lambert | | #3

      That model name and number is the same as UltimateAir's. Not sure what the connection was between them and Stirling. It's possible Stirling was rebranding the Ultimate Air ERV, and when UA went under, that would explain the disappearance of the product from Stirling's lineup.

      Just noticed Stirling and UltimateAir have the same address. So they were basically the same company.

      1. joea99 | | #4

        That said, think it is worth hooking this up or just start fresh. So to speak.

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