Zehnder ComfoAir Q450 vs Brink Flair 400

[Adsibob]

1 hour ago, joth said:

 

Via https://www.home-assistant.io/integrations/comfoconnect/

 

It's not perfect as it writes log entries to HA at the rate they arrive from the ComfoConnect, which  appears to be at about 100/sec, which swamps the home assistant history view rather quickly (GBs of use). I think this is a short coming of both HA and the plugin that it can even do this, and there's no simple way to set a global rate limit, but meh that's what you get for relying on free stuff.

[this is where someone points out the obvious hidden setting I've been failing to find all this time]

 

Alas no equivalent integration for Brink Flair. Though I probably wouldn't be able to get nerdy with it if there was. Many many years ago I took a programming course at university in C aimed at solving problems in computational mathematics. Failed miserably. It's the only programming I've ever done and I found it rather difficult. I hear most programming these days is easier than C, but the experience scarred me.

[joth]

4 hours ago, Adsibob said:

Alas no equivalent integration for Brink Flair. Though I probably wouldn't be able to get nerdy with it if there was. Many many years ago I took a programming course at university in C aimed at solving problems in computational mathematics. Failed miserably. It's the only programming I've ever done and I found it rather difficult. I hear most programming these days is easier than C, but the experience scarred me.

 

Looks like most enthusiasts skip the brink WiFi module and connect directly to it via modbus. Easily done with an ESP32

https://community.home-assistant.io/t/brink-flair-325-heat-recovery-unit-esphome-modbus-integration-5/423182

 

Certainly saves a few £250 vs the zehnder option 

 

[Adsibob]

On 09/04/2021 at 08:32, jack said:

We have a Brink Excellent 400 that's mostly worked well for over 5 years since installation. It's very quiet - I can't hear it when it's at its normal background levels, even standing beside the unit. The unit itself makes some noise on boost, but with the volume of air being shifted, I think that would be impossible to avoid. It remains quiet at the inlets and outlets.

I’m surprised by this. My Brink Flair 400 (which I think is a very similar model) is pretty loud when standing next to it. Very quiet in the rooms of the house, but definitely not silent. I wonder if there is some issue with my install that makes it Lot in the actual room it’s in. Though this shouldn’t really bother me, because we deliberately designed the MVHR room off a bathroom, rather than a bedroom. Occasionally, I think it is louder in the bedrooms than it should be, but then I think I might be overfocussing on the sound.

[jack]

1 hour ago, Adsibob said:

I’m surprised by this. My Brink Flair 400 (which I think is a very similar model) is pretty loud when standing next to it. Very quiet in the rooms of the house, but definitely not silent. I wonder if there is some issue with my install that makes it Lot in the actual room it’s in. Though this shouldn’t really bother me, because we deliberately designed the MVHR room off a bathroom, rather than a bedroom. Occasionally, I think it is louder in the bedrooms than it should be, but then I think I might be overfocussing on the sound.

 

I've noticed over the last year or so that the fans are making a bit of noise. Perhaps the bearings are starting to wear nearly 7 years after installation.

 

It still isn't loud though - it's in a cupboard in our pantry, and I can hear nothing with the doors closed (despite a small gap between the doors), and it makes just a small amount of noise with the door open.

I can't hear it at all at any inlet/outlet unless it's on boost. It might be that most of the runs are fairly long, but I do run it at a pretty low speed as well.  

For reference, even very quiet sounds annoy me when I'm trying to get to sleep. Whether it's mosquito in the hallway or the slight buzz of the power supply for my wife's alarm clock on the other side of the bed, pretty much anything will keep me awake if I don't distract myself from it. Things keep me awake that my wife claims to not even be able to hear!

[Adsibob]

I cleaned the filters yesterday and have noticed a bit more noise since. Maybe I didn’tfit them back in properly. How often do you do maintenance that is more involved than just cleaning the filters? Mine was only commissioned 5 months ago.

[jack]

3 hours ago, Adsibob said:

I cleaned the filters yesterday and have noticed a bit more noise since. Maybe I didn’tfit them back in properly. How often do you do maintenance that is more involved than just cleaning the filters? Mine was only commissioned 5 months ago.

 

I change the filters every few months when the filter light comes on.

 

Other than that, if it looks dirty when changing the filters I give it a good clean out and a wipe down with antiseptic. Sometimes it can get a bit grotty by the end of winter with all the condensation it deals with, so this is often a job for spring.

 

I assume that I'll probably need to change the bearings at some point. If I can get through winter without any of the bearings going, I may take the whole unit out and give it a thorough once over - new bearings, cleaning out bits I can't get to easily get to while it's installed, checking as far up into the ducts as I can, checking inside the sound attenuator, that sort of thing. I haven't done any of those things since moving into the house just before Christmas 2015.