News

The Space Air Show House Combating the problem of 'Sealed Box' syndrome in the modern home (16/3/2004)

Highly efficient insulation of modern homes has brought with it a new and potentially dangerous environmental problem. Dealing with 'Sealed Box' syndrome - successfully keeping out the draughts without providing adequate ventilation and creating an indoor air quality which is inferior to the air outside - has made the effective control of ventilation, temperature and humidity a top priority and the key focus of an Ideal Home show house.

Space Air Solutions of Guildford in Surrey claims that a properly controlled and ventilated house with clean air at the correct temperature and humidity is vital for family well-being and are presenting a unique show home at this year's Ideal Home exhibition with the sole purpose of demonstrating the very latest cutting edge technology.

The company, which is a division of Space Air plc, the largest independent UK distributor of air conditioning equipment from the giant Daikin organisation of Japan, will present the latest in modern air conditioning [climate control] which is more controllable and with considerably greater efficiency in terms of running costs.

"There exists a great misconception that Air Conditioning is merely concerned with cooling the air inside a building," says Neil Afram, managing director of Space Air plc.

"It is not. Air Conditioning is about both cooling and heating a given living area - climate control. Each room can be set to the required temperature - regardless of outside temperature - and, combined with Heat Recovery Ventilation, can also introduce controlled, fresh, filtered clean air into the home as well as re-using 80% of the energy generated by Air Conditioning."

Space Air will incorporate its full range of products into the show house, including Air Conditioning [Climate Control], Heat Recovery Ventilation, and the unique Siesta photocatalytic Air Purifier. The efficiency and versatility of the various products will be demonstrated to visitors by creating different temperatures in various rooms - in stark contrast to the 'outside' atmosphere at Earls Court.

"Today's modern homes are often 'Sealed Boxes', as a direct result of government policy on building regulations [Part L] in relation to CO2 emissions," says Neil Afram. "They are poorly ventilated and, as widely reported in the media towards the end of last year, there appears to be no clear solution to the fact that indoor air quality is often inferior to that outside. We believe that our show house will demonstrate the answer to the problem."

From a user view point, Air Conditioning [Climate Control] provides instant and individually controlled temperature, room by room, with the added bonus and benefit of cooling in the summer, achieving the perfect indoor environment twelve months of the year, improving health and well-being.

"Our heating and cooling system emits 30% less CO2 than conventional 'wet' central heating systems but, amazingly, for every kilowatt of energy consumed, there is a return of between 3.5 and 5 kilowatts of useable energy," says Mr Afram. "A conventional system, in contrast, would provide energy on a one-for-one basis."

The Space Air show house also features the company's Siesta 7 photocatalytic air purification units which wipe out bacteria and germs together with other airborne pollutants like dust, smoke, mites, smells, cigarette smoke and pollen. These are stand-alone units which can be simply plugged-in to purify the air in main living areas.

"The Siesta 7 does not simply trap bacteria, germs and viruses, it also neutralises them too in a totally safe filtration system called photocatalytic technology - removing them from the household atmosphere for good," says Mr Afram. "Purified, clean air is now an achievable essential in the home." The Siesta 7 units retail for under £360.

This can be potentially helpful to asthma sufferers.

Martin Dockrell, Assistant Director of Policy & Public Affairs at the National Asthma Campaign says; "As we spend 90% of our time indoors, it isn't surprising that living conditions, housing and the indoor environment are important to people with asthma. Good ventilation is likely to help," he says. "It reduces humidity and so helps to reduce the number of house-dust mites and moulds. It also helps to disperse gases produced by heating and cooking which can be a problem for some people with asthma."

The Space Air show house will, quite literally, present a breath of fresh air in terms of design and climate control and Linda Barker, who designed the interior of the Space Air show house, said today; "Fresh clean are at a controlled temperature has become the new but unseen element of home comfort and interior design in the 21st century. At a time when the quality of air is often inferior to the outside air, climate control and air purification play an increasingly important role in the interior environment. The opportunity to create a Linda Barker interior for this unique Space Air home was both a challenge and a delight and I believe visitors to the house will regard it as a breath of fresh air in every way."

www.spaceair.co.uk