LAS VEGAS, May 8, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Panasonic Home & Environment Company, an organization designing technologies for the green-building community to help improve energy efficiency in homes and the health of homeowners, today announced WhisperComfort(tm), a new spot Energy Recovery Ventilator (ERV) and the first ceiling-insert ERV in the United States. Expanding Panasonic's robust line ventilation fans, the WhisperComfort ERV exhausts stale air from inside the home and replaces it with fresh air from outdoors, providing builders and homeowners with an affordable way to efficiently meet spot or whole-house ventilation requirements.
"WhisperComfort offers a new way for our customers to recover energy in their home, while exhausting stale air and supplying fresh air," said Dan Hogan, President, Panasonic Home and Environment Company. "We are dedicated to improving quality of life through sound environmental practices, and WhisperComfort offers spot or whole-house ventilation at a surprisingly low cost. In addition to the aesthetically pleasing grille design, this new ceiling-insert ERV can be easily installed during new construction or remodeling."
All Panasonic ventilation fans combine energy efficiency and quiet operation. The new WhisperComfort spot ERV fan series uses two ducts -- one to exhaust stale air and the other to supply fresh air from outside. Its low-rate, continuous run helps ensure that volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and other chemical and biological indoor air pollutants are vented out and replaced with fresh air. WhisperComfort technology provides a continuous, low-rate balance airflow to help improve indoor air quality. When air is brought in from the outside, the capillary core inside the WhisperComfort fan transfers heat and moisture to the supply air. This exchange both tempers the supply air coming in from outdoors and transfers moisture to maintain a comfortable indoor living environment.
The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) set a standard for whole house ventilation, requiring that continuous mechanical ventilation be 7.5 cubic feet per minute (CFM) per bedroom plus 1 CFM per 100 square feet. Panasonic WhisperComfort ERV fans are an affordable, efficient way to meet this ventilation standard. Since the WhisperComfort is a spot ERV, it can be installed in the ceiling of a single room or in common hallway, allowing for a whole-house ventilation system that meets the ASHRAE 62.2 standards to improve indoor air quality.
WhisperComfort model number FV-04VE1 has two 2-speed setting options: 10/20 CFM or 20/40 CFM. The mechanical engineer or contractor will usually select the appropriate setting based on the size of the home and ASHRAE 62.2 guidelines. The default setting is 20/40 CFM and can be changed to lower 10/20 CFM prior to installation by repositioning a Molex plug accessible in the junction box from outside the housing.
WhisperComfort operation can be designed two ways. For "Spot Ventilation" to meet CSA-F326; 10 CFM is suitable for a single bedroom, living room or family room, while 20 CFM is suitable for a master bedroom or large basement room. For "Whole House Ventilation" (IAQ) to meet ASHRAE 62.2; 20 CFM is suitable for 1 bedroom in a 500 square foot home, while 40 CFM is suitable for 2 bedrooms in a 1,750 square foot home. For living spaces with 3 or more bedrooms and greater than a 1,000 square foot home a second affordable WhisperComfort can be added.
In addition, the WhisperComfort ERV fan features a frost prevention mode that automatically turns on when the outdoor temperature drops below 32 degrees Fahrenheit. During frost prevention mode, the WhisperComfort cycles between exchange air and exhaust only air to prevent core freezing.
Panasonic WhisperComfort fan incorporates the same totally enclosed durable AC motor design used on in Panasonic exhaust only fans. This assures clean motor and long-life quiet operation. And, as with all Panasonic ventilations product, the motors, blower wheels, housing and other components have been designed by Panasonic, built by Panasonic for Panasonic WhisperComfort and assembled in Panasonic factories under Panasonic quality assurance guidelines.
WhisperComfort has a MSRP of $580. Panasonic's new WhisperComfort ERV provides an affordable balanced ventilation option that mechanical engineers and contractors may consider for medium priced and even low income developments.
About Panasonic Home and Environment Company
Panasonic Home and Environment Company is a unit of Panasonic Consumer Electronics Company, a subsidiary of Panasonic Corporation of North America. The company has a full line of ventilation fans featuring models for every type of home-building need. All Panasonic ventilation fans are ENERGY STAR qualified, except for those with heaters and the new WhisperComfort, as they cannot yet be rated within the industry. Panasonic ventilation fans carry a three-year warranty. WhisperGreen(tm) models carry a six year warranty on the DC motor. Panasonic is at the forefront of building trends and developed its flagship product, called WhisperGreen, for the new Green Building movement in the U.S. The WhisperGreen features ultra-quiet operation and extremely energy-efficient performance. The Web site http://www.panasonic.com/ventfans has more information about the fans, including where they can be purchased.
Panasonic is a global leader in the design and manufacture of eco-friendly electronics products for consumer, business and industrial use. The company's longstanding commitment to environmental preservation has received international recognition. Panasonic was recently named among the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations by Global Knights, Inc., in the annual Global 100 list.
Panasonic's achievement in designing highly energy-efficient products has been acknowledged by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy with the coveted ENERGY STAR award recognition for seven consecutive years (1999-2005). Panasonic is a leader in developing and marketing the most comprehensive lineup of energy-efficient consumer electronics, information technology products, home appliances, and HVAC products, and continues to set the pace for consumer electronics manufacturers.