Domus Ventilation MVHR Systems Prove Ideal Retrofit Solution for London Rental Development

Domus Ventilation’s HRXE-HERA® Mechanical Ventilation with Heat Recovery (MVHR) systems have been specified for the be:here Hayes build-to-rent residential development in West London.  The MVHR units are being installed as a retrofit, replacing the previous units that had come to the end of their working lives.

be:here Hayes consists of 119 one, two and three-bedroom apartments, all of which have been designed specifically for the private rental market.  When the building was designed, Domus Ventilation’s Silavent MVHR ceiling mounted units were installed.  These are now being gradually replaced with Domus Ventilation’s latest MVHR model, HRXE-HERA®.  These new energy efficient units are smaller than their predecessors making them ideal for wall-mounting in the apartments’ storage cupboards.  This solution also provides users with easy access to change the filters.

As a retrofit solution, HRXE-HERA® has proven ideal for be:here Hayes as they readily use the existing Domus ducting.  Spigots on the top of the unit are 125mm for direct connection to the ducting, with adaptors available to enable direct connection to other ducting sizes for a quicker and more cost-effective installation. 

With energy efficiency being a key part of the building’s design, including air permeability and heat loss parameters that go beyond that required by Building Regulations, Domus Ventilation’s HRXE-HERA® MVHR have proved an ideal solution for be:here Hayes.  It filters and pre-warms fresh air drawn into the apartment using the heat from waste stale air extracted from the kitchen and bathroom using a heat exchanger.  This prevents the build up of condensation and mould, whilst improving indoor air quality by providing continuous balanced ventilation.  It’s advanced heat exchange proficiency enables up to 95% of waste heat to be recovered, for energy efficiency.  It comes with 100% thermal (summer) bypass which automatically activates when the air temperature reaches a pre-set level, allowing in cooler, fresh, filtered air without warming it through the heat exchanger.  The smart design of the HRXE means there is no reduction in airflow when operating in bypass mode.  Manual boost buttons have also been installed within the apartments to increase air flow when required.

Akash Sharma, Property Manager for be:here Hayes, worked closely with Domus Ventilation to ensure the best solution for this retrofit project and understands the importance of ventilation: “these are well sealed apartments and feature bathrooms without external walls, so there are no windows to ventilate them.  Without mechanical ventilation, condensation and mould would be a major problem, so MVHR systems were a key feature from the very start.  The previous Silavent units had performed well and my relationship with Domus Ventilation has always been good, so moving on to the HRXE units was a natural progression.  Dean Miranda [Domus Ventilation Specification Sales Manager] and one of the people from Domus’ technical team visited the site so they could fully understand what was required and made their recommendations from that.  The HRXE-HERA® has proven ideal as my in-house team have found it easy to install – we did a test run in one of the apartments first – and it’s proven to be cost-effective and efficient.” Domus Ventilation has a well-deserved reputation for quality, supported by excellent technical support, from a market leading manufacturer and designer.  It is well placed to offer immediate, practical solutions to Building Regulations Parts F & L.