How It Works
The Hydronic Shell Modular Panel
The Hydronic Shell prefabricated facade panel includes all elements necessary to deliver complete heating, cooling, and ventilation to each unit in a multi-unit residential building, or to handle the perimeter loads in other building types such as offices, schools, and warehouses.
The piping and ductwork in each panel connects to vertical risers to form a complete HVAC system with all components enclosed within the new facade.
US PATENTS: 11,415,328 and 11,767,990
Central Equipment
Electric Heat Pumps generate the hot and chilled water supplied to the piping within the Hydronic Shell. The water temperatures required are very mild, allowing the heat pumps operate at extremely high efficiency.
The high-efficiency heat pumps combined with reduced loads means energy consumption and CO2 emissions are dramatically reduced.
Air Handling Units fully condition, dehumidify, and filter the outside ventilation air supplied to the risers within the shell.
They also remove the kitchen and bathroom exhaust air which runs through an energy recovery wheel to reduce loads and energy consumption.
There are a wide range of options for the central heating and cooling equipment. For example, the system can connect to air-source heat pumps, a district thermal network, or a ground-source heat pump system.
The central equipment allows ample opportunities for heat recovery, such as injecting heat from cooling into the domestic hot water system, or recovering heat from the building waste water.
Individual control
Each room will enjoy individual control and the superior comfort of radiant heating from the exterior walls. The continuous supply of fully conditioned, dehumidified, and filtered ventilation air ensures superior indoor air quality. The only moving part is a small fan within the HydroBox, allowing for minimal maintenance and whisper quiet operation.
The HydroBox is a hybrid between a fan coil unit and an active chilled beam. It fits within the HVAC cavity with a grille at the window sill. It supplements the capacity of the radiant heating and cooling and mixes the conditioned ventilation air into the room. It is designed for whisper quiet operation and easy access to all components through the top grille. Requiring less than 30W of power each, the HydroBox can be powered by a low-voltage wiring system integrated into the exterior facade.
Thermal Storage for Demand Response & Resilience
By radiating heating and cooling through the existing facade, we turn the existing masonry facade into a massive thermal storage battery.
Simply turn the system off and the stored heating or cooling continues to radiate in, maintaining thermal comfort for an extended period of time.
This is a simple and effective strategy for implementing demand response in coordination with the electrical utility during a peak event, or to avoid excessive peak demand charges.
It also improves building resilience by maintaining thermal stability during a power outage.