Keep Airflow in Check and Operations on Track

Using industrial fans to keep air moving inside your operations is about more than creating comfortable environments. Adequate airflow plays a crucial role in protecting your equipment and machinery protected, creating healthy conditions for those who frequent your metal buildings — and keeping the building in healthy working order for years or decades to come. Of course, finding the right industrial fans for the job isn’t always easy.

Here, Metallic Products’ ventilation experts walk you though important considerations anyone who owns or does business out of a metal building should know before settling on an accessory purchase. Read on for insights into everything from the specific roles your industrial fans play, to questions to ask your accessory provider and tips for making sure your chosen fans meet your unique needs.

Why Does Adequate Metal Building Ventilation Matter?

Before delving into the intricacies of the industrial fan, it’s important to know why we recommend incorporating it into your structures. Let’s take a look at the impacts quality airflow has on your structures and the people who frequent them.

Quality Airflow Keeps Moisture Under Control: Moisture trapped inside a steel building often leads to damaged insulation, mold growth and rust formation. In addition, it can lead to heightened humidity levels that create uncomfortable environments and negatively impact team member production.
Quality Airflow Wards Off Mold and Mildew Formation: When mold and mildew have the opportunity to take hold, they can aggravate respiratory issues, lead to unsightly stains and create unpleasant smells, too. When buildings have the ability to breathe, however, it puts a stop to such growth.
Quality Airflow Rids the Air of Fumes, Odors and Other Pollutants: Smoke, heat and fumes are just a few common byproducts associated with manufacturing and production processes. A thoughtful approach to ventilation helps ensure such annoyances have a safe way to exit the building, while also ushering fresh, healthier air in.
Quality Airflow Helps Extend a Steel Building’s Lifespan: The aforementioned mold, mildew, corrosion and insulation damage can be hard on a metal building, requiring costly repair or replacement work — and causing it to age more quickly than a well-maintained structure.

What Are My Industrial Fan Options?

There are countless industrial fan varieties on the market today, each designed to serve a unique purpose and building type. Roof-mount fans and wall-mount fans, however, are the two of the most common varieties commercial metal building owners are likely to incorporate into their operations.

Industrial Wall-Mount Fans

Affixed to the walls of your warehouses and production facilities, industrial wall-mount fans are hooked up to electricity and designed to pull warm air, fumes and other pollutants out of a space. They also keep moisture in check.

Wall-mount fans are typically incorporated directly into a steel building’s panels and come in a range of sizes to suit unique buildings and operational needs. Options for single- and dual-speed motors allow operations to have added control over air movement.

Industrial Roof-Mount Fans

Also known as attic fans, industrial roof-mount fans are designed to keep interior temperatures and humidity under control while also ushering smoke, fumes, pollutants and odors out. As the name suggests, they are mounted on top of a metal building.

Run on electricity, the roof-mount fan is connected to a thermostat that constantly gauges a steel building’s interior conditions. When conditions call for it, the commercial fan switches on automatically. Once the fan does its work and sensors gauge conditions are back to where they should be, the commercial fan switches off. There are two key types of commercial roof fans that fall under the category’s main umbrella, and they often work in conjunction with one another:

Hooded Fans

Designed to operate in much the same way a kitchen’s over-the-stove exhaust fan would, hooded fans use blowers to pull hot air, humidity, odors, fumes and pollutants out of your metal buildings, moving them to ducts or ushering them toward jet upblast fans which then finish the job. They are available in a range of throat sizes to accommodate various building sizes and output levels.

Jet Upblast Fans

The jet upblast fan pulls water vapor, warm air, fumes and pollutants up through a vent hood, then extracts those elements from the building. Metallic Products offers two jet upblast fan options. The direct drive jet upblast fan carries out its job with motors connected to the fan’s components. Meanwhile, the belt drive jet upblast fan uses belts to connect the motor and fan blades.

Factors to Consider When Incorporating Commercial Fans into Metal Buildings

Finding the right commercial fans to help your steel buildings breathe requires a fair bit of forethought and strategy. Here are a few things to factor into your search for the right accessories.

Existing Ventilation Accessories/Systems: Your commercial vents are just one aspect of your metal building’s overall ventilation efforts. It’s important to ensure they work well together. Poorly planned airflow, such as fans located directly beneath ridge vents, can cause accessories to cancel one another’s efforts out, creating unhealthy and uncomfortable interior environments.

Building Size and Production Output: Larger buildings, or those that carry out a high capacity of manufacturing or production, require more airflow. It’s important to ensure you’re incorporating enough fans into your space — in the proper places — and that they’re capable of providing the support you need. Your accessory provider will be able to help you put a plan in place which incorporates everything from how many wall fans to purchase, to the ideal throat size for your roof-mounted fans and upgraded fan motors for structures that need a bit more power.

Special Requirements: Every industrial operation is slightly different, and so is its accessory needs. Think through any unique concerns that might guide your decision as to which types of accessories to buy, and who to buy them from. If your hooded fan might be exposed to flying sparks or combustible materials, for instance, you’ll likely want to opt for an explosion-proof finished product. If your structure sits in a wooded area, meanwhile, you might want to incorporate bird screens into your fans. Make note of any concerns or special requests you might have, and discuss them with your accessory provider.

Aesthetic Preferences: Although quality airflow is the key concern with any metal building ventilation accessory, looks don’t hurt, either. Talk with your accessory provider about any colors or finishes you’d like incorporated into the finished product. At Metallic Products, for instance, we have a vast library of color and finish options to choose from, and we’re always willing to work with you to find custom colors to suit your needs.

Contact Metallic Products
to Learn More About Our Industrial Fans

Instagram

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Name(Required)

Company(Required)

Email(Required)

Phone(Required)

Comments(Required)

Industrial Fans