Airxchange participated in the development of an industry certification program for Energy Recovery Ventilation equipment under the auspices of ARI.
This effort resulted in a new ARI rating standard, ARI 1060-2000, and the publication in January 2001 of the ARI Certified Products Directory for AAERVE components and packages. The certified rating program requires testing, rating, and independent verification of component performance at standard conditions and rated flow. Testing is in accordance with ASHRAE Standard 84.
Energy recovery ventilation
ARI-certified ratings include very complete information, some of it previously unavailable, to allow designers to fully characterize thermal and airflow performance. In addition to separate sensible, latent, and total effectiveness at two airflows for both summer and winter test conditions, the standard requires information on pressure loss as well as air leakage.
ARI-certified ratings include very complete information, some of it previously unavailable
Airxchange publishes ARI-certified ratings for all energy recovery ventilation components of their manufacture in accordance with the requirements of the ARI program. These ratings may be found on the ARI website. Application ratings are provided for the complete range of airflows and all Airxchange cassettes bear the ARI Certification Seal. With the ARI industry, a performance certification program is in place, and engineers and building owners/operators no longer need to accept self-certification.
Industry certification program
It is important to point out that ratings from non-participating manufacturers are difficult to compare regardless of whether they are tested in-house or by an ‘independent’ testing agency. This is in part because the latent performance of a given unit can change significantly when tested at different outdoor air conditions and at less than rated airflows.
A product can be made to look better by testing it ‘independently at an easier condition. Lower relative humidity (lower wet bulb) and less than rated airflow improve the tested performance. Also, self-certification does not include the necessary periodic verification tests and challenge procedures provided by the industry certification program. Specifications requiring ARI Certification in accordance with the latest revision of ARI Standard 1060 provide the best assurance that components and systems will perform as designed.
