A comfortable home starts with good air. “Good” means air with enough oxygen that is free of unpleasant odors, pollutants, fine dust particles, or allergens. That’s why residential ventilation systems are in high demand. They continuously exchange the air and filter out everything that compromises the quality of life within your home. At the same time, they automatically remove excess humidity, thereby preventing mold growth. What remains is fresh air and a pleasant indoor atmosphere — without any need for manual ventilation. Modern systems also help save energy. If equipped with heat recovery, they utilize the heat from the exhaust air to warm the incoming fresh air.
“The combination of the RadiCal 2 and our scroll housing saves 30 percent in energy.”
Maarten van Oberbeke, R&D Project Manager at Renson
More power for large rooms
Maarten Van Overbeke and Jasper Allert are experts when it comes to indoor ventilation systems. The two developers work at the Belgian family-owned company Renson and have recently launched a new model of a ventilation unit with heat recovery: the Flux+ Wall. It operates mechanically and combines automatic air supply as well as demand-controlled exhaust ventilation with a heat exchanger. The new product stands out with a significantly higher airflow rate than any previous unit. Product Manager Jasper Allert explains: “With the Flux+ Wall 650, we wanted to go beyond what comparable units can achieve while maintaining the same housing dimensions. Whereas competing products typically range from 550 to 600 cubic meters per hour, we achieve an airflow rate of 650 cubic meters per hour at 200 pascals.” This means that even larger homes, gyms, offices, or medical practices can be reliably ventilated with a compact unit.
A perfect combination
This increased airflow is made possible by the clever combination of fans and housing. Each Flux+ Wall contains two RadiCal 2 fans from ebm-papst. Both fans operate in parallel and are electronically coordinated: One draws in fresh outside air, channels it through the filter and heat exchanger, and blows the fresh, preheated air into the living space. At the same time, the second fan extracts stale, humid, or odor-laden air from the rooms and directs it through the heat exchanger to the outside.
“The ventilation system does its job quietly and discreetly.”
Stefanie Sulmon, Homeowner
“The new RadiCal 2 centrifugal fan meets our requirements for compactness while delivering good acoustics and lower energy consumption,” says Maarten van Overbeke, the R&D Project Manager responsible for developing the new product line at Renson. “The challenge for us was to integrate the fan into a very compact unit while balancing airflow, acoustics, and energy efficiency.”
Together with his team, van Overbeke decided to develop an in-house solution for a custom scroll housing. They received support in flow technology from the experts at ebm-papst. The design of the outlet area was particularly important to achieve high airflow without compromising acoustics. “We then optimized the housing over several development stages in our own acoustics lab,” explains van Overbeke.
Saves energy, simplifies installation
The result isn’t just impressive because of its higher performance: “By combining the energy-efficient RadiCal 2 with our patented housing design, we were able to achieve savings of up to 30 percent,” van Overbeke notes with satisfaction. The fan’s 20 percent lower power consumption contributes to this, while the new scroll housing saves an additional 10 percent. Jasper Allert adds: “This makes the Flux+ Wall one of the most energy-efficient units on the market.”
0 m³/h
airflow rate at 200 pascals
0
RadiCal 2 in each unit
0 %
energy savings
Measuring 870 x 790 x 580 millimeters, the system takes up very little space. It is made of expanded polypropylene, or EPP for short. This thermoplastic foam is exceptionally lightweight. The Renson unit weighs just 29 kilograms, making installation easier. This was particularly important to the developers. Jasper Allert explains: “We’ve equipped the Flux+ Wall with dual connection options on each side. Depending on the available space, installers can connect the pipes on the left or right.”
The wide range of possible combinations also simplifies retrofitting in existing buildings. Maintenance of the ventilation system isjust as quick and straightforward: All components can be removed in less than five minutes. “Most components are plug-in and can be removed and installed without tools. We used only nine screws for the entire system, and they’re all identical. A single screwdriver is all it takes to unit,” explains van Overbeke.
A favorite among customers and critics
The new ventilation system is already well received by end customers. Whether in Belgium, the Netherlands, Australia, or Japan, whether in a residential home or a gym — the feedback has been consistently positive: Even at maximum airflow, it is very quiet and produces no annoying sounds or highpitched noises.
With its new features, the Flux+ Wall also impressed the expert jury at the international VSK trade fair for heating, plumbing, and air conditioning technology in the Netherlands. The jury honored the unit with the VSK+E Award in the “Healthy Buildings, Better Life” category. For Maarten van Overbeke and Jasper Allert, this is a validation of their work. And the pair are already looking ahead: “We learned a lot during development — for example, through flow simulations, acoustic tests, and the development steps for the scroll housing. We’ll draw on this knowledge as we develop the next generation of products,” says van Overbeke.
Leave a comment