EU declaration conformity
Destratification controller
Product description
Destratification controller to regulate ceiling fans that redistribute warm air trapped at the ceiling down to the floor level. Destratification realises significant energy savings in colder climates by reducing heat losses through the ceiling. During hot summer days, the ceiling fans can provide a cooling breeze.
The difference between ceiling temperature and floor temperature is measured with optional PT500 sensors. Fan speed increases as the difference between both temperatures increases.
The analogue output controls various types of EC motors and AC fan speed controllers with analogue input.
Documents
Additional specifications and description
What is destratification?
Destratification is the process of mixing a building's internal air to eliminate thermal layers and create a uniform temperature from floor to ceiling. Naturally, air stratifies because warm air is less dense than cold air. Warm air rises to the ceiling, while cold air sinks to the floor. In high-ceiling buildings, this creates a massive temperature gap that wastes energy and compromises comfort. Heat is lost through the roof, requiring extra energy to make the floor temperature comfortable. Destratification reduces these energy losses, while the uniform temperature increases the comfort level.
How does destratification work?
The mixing of the air layers is performed using ceiling fans. These are available with EC motors or AC motors. This controller can directly drive EC motors via the analogue output signal. The default analogue output type is 0-10 Volt. Different analogue input types can be selected via Modbus Holding Register 11.
Ceiling fans with AC motor can also be controlled by combining DSCA8-DM with a fan speed controller with analogue input. The Sentera product range offers following possibilities:
These speed controllers operate using different technologies. The advantages and disadvantages of each are described in detail in this article.
How are the ceiling fans controlled?
This controller features three control states: Delta control, Summer control and Override control.
- Delta control is the default state. In this state, fan speed is regulated based on the temperature difference between ceiling and floor temperature. The warm air is mixed, causing the temperature at floor level to rise and reducing heat losses through the roof. If destratification only is not enough to reach the desired floor temperature, auxiliary heating can be activated via the thermostat function (relay output).
- Summer control state operates the fan at a fixed speed (HR 81) if the floor temperature is higher than the setpoint (HR82). During warm summer days, this state can be used to provide a cooling breeze. This state can also be activated by pressing the button on the front panel.
- Override Control state can be activated via Modbus RTU communication (HR15). In this state, the ceiling fans will be continuously controlled at a fixed speed (HR14), regardless of automatic control logic.
How is the temperature measured?
This controller measures the temperature nearby the floor and nearby the ceiling to drive the ceiling fans and optimally regulate the destratification process. Two (optional) PT500 temperature sensors are required for this. PT500 sensors are very reliable and easy to connect via two wires (the polarity doesn't matter). PT500 sensors are available in different enclosure types:
A PT500 sensor is a temperature sensor that measures temperature by tracking how the electrical resistance of its platinum core changes. The name "Pt500" tells you its exact characteristics: "Pt" stands for platinum (the core element), and "500" means the sensor has an electrical resistance of exactly 500 Ohm at 0°C. A PT500 temperature sensor converts the temperature measurement into electrical resistance. Platinum has a positive temperature coefficient. This means that the resistance will increase as the temperature rises. If the cable is extended, this should not cause a significant change in the resistance value. We therefore recommend keeping the cable length as short as possible and limiting the number of connectors to an absolute minimum. Provide separate cable ducts for the temperature sensors to prevent interference and erroneous temperature measurements.
Remarks, reviews & ratings