"Aerosolized coronavirus can remain in the air for up to three hours."
According to Harvard Medical School
Air recirculation in public eating areas is essential for the health of your guests and staff, but doing so in the middle of winter can be a little tricky.
| OPTION 1 Vent The Upper Area |
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PEG Motorized Windows retract downwards, allowing you to vent your patio at the ceiling level, maintaining a pleasant environment for your guests.Depending on your environment, and your local COVID mandates, this venting can be performed a couple of times a day, or continuously left open during business hours. |
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OPTION 2 Vent The Lower Area |
In contrast, when venting retractable shades the shades open upwards. This will ventilate your dining space, but now you are creating an uncomfortable dining space by having cold air blown across the feet and legs of your guests. |
| OPTION 3 Vent The Louvered Roof |
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Venting a louvered roof is always a viable option, IF weather permits. First you need to check if your roof has a temperature sensor that will enable you to operate the roof at the current outdoor temperature. Just as important is knowing what the temperature will be when you anticipate closing the roof so that you don't end up with a roof that won't close due to a temperature drop. Depending on your location, you will also need to be aware of any ice buildup on the moving parts of the roof as damage can easily occur when a high torque motor tries to open/ close a frozen louvered roof. |
According to the latest CDC guidelines on ventilation:"...being outdoors and in spaces with good ventilation reduces the risk of exposure to the virus that causes COVID-19.""Ensure that ventilation systems operate properly and increase circulation of outdoor air as much as possible, for example by opening windows and doors and prioritizing outdoor seating." |
The diagram below depicts a common outdoor patio used for dining, fitted with a motorized louvered roof that is split into 4 different bays, and surrounded by motorized thermo-pane windows. This 700 square foot patio can exchange ALL of the air by simply opening the top windows by 6" on two sides of the patio, and cracking open the roof by 1" on only one bay.
How much time does it take to exchange existing air with air?
| Wind Speed | Air Exchange Duration |
| 1mph 2mph 5mph |
3.2 minutes 1.6 minutes 40 seconds |
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Let's Look At A Little Math
Venting ONE section of the roof only 1" will provide another 1,833CFM for a total of 4,033CFM! |
The CDC Recommendation for Assembly:
"An occupant load factor of 5, 7 or 15 square feet per person is used for bars and restaurants depending on the use of specific areas; like whether people are standing in line to order from a bar, sitting together at closely space tables and chairs, or seated in less concentrated arrangements." |
| An interior room can never compete with this level of fresh air exchange. This level of fresh air exchange, even at minimal wind speeds, more than DOUBLES the recommended air exchange during COVID-19 as recommended by The Epidemic Task Force of ASHRAE. (American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers) |
