Estimate savings from air destratification 1

[illhp]

Are there any studies that have proven heating savings due to air destratification? When is destratification a good option and what kind of savings can be anticipated?

 

[ChasBean1]

illhp: it's a good question. I've always thought of it as a method to keep the heat you put into a space from "sticking" to the ceiling... I'd be interested in any thoughts on this also.

 

[MintJulep]

It is a good question.

I would suspect that the savings are highly dependant on the space, so that any studies that might exist would be relavant only to a particular location, and not able to be generalized.

Seems like this topic would be a very good subject for a CFD study. However, if you want to take a stab at some rough manual calculations, I would suggest the following approach (I am assuming that you have an actual space that you are interested in):

Measure the temperature at various heights.

Determine the "U" for your walls and roof.

Using the U and the temperature at each height, calculate the heat loss from that "layer".

Repeat the calculation using a uniform temperature.

For extra credit, repeat each calculation with improved roof insulation.

Let us know what you find out. You might even come up with something worthy of publishing yourself.

 

[steam4]

illhp,
Try this company:

http://www.bananza.com/

They have air rotating equipment, and can help you with calculations.

 

[arabei]

Hi illhip,
A simple solution is to install paddle or ducted ceiling fans to bring the warm air down to floor level.
As a rule of thumb, air temp. increases by 0.5 F for each foot of height above the thermostat level.
Savings from destratification vary according to the type of facility and the location, but for a normal building with normal exhaust rates, savings can be in the order of 0.5%-0.7% for every foot of building height above thermostat level based on the thermostat set temp.(68F-50F)
Regards