Whirlybirds vs Solar Powered Roof Ventilators Part 1
Whirlybirds or wind driven fans have been in existence permanently, but lately there has been a lot of discussion about solar powered roof ventilators.
Essentially, the main objective at the moment is about the amount of air moved through the different roof ventilation fan types available. Roof ventilation
The average domestic whirlybird moves around 100 cbm/h - around 12 km/h wind speeds. It is difficult to find this type of data in the manufacturers from the wind driven fans - but there appears to be a consensus when surveying the various solar-powered roof ventilation fan options they - according to their airflow capacity at 0 pressure capacity matches that relating to 10 to 30 whirly birds. Roof vents
This can be in line with data published a little while back after having a conference at the Queensland University of technology by Shane West, from University of Technology, Sydney.
The only wind driven fans with capacities comparable to solar roof ventilation fans, are Industrial whirlybirds, that can in many different sizes and capacities - but once again - it is hard to find data.
Around australia - one of the most well-known Industrial type may be the Edmonds branded 900 mm Edmonds Hurricane (No Whirlybirds)Hurricane using a capacity of 2700 cbm/h at 12 km/h wind speed and 3400 cbm/h at 16 km/h. The thing is needless to say they rely on the wind - and it may or may not be windy around the hot days when roof ventilation is necessary the most.
At this time - it is most unusual to determine what is normally viewed as industrial whirlybirds used on homes - and also offices, day care institutions, retirement villages etc. - you actually only see these very large units employed for industrial ventilation of warehouses and ventilation of factories.
However, if you are looking for wind driven roof ventilation matching the solar ventilation alternatives - you should consider the large industrial whirly bird varieties which aren�t generally available at places like Bunnings and Masters and installation Melbourne.
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