Anyone used floor outlets (supply)?

[Sparrowhawk]

Leafing through the Frankische catalogue I saw the floor mounted MVHR outlets (as Blauberg, Zehnder, Ubbink et al all sell) and the penny dropped that this would simplify duct runs to the first floor bedrooms, cutting the length of duct runs in half and reducing boxing in and loss of wardrobe space. And it would position the supply at the opposite end of the room to the door, which the skeilings prevent if the outlet is in the ceiling (it has to be halfway across the room towards the door).

 

Every manufacturer sells floor outlets, but hardly anyone talks about them. The only mentions I found on Buildhub were @jack in 2022 and 2017.

 

In theory floor-mounting might result in slightly poorer mixing, or create draughts which wall and ceiling mounting avoid. Though for draughts the floor mounting opening is larger, so lower velocity air.

 

Any real-world experience in addition to @jack's?

 

[G and J]

I’ve no experience to offer but intuitively as the majority of the year the bedroom supply vents will be moving very slightly warmer air into the bedroom I struggle to see why a perceptible draught would be created, given the low flow rates involved.

 

Like you that would reduce duct runs and for me it would reduce the number of penetrations in our airtight membrane, so we’ll done for a brilliant idea.

 

I think I’ll keep the bathroom extracts in the ceiling though.  

[jack]

1 hour ago, Sparrowhawk said:

Any real-world experience in addition to @jack's?

 

I can't remember what I said about them, but we haven't experienced any issues in the 9 years since they were installed.

 

Zero drafts to speak of, but that's at least partly because they're all in remote parts of the bedrooms (all of our bedrooms have them).

[mickeych]

I had a design spec'd for us last year by Omni and they where mostly using floor supply outlets and in the planning, as Jack says, they recommended that they work fine if they are in a remote part of the room that won't be covered by furniture. We may still opt for a floor outlet in 1 bedroom, so good call @Sparrowhawk I had almost forgotten with everything else going on at this stage! 🫠