Building Air-tightness & Façade Testing

Why do it? The building industry can help to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases by constructing buildings that are less prone to air leakage. Air tightness is now included in the requirements of Part L of the Building Regulations.

• Air permeability is expressed as volume flow per hour of air supplied to the space per square metre of envelope area for an internal to external pressure difference of 50 Pa.
• Building test involves connecting a fan to the building and pressurising it over a range of pressure differences.
• Air flow rate through the fan (equal to the air leaking through the building envelope) and the pressure difference are recorded at each fan speed.
• To calculate air permeability, corrections are made for temperature and barometric pressure.

• Air flow is measured by Static Pitot Tubes (FCO68).
• Pitot output is measured by our Precision Micromanometers (FCO520 or FCO560) or Differential Pressure Transmitters (FCO332 or FCO318)
• Our Pressure Transmitters also provide a reading for the internal and external pressure differential of the building.

Double Glazed Window Trickle Vent Testing

Tests to establish the optimum airflow through the top vent in double glazed windows are being carried out at Sheffield and Liverpool Universities.

The standard equipment is a Furness Controls FCO96 2000 litre/min laminar flow element coupled to an FCO560 microprocessor micromanometer.

A further micromanometer monitors the pressure difference between the outside and inside of the window so that the wind pressure effect can be related to the airflow passing through the vent.

Manufacturers of double glazing products and the British Standards Institute are now also using this method.

Fire Door Seal Leakage Test

Fire door seals have to be leak tested to the British Standard 476-10 which specifies a limit of 16 cubic metres per hour when a pressure of 100 Pascals is applied to the top and bottom of the door.

Micro-manometers are used to monitor the test pressure, and the flow in conjunction with an FCO66 fore and aft pitot tube monitors the air passing along the duct into the test chamber.

The fan providing the test air can be set so that a pressure of 100 Pascals shows on the micromanometer, and then the reading on the flow meter must be lower than 16 cubic metres/hour to ensure a pass.

Flow-checking Inhale Respirators

To protect service or military personnel from harsh working environments or chemical related incidents, protective masks with inhalation and exhalation ports are deployed. When the respirators are at near ambient pressure – when the user is not inhaling or exhaling, the valve should be isolated, when subjected to pressure or vacuum, the valve should open and an acceptable amount of airflow should be present for the users air inhalation / exhalation.

The inhale / exhale ports historically have been tested using two separate pieces of test equipment; a variable area flow meter to verify the correct flow through the respirator when subject to the specified static pressure / vacuum and an analogue pressure gauge to monitor the applied pressure / vacuum.

Furness Controls were tasked to provide an all in one, digital solution to meet this test requirement in order to reduce the overall variation in results which is caused by test technicians interpretation of the displayed value on analogue meters.

Heat Recovery Systems

Air to water heat recovery systems are used where hot air is routinely generated as a by-product of some process such as cooking, and there is a need at the same location for heated water. Our instruments are employed by the manufacturers of these systems to test for efficiency at varying rates of air-flow and temperature.

Our temperature-compensated Differential Pressure Transmitters (FCO332) and Averaging Pitot Tubes (FCO68), in concert with a Wilson Flow Grid, provide a precise measurement of flow across the air duct as well as providing signals to control fans and louvers. Automatic data-logging ensures that the evaluation process is quick and efficient.

Landfill Monitoring

Surveys of gas emissions from brownfield sites are a requirement before new development can proceed, especially if the land was previously used for landfill. Alternatively, determining the volume of emissions is desirable when considering the harnessing of gas for use in a biomass power system.

Furness Controls micromanometers, used with our laminar flow elements, have been used for many years to measure the flow passing in or out of the ground. Low flows of 20cc/min are often encountered, and our expertise in low pressure and flow measurement ensures that the result is always accurate.

Multiple Part Leak Testing

Whether you are a manufacturer of Automotive parts, Medical Devices, White Goods or indeed almost any item, Leak testing to ensure fitness for purpose is an essential part of the process. This can be a time consuming process and one which adds assurance rather than value to your product. It is a process which needs to be optimised for maximum efficiency and this is where the FCS456 Multi Channel Sequence Box may be able to help.

Designed for direct link to our world renowned FCO750 and FCO770 leak detection instruments, the multi-channel sequence box opens a whole new window of opportunity for testing groups of components or assemblies with confidence and integrity.

Pen cap flow testing

Caps of pens are flow tested so that if anyone, particularly a child, swallows it, sufficient air can pass through to allow normal breathing.

ISO 11540 (B.S.7272) specifies that a pressure of 1.33 Kpa applied to the cap must result in a flow of at least 8 litres per minute of air. Pen companies use the Furness Controls FCO96 laminar flow element and our digital manometers to carry out this test.