Air curtains offer a unique means of separating the interior of a business from the outdoors, and keeping some things that are outside from getting inside. A controlled stream of air is directed, typically downward, across the garage or dock opening, creating an air seal. They’re often paired with heavy, clear plastic strips that cover the doorway.
This invisible barrier boosts energy efficiency by preventing the flow of cold and warm air between the spaces separated by the air curtain or air door. The barrier also keeps out insects, dust, odors and other pollutants – all while not limiting the access of people moving into and out of the space. Air curtains are also useful in interior capacities, like cold storage in a laboratory or controlled temperature and humidity rooms in a botanical garden.
What Kinds of Businesses Need Commercial Air Curtains?
If you answer ‘yes’ to any of the following questions, an air curtain might be a smart choice for your business:
- Does your restaurant staff struggle to keep out flying insects and dust?
- Does your business have a drive-through window that lets in flying bugs?
- Do you need a barrier between your business and the outdoors, but also an unobstructed view of the parking lot?
- Do you have a room or warehouse space that needs to stay at a certain temperature?
Other operations that commonly benefit from installing air curtains are those with shipping and receiving docks, customer entryways, and refrigerated and cold storage rooms. Air curtains are also frequently found at airport hangars. Some examples of industrial and commercial operations that utilize air curtains to separate environments are:
- Restaurants (sit-down and quick-serve)
- Hospitals
- Grocery stores
- Food processing plants
- Airports and terminals
- Schools and cafeterias
- Aircraft hangars
- Greenhouse facilities
- Wastewater treatment plants (odor control)
- Paint shops
What are the Advantages of Installing Air Curtains in a Commercial Facility?
The unique features of air curtains provide business owners with distinct advantages:
- Comfort levels for customers and/or employees: Since the air curtain completely seals one environment from the next, there are no drafts or temperature fluctuations. This not only keeps customers comfortable, but for places like warehouses and restaurant kitchens, it keeps employees in an optimal environment, lessening voluntary separations and absenteeism while increasing employee satisfaction and productivity.
- Energy-Efficiency: Any business that installs air curtains will tell you that the air curtains have cut down on their heating and cooling costs. The subsequent result, besides reduced overhead, is that your HVAC system is working less and working less hard, which means reduced repair costs and increased lifespan of the system.
- Increased Quality Control: For places like food processing plants, restaurants and bars, as well as facilities like laboratories and transplant wings in hospitals, air curtains essentially create a sealed room that recirculates air instead of incorporating new air. That means no bugs, dust, dirt, or outside air intruding into a controlled space.
On top of all these advantages, installing an air curtain at your commercial facility is inexpensive, so you don’t need to find a mountain of liquid capital in order to reap all the cost-reducing benefits.
What Goes into Installing an Air Curtain on Commercial Storefront Doors?
If you’re considering having an air curtain installed in one of the doorways at your commercial or industrial building, a specialist in commercial door installation will first come to examine the doorway(s) you’re looking to add air curtains to. They’ll analyze things like:
- What type of opening is it?
- What are the dimensions of the opening?
- What’s the doorway for?
- What are the temperature, humidity and pressure differences between the two spaces?
- Will you need any temperature-altering features like heat for the air curtain unit?
Not all air curtains are the same; they come in different sizes with different features and varying power levels. All the above variables will determine what kind of air curtain the commercial door installer recommends for your doorway.
Save on Your Overhead Costs with Air Curtain Installation & Maintenance Services
The energy savings from air curtains are well-documented; Air Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration News has reported that air curtains conserve more energy than vestibules, which means businesses can save significantly on construction costs by not adding vestibules. And when you factor in reduced costs of employee turnover and HVAC maintenance and repair, air curtains are a good idea for any business’ storefront entry doors, and a great addition to facilities that maintain climate-separated interior spaces.
At SACS DOOR & GATE, we’re happy to meet with you and discuss which type of air curtain is right for your business. Our experienced technicians are trained to pay attention to the details, ensuring your air curtain works to its maximum level of efficiency after it’s installed. Concerned about maintenance down the road? We’re here to guide you. We are Sacramento’s go-to source for air curtains, commercial overhead doors, storefront doors and windows, specialized commercial/industrial doors, and more.