Modern residential construction produces tightly sealed building envelopes designed to minimize thermal loss. While excellent for heating and cooling efficiency, airtight construction restricts natural air exchange, allowing indoor pollutants, humidity, and VOCs to accumulate.
To balance structural efficiency with indoor air quality (IAQ), Broan-NuTone engineered the AI Series HRVs and ERVs. These mechanical ventilation platforms integrate advanced airflow algorithms, smart motors, and variable recovery cores to optimize fresh air delivery.
The core innovation across Broan’s AI Series and BLP150 units is Virtuo Air Technology™. Balancing a balanced-ventilation system traditionally requires flow collars, differential pressure gauges, and physical damper adjustments. Virtuo replaces manual balancing with dynamic automated regulation.
- Auto-Balancing & Rapid Commissioning: Upon startup, Virtuo runs an automated diagnostic sequence. It measures intake and exhaust airflows, analyzes maximum achievable CFM against system static pressure, and balances the supply and exhaust streams. This eliminates manually throttling dampers and cuts commissioning time by up to 20 minutes per unit.
- Real-Time Self-Adjustment: Static pressure changes continuously in field applications due to filter loading, external wind gusts, or damper position shifts. Virtuo monitors differential static pressure and adjusts motor speeds instantly to maintain setpoint CFM, keeping the unit 100% balanced across all fan speeds.
- PMSM ECM Motors: The units feature Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motors (PMSM) paired with Electronically Commutated Motor (ECM) drivers, delivering up to 60% energy savings compared to standard PSC motors while enabling granular speed control.
- Integrated LCD Interface: Located directly on the unit chassis, the built-in LCD screen displays real-time CFM, power consumption (Watts), system statuses, and diagnostic fault codes without requiring external meters.
The Broan AI Series features a unified platform designed for wall or suspended chain installations, serving airflow demands from 35 up to 231 CFM. Offered in both Heat Recovery Ventilator (HRV) and Energy Recovery Ventilator (ERV) configurations, the series accommodates diverse climate zones. Available in Top Port or Side Port configurations (standard 5″, or 6″ round collars depending on total CFM output) to streamline mechanical room duct layouts.
AI Series Energy Recovery Ventilators (ERV)
Advanced Polymerized Membrane Core:
Uses a specialized synthetic membrane core capable of transferring both sensible heat and latent energy. Water vapor molecules pas through the membrane material via vapor pressure differentials without cross-contaminating fresh and exhaust air streams.
AI Series Heat Recovery Ventilators (HRV)
Polypropylene Core:
Constructed from rigid, non-porous polypropylene. Thermal energy conducts directly through thin polymer plates, warming incoming cold outdoor air with outgoing indoor heat. The material is completely impermeable to moisture and is only capable of transferring sensible heat.
Humidity balancing:
In humid climates, when it is more humid outside than inside, the ERV limits the amount of moisture coming into your home. In dry climates when the humidity level is reversed, the ERV limits the amount of moisture expelled from your home. This dynamic enthalpy exchange significantly reduces latent cooling loads on the primary AC equipment while maintaining optimal relative humidity year-round.
Designed for Cold Weather:
During the heating season, warm indoor exhaust air drops below its dew point as sensible heat transfers to the incoming fresh air stream. This moisture condenses on the core plates and drains out through an integrated drain fitting, removing excess relative humidity from the home. To maintain continuous operation during sub-zero conditions, the unit performs, at intervals, recovery module discreet defrost cycles.
Quick Specs:
- Airflow Range: 30 to 210 CFM via a high-efficiency PMSM ECM motor
- Thermal Performance: Up to 81% SRE and 84% ASE
- Cabinet Construction: Corrosion-resistant galvanized steel
Quick Specs:
- Airflow Range: 33 to 231 CFM via a high-efficiency PMSM ECM motor
- Thermal Performance: Up to 78% SRE and 82% ASE
- Cabinet Construction: Corrosion-resistant galvanized steel
Elevating Your Fresh Air System with the CFB
Adding an external high-efficiency filter box into a fresh air supply duct normally presents a challenge for mechanical contractors:extra duct resistance alters system static pressure, requiring manual re-balancing of supply and exhaust airflows. However, pairing our CFB Series filter boxes with Broan’s AI Series eliminates this issue completely due to the Virtuo Air Technology™. This will continuously measure static pressure changes and Virtuo will automatically adjust the PMSM output to maintain a perfectly balanced fresh air system while providing high-efficiency filtration.
Built with a heavy-duty 5052 H32 aluminum enclosure, the unit comes standard with a 4-inch MERV-13 filter designed to capture fine airborne particulate matter down to 2.5 microns (PM2.5) with 85% efficiency, including wildfire smoke, pollen, mold spores, and fine dust. For enhanced air purification, option filter upgrades include a MERV-15 media offering 90% PM2.5 efficiency, or an activated carbon-impregnated filter that maintains airflow comparable to a standard MERV-13 filter while adsorbing gaseous VOCs, toxic smoke compounds, and harsh odors.
Whether specifying for high-CFM single-family residential layouts or space-constrained ceiling cavities, Broan’s fresh air equipment removes the headache of mechanical balancing. Virtuo Air Technology continuously adapts to changing static pressure to maintain designed ventilation rates, keeping building envelopes balanced and compliant with modern ASHRAE 62.2 and Title 24 indoor air quality requirements.
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