AirScape Engineer's Blog

We often get asked if AirScape whole house fans can be installed in attics with loose fill insulation. The answer is yes, with one additional install step. The idea is to stop the insulation from being displaced by the air movement generated by the AirScape. We now offer a breathable synthetic fabric that can be placed on top of the insulation to stop any displacement. The installation is as simple as laying the material down in the attic where the fan discharges and tacking or weighting it down. The final step would be to turn the AirScape on and adjust the fabric material as needed.

The Loose Fill Insulation Cover (LFIC) is available in 9′x10′ sheets and can be found on any of the product pages on the website.

There are a couple of trends that will affect solar photovoltaic installations:

• Newer electrical rate structures encourage conservation (tiered rates)
• ‘Energy Security’ is a powerful motivator
• Photovoltaic rebates require house efficiency check-ups

We think  solar energy gathering is great. The idea of  getting electricity essentially for  free energy has certainly captivated our imaginations. Even though the cost of photovoltaic panels is dropping very quickly, the investment is still considerable.  Our crystal ball tells us that electrical energy is very, very versatile and will be in demand as electrical cars come on stream and coal fired electrical power plants start to show their ugly side. (coal burning)

As the demand for clean electrical energy increases, its value will certainly not go down.   In fact, if the validity of predicting cheap energy such as the famous line is any guide “too cheap to meter”,then we should get prepared for high prices.

By combining whole house fans solar contractors and  homeowners  can:

• Decrease the initial investment in PV panels
• AND/ OR
• Increase the  Return on Investment for the entire system

The local buddhist temple has just been completed. AirScape provided several whole house fans. The building itself is constructed with ICF (insulated concrete forms). This makes for a high mass, well insulated and sealed building envelope, perfect for whole house fans.  Total airflow from the whole house fans is 9200 CFM – the building is 6,000 sq. feet. That’s a good lot of air, but this is the only form of cooling, so the amount of airflow has to be high for the peak conditions.

If you want to design your own temple, Carlos Delgado is the architect.

This article by Henry Gifford, an energy saving specialist discusses why heat pumps are no panacea.  His points, well made, bring home the messages that building envelope efficiency is critical and the importance of examining the entire energy chain -  from power house to your house.  Not that readers of this blog need reminding, but Henry also points out that over half of this country’s electricity derives from coal burning . (BTW clean coal = oxymoron du jour)

www.energysavingscience.com/

http://www.finehomebuilding.com/departments/taking-issue/heat-pump-schmeat-pump.aspx

We’re happy to announce that the 4.4e WHF is currently in stock and we’re moving product out the door.

What makes this an “e” ?  The motor is an ECM (electronically commutated motor) which when matched up with the efficient blade design gives a great power profile and low noise.

See the details here: http://airscapefans.com/products/Shop/Natural-Cooling/Whole-House-Fans/AirScape-4.4e-WHF

The following graph shows the energy use profile of the 4.4e as compared to the theoretical efficiency of a fan system.