Keeping heat inside a busy warehouse or factory can be a challenge. Loading bays are often in constant use, with large roller doors left open for extended periods. This causes hot air to escape, and makes it difficult to keep warehouses a comfortable temperature during colder months.
There are various ways to counteract heat loss in loading bays, including installing air curtains and high-speed doors. In this article, we explore which of these solutions performs better in high traffic loading bays.
High-speed doors
High-speed doors open and close rapidly, reducing the time that large roller doors are left open for. These doors aim to minimise heat loss and maintain a consistent internal temperature.
Advantages of high-speed doors
The advantages of installing high speed roller doors include:
- Safety: High-speed doors usually come equipped with robust safety sensors and other features to prevent accidents in a busy workplace.
- Increased productivity: The rapid opening and closing of high-speed doors also facilitates faster loading and unloading of goods, creating a more streamlined workflow.
Disadvantages of high-speed doors
Although the main purpose of high-speed doors is to reduce heat loss, they are not actually that effective at keeping heat in. Though these doors open and close rapidly, it only takes a moment for hot air to escape when there is no air barrier to keep it in. Loading bay doors also frequently need to be left open for extended periods during loading and unloading, during which time heat will escape your building. You might need to run your heating more to compensate for the heat lost, seriously impacting your business’s energy efficiency rating.
Another drawback is the high cost of maintenance. In order for these doors to operate smoothly and safely, they must be checked and maintained regularly. The wear and tear on intricate parts caused by operating at high speeds can impede performance.
On the other hand, neglecting the maintenance of these doors can lead to expensive repairs and disruptive downtime. If the doors fail during peak operation times, this can also impact business productivity. High-speed doors are also very power hungry, and can be expensive to run.
In some cases, these doors are not a suitable heat loss solution (e.g. buildings with extreme temperature fluctuations, or such frequent loading bay traffic that doors are nearly always left open). Before committing to high-speed doors, it’s worth checking if they are worth the cost of installation, operation, and maintenance – and looking at alternate solution that might be better suited to your needs, like air curtains.
Air curtains
An air curtain is fan-powered unit designed to be installed above large, exterior doorways – including loading bay doors. The unit creates a warm air barrier between the inside of a building and the outdoors, counteracting the heat lost when that door is left open.
Advantages of air curtains
There are many benefits to installing air curtains above large loading bay doors, including:
- Energy efficiency: Air curtains compensate for heat loss and automatically adjust their output to maintain optimum indoor temperatures. This means your heating system doesn’t have to work overtime to counteract heat loss, improving your business’s energy efficiency and EPC rating.
- Keep doors open: With air curtains operating, even large loading bay doors can be kept open for extended periods without compromising your indoor temperature – increasing productivity and reducing downtime.
- Improved air quality: The warm air barrier air curtains create also repels dust, pollutants, and insects, improving the air quality of your building.
- Year-round temperature stability: Some air curtains also have the option of blowing cold air, enabling you to create a stable indoor temperature all year round.
Disadvantages of air curtains
Like any heating solution, air curtains also need to be regularly maintained in order to keep running smoothly – however, their maintenance costs are relatively low compared to some heat loss solutions.
Air curtains are also only effective if they are installed correctly. Improperly installed air curtains can lead to reduced operational efficiency, uncomfortable airflow, and unnecessarily high energy consumption.
At Heritage Heating and Cooling, we’ve supplied, installed, and maintained air curtains throughout the Midlands and surrounding areas for decades. As industrial heating experts, we can advise on whether air curtains are the right solution for your business and, if they are, install them correctly to ensure you feel the benefits. Our experienced engineers can conduct a free site survey, visiting your premises to quote for the best solution – all at no extra cost to you.
