HVAC duct systems (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) are essential in the design of the majority of modern buildings. Heating and cooling duct control are of such high importance to an indoor environment that no one can deny their importance in the initial design of a building. Designing and installing HVAC air ducts has become a massive industry involving architects, engineers, and construction experts. These air conditioning systems have become so integral to the design of modern architecture that they are found in all modern buildings. The versatility of the industry and the situations in which HVAC duct systems are installed means that there is a wide variety of tools available to meet the needs of various applications from small buildings to ones that are dozens of stories tall.
The history of the HVAC industry dates back hundreds of years. The first instance of what is known to resemble modern day HVAC technology can be found within the civilization of the ancient Romans. Researchers have found that the Romans utilized a form of central heating known as the hypocaust. The hypocaust was a furnace that was placed in the basement of a building and utilized flues to distribute heat to the upper levels of the building. Slowly the technology continued to evolve with the invention of chimneys and stoves that allowed people to control the temperatures of individual rooms.
“Air Ventilator Orange”
“Air Ventilator Black”
It was in 1902 that Willis Carrier in Buffalo, New York invented the first electrical air conditioning unit. This was a momentous step towards the development in the indoor environmental control technology and paved the way for the very first HVAC system being installed in a home in 1914. The technology continued to evolve as it incorporated refrigerator technology. HVAC systems are now the ideal methods of indoors temperature control. In 2006, the ISO (International Standardization Organization) passed a code that established standards for healthy air within indoor environments through the use of HVAC duct systems.
HVAC heating and cooling duct systems are designed to serve several purposes in indoor environments. One of the core purposes of these systems is to provide comfortable temperate indoor environments. The ducting systems are designed to deliver quality air throughout the entirety of a building. Ducting materials used for these systems must be able to efficiently carry significant levels of cool air on hot days and deliver hot air to keep a building warm during cold winter months. While controlling the temperature of a room is the most apparent and easily felt effect created through HVAC systems, the ventilation system provides one more extremely important benefit that is not easily seen.
HVAC systems are essential in establishing an efficient ventilation system that removes polluted air from an indoor environment to an outdoor ambient air environment. This is necessary in maintaining a healthy living and working environment. This process is also important for preventing airborne illnesses from spreading throughout an environment, especially for largely populated environments where airborne germs can quickly travel between individuals. If a building is not properly ventilated, infectious illnesses such as colds, coughs, and influenza can easily be transferred from person to person. A well-designed ducting system, using the proper ducting tools can efficiently transfer the airborne illnesses outside of the building, while simultaneously providing fresh and healthy air from the outside to breathe.
However, while found in the majority of today’s buildings, the ducting installed in HVAC systems is not created equally. The size, shape of a building and the applications performed in a given location determine the needs that the ducting system must meet. The larger the building, the greater the airflow needs to be for the HVAC duct systems in order to meet the demands. Various applications can add several challenges, like the ventilation of high-temperature air and fumes that contain chemicals that can be damaging to heating and cooling duct products that are not designed to handle the transferring of damaging and corrosive chemicals. To meet the large variety of demands created for HVAC air ducts, our inventory is stocked with a large selection of ducting products made of several materials and available in different length and width sizes.
For light-duty applications we have several ducting products made of PVC vinyl and polyester. These are lightweight and cost-effective options that are ideal for light-duty industrial environments. A great benefit that these lightweight hoses offer is portability and storability. Because of their lightweight, these ducting products can be easily moved between locations when utilizing portable HVAC systems. To promote this portability, the hoses come installed with wear-strips to protect the exterior of the hose when being dragged across abrasive materials. These light-duty hoses feature moderate temperature resistance capable of withstanding up to 180 degrees Fahrenheit.
The flexibility of these products make them a perfect choice for applications requiring ducting to be bent and maneuvered around objects without sacrificing airflow. We also feature several metal alloy-ducting products designed for heavy-duty HVAC duct systems. These metal options are designed to withstand higher operating temperatures and are a more permanent fixture.
Our aluminum ducting is capable of operating with temperatures up to 400 degrees Fahrenheit, while our stainless steel heating and cooling duct products are capable of withstanding highs of 1650 degrees Fahrenheit. These metal ducting options also
feature a self-supporting semi-rigid design. This allows the ducting to be bent into place during installation and will stay in place on its own without the need for additional support. These products are great for applications requiring ducting that can handle high volumes of air and high temperature fumes while remaining in a sturdy position.
As technology advances, HVAC duct systems will continue to evolve as engineers continue to place them with the important tasks of heating, cooling and air ventilation. When utilizing HVAC air ducts, it is essential to understand the demands of both the application and the building’s structure to ensure you have the product that can best perform the necessary tasks.