At Brookvent, we have over 30 years experience in designing, manufacturing and producing energy saving ventilation systems. Due to our expertise, we frequently receive questions from customers. Throughout 2019 we are aiming to post answers to some of the most commonly asked questions to make this information more accessible.
The first question we are going to tackle is: What is the difference between Equivalent and Geometric Open area?
Equivalent Area
The Equivalent Area of a ventilator measures the amount of air that can actually pass through a product. Of the two measurements the Equivalent Area will always be less than the Geometric Open Area and is considered to be a better, more accurate measurement of airflow performance.
Geometric Open Area
The Geometric Open Area (or Free area) measures the amount of air that can pass through the most restricted openings of a ventilator. This is an older style of measurement and is deemed to be less accurate due to more modern ventilators incorporating different shapes and internal mechanisms.
Therefore, when considering building regulations, Equivalent Area is the industry accepted standard of measuring the performance of a ventilator.