Can an evaporative cooler also work as a ventilation solution?

Ideal for industrial facilities and public areas such as schools, shopping centres and hotels, evaporative cooling creates comfortable, safe environments. Biocool’s evaporative coolers maintain comfortable temperatures, humidity and air quality, bringing in 100% filtered air from outside to renew the air inside a building.

By monitoring CO₂ levels in the air, the units, coupled with a Smart City Cooler controller, allow users to adjust the ventilation parameters ensuring air is renewed and healthy, and that CO₂ is kept at a safe, recommended level.

By redirecting stale, breathed-out air outdoors, the units also reduce the harmful aerosols that carry infections, lessening the risk of airborne illnesses spreading.

Let’s take a look at the locations that might benefit from evaporative cooling and ventilation, and why these systems are now a necessity, not a luxury...

Industrial facilities

Renewing the air inside a factory or similar environment helps to keep buildings comfortable for workers, prioritises their safety and ensures companies are complying with regulations.

Factories are often highly populated areas, which can quickly lead to uncomfortable, humid conditions without consistent air flow. Stale, unclean air can also impact workers’ concentration and general health, which could make them prone to catching illnesses or making mistakes that put their safety, the safety of others and the safety of equipment in jeopardy.

Plus, with so many people working in the same space, a lack of ventilation and clean air can make these environments fertile for airborne viruses, bacteria and microorganisms – something that the COVID-19 pandemic has made us all aware of.

Effective temperature, humidity and CO₂ control through an evaporative cooling system can remove these worries and help to create more ideal, healthy working conditions.

Schools

Biocool evaporative cooling has been used in European schools for over 20 years. Keeping the humidity and temperature at optimal levels in a classroom can help to keep students focused, less lethargic and improve behaviour.

Bioclimitisation helps keep classrooms, sports halls, dining areas and other facilities comfortable for all who occupy them. Because our system also renews the air, it can help reduce the spread of airborne viruses and – unlike air-conditioners – do so in an energy-efficient and effective way.

This helps reduce the risk of children becoming sick while at school, helping to limit absences and ensure they do not miss out on essential learning opportunities.

Shopping centres

As a high-footfall location, shopping centre managers would like to keep visitors there for as long as possible.

By creating a comfortable, clean air environment, customers are more likely to continue browsing, feel less lethargic and are more likely to enjoy their shopping experience.

Employees are also kept happier and safer during prolonged periods of working, which can influence how long they stay with your company and their day-to-day performance.

Hotels

Many hotel guests would expect a high level of comfort at a hotel. No matter how well-run the establishment is, if the air quality, temperature and humidity aren’t controlled, it will leave guests feeling uncomfortable and with a poor sleeping experience.

Evaporative cooling provides an automated way to keep different areas of a hotel at their optimal climate, maintaining maximum comfort for both guests and employees at all times.

Temperature, humidity and air quality control

Evaporative air-conditioners have a ventilation function and a cooling function, activated automatically according to the facility’s needs outlined in the system control.

Evaporative coolers, in addition to ventilating, cools the air so that the thermal sensation and the comfort obtained is much greater. There are times when ventilation alone will not achieve adequate thermal sensation. In this case, the cooling function is activated.

When the ventilation of the space is sufficient enough to obtain an optimal level of comfort, or when ventilation is required to renew the air in the space to eliminate dust, odours or suspended particles and regulate CO₂ levels, the ventilation mode is activated without the need to activate the water circuit used to reduce the temperature. The system will cool only when it is necessary, and it will ventilate when renewing and moving air is sufficient.

The evaporative system itself ventilates and renews the air in the facility using 100% clean and renewed outdoor air, so no additional ventilation would be needed from a distinct air-conditioning system. This can significantly cut down costs and energy consumption levels.

Does this mean that air-conditioners are obsolete now?

Conventional air-conditioning systems can function as a ventilation system, but with a much higher energy consumption both to ventilate and to cool. They also work with an operating principle of air recirculation to cool a building, so it doesn’t help to expel the air that could be higher in CO₂, dusty, odours and airborne viruses.

An alternative solution to conventional air-conditioning, evaporative air cooling offers clean, optimised and healthy air with energy consumption that’s 80% less than traditional A/C units. The units can ventilate, renew, and cool the air of areas ranging from 50m² to 450m² depending on the model placed.

The initial financial investment would be similar to that of a traditional air-conditioning unit. However, evaporative cooling provides many additional, diverse benefits beyond these units, including multi-functional air cooling and ventilation as well as overall reduced energy consumption.

The type of system you will need will depend on a number of factors including the type of environment you are trying to cool, its size and layout.

To learn more about Dantherm's impressive air cooling range, get in touch with our team via the form below.