Case Studies - Cooling the Play Centre

Jungle Mania, in Sheffield, is a modern child play
facility. Build to modern building standards it is a well
insulated and sealed building. As a direct consequence
of this it is a very low cost building to keep warm during
winter months but temperatures can rise to an
uncomfortable level during the summer.

This is a busy play centre which, in addition to the
activity equipment has a restaurant and associated
catering and cooking equipment.

A single EcoCooler was roof mounted. This
provides a constant flow of cooled air to the
main building. Comfort levels are improved
by:
• Increasing the ventilation rate
• Reducing the temperature
• Raising the humidity level
It is generally considered comfortable if the
temperature is below 250C. In the UK the
maximum temperature of the air coming
from an evaporative cooler is 220C.

EcoCoolers are installed as part of a balanced ventilation scheme. Air enters the building through the EcoCooler and is exhausted using, in this case, a powered extract fan.

Modern building regulations stipulate a relatively high
minimum ventilation rate dependent upon the
occupancy levels. In many cases the implications of
this is that a mechanical ventilation system has to be
installed in addition to a refrigeration based cooling
system. An EcoCooling installation fulfils both of these
requirements at a fraction of the installation cost.
The environmental benefits of EcoCooling are;.
• Lower carbon impact: A cooling system will
typically use 85% less electricity than an
refrigeration based system
• No refrigerants: Substances which are
potentially damaging to the environment are
avoided. A constant supply of fresh, clean air is
provided using the natural process of
evaporative cooling.