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The Situation
As with many community buildings, Mandeville Village Hall in Kimbolton, Cambridgeshire had a typical village hall heating system which was inadequate for today’s needs, costly to run and required constant maintenance.
For many years the Hall management had received complaints from hirers about the hall’s heating. The system comprised of wall-mounted electric bar heaters, with 2 or 3 elements, which created hot and cold spots in the rooms – with the emphasis on ‘cold’! With the passing of time, finding replacements for failed elements became more difficult; not to mention more time consuming and costly.
The Challenge
The committee were looking for a village hall heating system which was effective at evenly warming the premises, easily controllable and economic to run. A wide variety of activities, both active and sedentary (e.g. yoga, toddler groups, ballroom dancing, bridge evenings, etc.), required different room temperatures. It was, therefore, important that the new heating system controls were flexible enough to accommodate the varied heating requirements throughout the day.
The constantly used external doors caused cold air to be sucked into the hall each time the doors were opened. Thus a standard convection based heating system, which heated the air that was pulled out of the room, was neither an efficient nor comfortable option.
The Solution
Whilst looking for the perfect solution, the Committee researched infrared heating and found that it met all their requirements. Infrared village hall heating works on the principle of the sun, directly heating the thermal mass of the building and its occupants, rather than the air. This form of village hall heating is more energy efficient, better for the building (drier walls mean better insulated walls) and provides unrivaled levels of thermal comfort for the occupants. The system requires no ongoing maintenance and has a variety of health benefits, including improved peripheral circulation and less air-borne allergens.
In the Main Hall infrared heating units were ceiling-mounted so that the room was evenly heated. In the smaller hall, the wall-mounted electric heaters were replaced with modern ceiling-mounted far infrared panels, which provide a cosier environment and a more aesthetically pleasing installation. Ceiling-mounting the infrared heaters ensures an even heat distribution, maximises the amount of floor space available and reduces the risk of damage from accidental impact.
Other rooms, including the toilets and computer room all had wall-mounted infrared panels installed. The total infrared heating load was 7.5kW (37.5%) less than the old system, despite the significant increase to the heating requirement in the main hall as the previous level was inadequate.
The wireless control system allowed the two halls and other rooms to be easily configured as individual heating zones. These zones were controlled through a web-based system accessed by PC or smart phone from any location. The more precise the regulation, the better the thermal comfort and the lower the energy consumption.
“We believe that these improvements have significantly improved the facilities making it a more enjoyable place for our hirers. In just a few months we have seen an increase the number of parties being booked as well as securing an extra 2.5% in regular hires. We believe that we are on track to achieve the planned savings in operating costs as a result of reduced energy consumption” Village Hall Chairman
The Solution in Detail
The Main Hall units comprised ETHERMA EZ 2kW double panel infrared heaters. These were installed in two rows of four on the ceiling. The smaller hall was a more recent extension with better insulation and a lower ceiling height. Here only two ceiling mounted LAVA Basic-DM 1500W panels were required. In each hall, the heaters were installed on a single circuit, controlled by a wall-mounted eNEXHO-CL thermostat which accessed the heating circuit via an external contactor. In the smaller rooms wall-mounted LAVA Basic DM infrared panels with wireless LAVA-R controls were installed. Both the eNEXHO-CL thermostats and LAVA-R controls are regulated by the eNEXHO Home Automation System. This fully automatic system allows the programming of zones and daily/weekly programmes.
Product Benefits
ETHERMA EZ
- Available Outputs: 800W, 1200W, 1600W, 2000W & 3600W
- Hygienic indoor climate
- Rust-resistant housing
- Straightforward installation
- Surface structure optimises radiation
- The heaters are approved for serial connection
LAVA Basic DM
Very high proportion of radiation- Large infrared emitting surface
- Lightweight design for easy ceiling mounting
- Pleasant room climate thanks to comfortable infrared radiant heat
- Magnetic field & maintenance free
eNEXHO Home Automatio
n System
eNEXHO is a complete product family that enables home automation with more comfort and security for homes, apartments and hotels. For the networking is a commercially available Wi-Fi router sufficient. If you connect this router to the Internet, access from outside to all components is easy and in real-time bi-directional possible.
