Help selecting ventilation system

Hi. I'm panning for my studio's HVAC. I pretty much copied Sharward's idea of using minisplit systems with an external Fantech ventilation system. I have two rooms and a bathroom (that doubles as a computer room) that I want to ventilate/cool, etc. The problem is I don't have a utility room that I can use and all of these systems are for indoor use only. I'm looking for a recommendation that would best suit my needs as an external outdoor fan or even an inline centrifugal duct fan. Whatever you think would work best. The square labelled "Outdoors" is a niche built into the control room. I have a closet with a very low ceiling below this niche. One of this niche's walls has a double pane window that communicates with the bathroom. This is an ideal spot for ventilation ducts "entering" the rooms. Noise level inside the bathroom is not critical, as long as the noise doesn't find its way to the CR. I would like to cut only two holes through the walls of the rooms, and the only viable entrance points are through this niche or through the utility patio. If I don't find an outdoor rated ventilation system, I suppose I could fit an indoor type in the closet below the niche. But it would have to be an extremely silent system. But I would rather not go down that road. Here is a picture of the ventilation diagram:

This is a layout for the Control room, bathroom and closet. Just so you have a reference of the interior layout.

Hey Igloo, I'm flattered! 8) Gee, I hope my ventilation plan is actually a good one -- mine isn't even close to be installed yet, so I offer no guarantees of its effectiveness or fitness! ;-) That said, it should be fine. (Famous last words!) You wrote: "I don't have a utility room that I can use and all of these systems are for indoor use only." When you say "all of these systems," are you referring to the Heat Recovery Ventilator (HRV) systems? The reason I ask is that the mini split is for use outdoors -- at least, the outdoor "half" of the "split" system. Obviously, the inside unit is (duh) to be installed indoors. You might be able to put the HRV inside your W.C./bathroom, and the outdoor half (or halves?) of the mini split could go out back I guess...? :? Do you have room out there for that? --Keith :mrgreen:

Hi Sharward! Well your plan sure made sense, I hope you don't mind me being such a copycat! When I said "all of these systems" I was refering to Fantech ventilation systems. Most of ther air exchange systems are for interior use. I saw a US map diagram in Fantech's website. They divided regions and suggested a specific type of Recovery System for each region. I live in Monterrey, Mexico; and I'm closest to the Texas region. They suggested an ERV System for that area, as opposed to HRV systems. However, I was looking at a lower priced unit, and saw these: http://www.fantech.net/cvs.htm But they're for interior use. I suppose I could put the Fantech unit inside the Bathroom, or even inside the Closet. But I'm trying to avoid that because of the noise generated, and their awkard location for service and maintanence.

The reason I ask is that the mini split is for use outdoors

I'm very familiar with the mini split AC units. That's the most common type of AC unit in my region. In fact, I have three of them at home. Anyway, I would be locating the fan unit (also called evaporator) inside the rooms, and the condenser or compressor unit atop the roof with some rubber pucks to minimize vibration noise. What I'm most concerned about is the type of fan and its location. Inline duct fans? Inside the duct but on the exterior of the rooms? ERV system? Inside the closet? Exterior fans (RE series)? Mounted directly on the exterior walls? That's what I'm unable to decide. Besides, they don't sell these units in my country. So I can't just try them and return them until I like one. I need to special order it and make a trip to the US to get it. Any help is very much appreciated! Regards, Rodrigo Montfort

I'm going to put my HRV unit overhead in the laundry room. You could probably suspend yours (either an HRV or an ERV, probably an ERV due to the humidity I guess?) from the ceiling in the corner of the your bathroom. FYI, here's an actual example of an HRV and mini split being used in a studio in Southern California, pretty close to the Mexican border. (Perhaps you've already seen this...?) --Keith :mrgreen:

Actually I've seen this thread before. And it encouraged me when I saw it can be done and it works. However, there's a part that makes me doubt about an indoor fan unit:

I can hear the Fantech unit (either the unti itself through the rear wall as well as the air blowing out the interior duct openings) if I turn it up to a medium/high recirc setting enough where I could not record with mics in the studio without picking up that noise. I have a feeling most people would put the box physically in another room so it would not be an issue....however I did not have that choice.

This part worries me, and he has the unit about 15 feet behind him. I would have the bathroom door about 5 feet behind me. So the unit would have to be very silent, and my door would have to be pretty solid and tightly sealed. I already have a computer cabinet mounted in the bathroom walls. I don't know if I can cram everything inside there. But if the unit is silent enough, maybe it's worth it. I couldn't find any sound ratings on Fantech products, but I'll keep researching. Thanks! [/quote]

Well, I would think you'd need a solid door with great seals in any event... :roll: --Keith :mrgreen:

Sharward, So far you´ve been the only one answering my questions and I thank you for that. I contacted a Fantech dealer and he pointed me to the FR series, which are outdoor rated and they said would handle my ventilation needs easily. They use 6 inch ducts, so I guess that´s more convenient than 4 or 5 inch duct systems. Less air pressure, hence less noise. I know I need to have beefy doors. But if I can take noise generators outside, that´s just peace of mind. I will have a total of 5 doors in the studio. Two solid core doors at the entrance, one double glass pane door betwen CR and studio, and two small doors for the bathroom and the closet. I don´t think I´m willing to buy the same number of door seal kits at close to $200 bucks each. Anyway, thanks for your help! Best regards, Rodrigo

Rodrigo, the management (me, that is :? ) haven't been ignoring you; it's just that Keith has recent (and pertinent) dealings with exactly what you're wanting to do, so I saw no reason to jump in... Steve

Hi Knightfly! Thanks for posting, I didn ´t feel ignored at all :wink: I was just making a pont that Sharward has been attentive to my thread and thanked him for that. Sharward, Does the Mitsubishi unit you´re planning to install has some kind of wired control remote? I ask this because all the mini split systems I have encountered are wireless remote controlled, and this obviously won´t be of any use once the fan unit is comfortably locked inside a silencer. I´ve been calling local contractors with no luck. The only comparable type of units are those called Fan & Coil. But they are more expensive than the Minisplit. And one of them said it´s noisier, so that´s not a good sign :? I hope I can find one because I already placed the order for my Fantech ventilators :shock: Ok I´ll keep you posted on this subject. Please let me know if you have some kind of solution- Thanks! Cheers!

igloo wrote:

I was just making a pont that Sharward has been attentive to my thread and thanked him for that.

8)

Does the Mitsubishi unit you´re planning to install has some kind of wired control remote?

It's infrared wireless.

this obviously won´t be of any use once the fan unit is comfortably locked inside a silencer.

No, you don't want to try to put the mini split inside a slincer. The low fan setting is supposed to be really quiet -- about 26dB(A). --Keith :mrgreen:

OOps :oops: I got it all wrong, then. I thought the minisplit would be inside the silencer. I have several minisplit systems. They are not noisy at all, but you can still hear the airflow . In fact I used to have one of the older minisplit units (a bit noisier than modern units) in my control room, but I sold it and planned for an external unit. But the cost of the external unit is around $3K and the cost of a couple of minisplits (installation included) is around $1K. So when I saw your plans (obviously confusing that silencer part) I thought I could do it like that. Now I´m a bit undecisive. Do you suppose I could build some kind of latch door into the silencer and close it with the powered unit? Would this be detrimental for the AC´s operating conditions?

I really don't think you could do it that way. Perhaps if its noise on the lowest fan setting is that much of an issue, you could run it on high for short bursts and turn it off during tracking. :roll: --Keith :mrgreen: