Marco van Noord is clear: "I don’t understand how horizontal fans are still being sold. In smoke tests that we have done, we have seen clearly that horizontal fans actually do nothing compared to vertical ones."
Four years ago, tomato growers cooperation Prominent has performed many tests with vertical air circulation systems. These tests are carried out in collaboration with Elektravon-Haket, VandenEnde group and Krijn Buitelaar (formerly with the Research Station in Naaldwijk). They started with 1 ha Verti-fans and had them installed on another 2 ha the following year. The conclusion was obvious: the vertical ones are the real deal.
Energy costs
What are the differences? Marco: "It makes a big difference in energy costs, so for one thing, it saves money. In terms of crop, it's not a problem either. Vertical circulation is mostly neglected by the industry, something I find hard to understand. If you conduct tests using smoke to make the circulation patterns visible, it clearly shows that horizontal ventilation does next to nothing compared to vertical venting. So why do growers waste so much time in adjusting their system, installing old-fashioned fans? The new ones cost the same amount of money, but work so much better!”
For more information:
Van der Ende Groep
Ton van der Kooij
Tel +31 0174 51 50 50
tk@endepompen.nl
