CFM

FAN CFM CALCULATOR

This fan calculator is typically used to calculate the CFM or cubic feet per minute of air
exchange that may be desired in a building. Whether exhausting air or bringing fresh air into
a structure, the calculation produced should help to figure out the size of fan(s) required to
accomplish the air exchanges needed.

PLEASE NOTE: If you are not sure what kind of CFM's may be needed for your type of facility,
please refer to the Commercial & Industrial Applications chart below:

If you have any questions regarding CFM's, air exchanges needed, the calculator, or which
exhaust and or supply fans may be right for your building, please call us at 866.727.1060

Length of Area (feet)

Width of Area (feet)

Height of Area (feet)

Frequency of Desired Air Exchange (in minutes)

CFM's Required For Desired Air Exchange

EXHAUST & AIR INTAKE VENTILATION GUIDE BASED ON 0" STATIC PRESSURE

CFM = Room Volume / Minutes Per Air Exchange | Room Volume = L x W x H (room
dimensions)

Minute Air Exchange Chart For Commercial and Industrial Applications

-- TYPICAL RANGE

Assembly (6) 2-10

Auditoriums (6) 1-20

Bakeries (2) 1-3

Banks (6) 3-10

Bars (4) 2-5

Barns (15) 10-20

Boiler Rooms (2) 1-3

Bowling Alley (3) 1-5

Cafeteria (4) 3-5

Churches (6) 2-10

Classrooms (6) 4-8

Compressor Rooms (2) 1-3

Dance Halls (6) 2-10

Dairies (4) 2-5

Dormitories (6) 4-8

Dry Cleaning Plant (3) 1-5

-- TYPICAL RANGE

Engine Rooms (3) 1-5

Factories (7) 4-10

Foundries (5) 2-8

Garages (7) 4-10

Generating Plants (4) 2-5

Glass Plants (2) 1-3

Gymnasiums (6) 2-10

Hallways (8) 4-12

Kitchens (Comm.) (3) 1-5

Laboratories (3) 1-5

Libraries (4) 2-5

Laundries (2) 1-3

Locker Rooms (6) 2-10

Machine Shops (4) 2-5

Markets (6) 2-10

Mills (4) 2-5

-- TYPICAL RANGE

Packing Houses (4) 3-5

Plants (7) 4-10

Plating Plants (4) 2-5

Print Shops (7) 4-10

Restaurants (6) 2-10

Rest Rooms (7) 4-10

Schools (7) 4-10

Spray/Paint booth (1) 1-2

Stores (7) 4-10

Theaters (6) 4-8

Transformer Rooms (3) 1-5

Turbine Rooms (4) 2-5

Waiting Rooms (12) 10-15

Warehouses (7) 4-10

Welding Rooms (3) 1-4

-- -- --
Calculating Fan Requirements
URBANGARDENMAGAZINE.COM
(Note: URBANGARDENMAGAZINE.COM is no longer in business)

We asked two experienced growers (Dan from Oregon and Fred from The
Netherlands) to face off with their different opinions on how to calculate your fan
requirements. Whose method do you think is the best?

Dan's Method
Calculating By Room Volume
You will find many calculations on the web for sizing a fan for ventilating indoor
gardens; however, what many of these calculations fail to take into consideration is the
friction loss on carbon filters and increased temperatures from HID lights. So here's my
calculation method which you can use as a guide for sizing an exhaust fan for a
growing area (keep in mind that this calculation will give you the lowest required CFM
(Cubic feet of air per minute) required to ventilate the indoor garden.)

Step 1: Room Volume

First the volume of the room needs to be calculated. To calculate multiply length x
width x height of growing area e.g. A room that is 8' x 8' x 8' will have a volume of 512
cubic feet.

Step 2: CFM Required

Your extraction fan should be able to adequately exchange the air in an indoor garden
once every three minutes. Therefore, 512 cubic feet / 3 minutes = 171 CFM. This will
be the absolute minimum CFM for exchanging the air in an indoor garden.

Step 3: Additional factors

Unfortunately, the minimum CFM needed to ventilate a indoor garden is never quite
that simple. Once the grower has calculated the minimum CFM required for their indoor
garden the following additional factors need to be considered:

Number of HID lights — add 5% per air cooled light or 10-15% per non-air cooled light.

CO2: add 5% for rooms with CO2 enrichment

Filters: if a carbon filter is to be used with the exhaust system then add 20%

Ambient temperature: for hot climates (such as Southern California) add 25%, for
hot and humid climates (such as Florida) add up to 40%.

An Example
In our 8' x 8' room we have 2 x 1000w air cooled lights, and we plan to use a carbon
filter. We also plan to use CO2 in this room. The ambient temperature is 90 °F (32°C),
however, we will be using air from another room that is air-conditioned. Here's the
minimum required CFM to ventilate room:

1) Calculate the CFM required for room (see above.)

2) Add 10% (for 2 air cooled lights.)

3) Add 5% of original CFM calculation (For CO2.)

4) Add 20% of original CFM calculation for Carbon Filter.

5) Air is coming from air-conditioned room so no need to add any other percentages.

6) CFM = (171 CFM) + (171CFM x 10%) + (171 CFM x 5%) + (171CFM x 20%) + ( 0
)= 231 CFM.

This is the absolute minimum CFM required to ventilate your room.

The next step might seem to match the closest fan to this CFM. However, for this
example I'd choose a six inch fan with a CFM of around 400 or more, and a 6 inch
carbon filter to match. The extra CFMs may seem a bit excessive (calculations on most
indoor gardening websites would recommend a 4" fan and a 4" carbon filter) but it's
always better to over-spec since we need to compensate for air resistance in ducting
too.

Also, as we are using a carbon filter we will need to match the fan with the filter so that
the fan that will neatly fit onto the filter.

If all the variables are kept the same and we changed the room size from 8' x 8' to a
12' x 12' then the minimum required CFM would be 519 CFM.

The All-Important Inflow!

An intake port can be anything from a gap under the door to an open window - even a
hole in the wall. The best place for an intake port is diagonally opposite from your
exhaust fan; that way, air has to pass across the entire room - very efficient. You can
put a piece of screen over the opening to keep insects and animals out, a piece of A/C
filter to keep dust out, or a louvered shutter or backdraft damper that opens when the
fan turns on and closes when it turns off. You can also use a motorized damper. This
gets installed in-line with your ducting and is plugged into whatever device controls
your exhaust fan. When your fan turns on, it allows air to pass. When your fan shuts
off, it seals completely, preventing CO2, air, etc. from passing. You can get creative
with these devices and use one fan to control two rooms, etc.

One additional note about intake ports - you will see much better results from your
exhaust system if you install a second fan to create an active (as opposed to passive)
intake system. Normally, when your exhaust fan sucks air out of your room, air is
passively going to get sucked back into the room. By installing a second fan on the
intake side, you will reduce the amount of negative pressure created in the indoor
garden, thereby cutting down greatly on the amount of work the exhaust fan has to do
and allowing much more air to pass through. If you're not sure or you don't want to
spend the money, start out with just an exhaust fan. If it's not performing as well as
you thought it would, try adding an intake fan - you'll smile when you see the
difference!

Fred's Method
Calculating By Wattage
Hello there. First off, I'm used to working with Celsius, not Fahrenheit, but I've done
my best to provide formulas for both. My method for calculating fan requirements does
not cover active cooling with air conditioning systems or cool-tube designs. We're
talking about everyday grow chambers here, totally enclosed for airflow control, with
no large amounts of radiant heat into or out of the box. Your mileage may vary some
for these reasons.

RIGHT THEN, LET'S GET STARTED:

1) Start at the beginning and design this right! Before you even buy or cut anything for
your new project, determine the highest temperature that your intake air will ever be
when lights run. Call this T (inlet).

2) Use these formulas to determine difference in temperature you can tolerate. 80°F
(27°C) is just about the optimal for growing most plants. You can go up to 86°F (30°C)
if you have to, but aim for 80°F (27°C).

Tdiff = 27 °C – T (temperature of inlet air)

3) Add up wattage for all power sources in your indoor garden. Lights, pumps, heaters,
humidifier, radio, coffee maker, whatever! Add it ALL up and call it Watts. If it is on for
more than three minutes and uses more than a watt, add it up. This will make your
number worst-case and therefore a conservative value.

4) Compute the absolute minimum fan power you will need using the following
formulas. Fan power is measured in the amount of air (cubic feet) shifted per minute.
The formula below is the minimum fan rating you must have to achieve your
temperature goals. You will have to increase fan power to compensate for duct
constriction, small inlets, carbon scrubbers, screens, or other items that block airflow.

CFM = 1.75 x Watts /Tdiff (in Celsius)

If you prefer to work in Fahrenheit, try this formula:

CFM = 3 x Watts / Tdiff (in Fahrenheit)

5) Get at least this fan power or don't come and ask questions! If you are going to
have more than one fan, they should be mounted side-by-side rather than inline if you
want to add their different CFM ratings. For inline fans, use the lowest airflow rating of
all fans in the path. A fan on the inlet and a fan on the exhaust of the box are
 considered inline fans. Fans just circulating air inside the indoor garden should not be
counted for airflow but must be included in your initial wattage calculations.

OK, TO SEE THESE FORMULAS IN ACTION WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO DO A

LITTLE NUMBER CRUNCHING:

An Example
Ok, let's say you have 2000 watts in a 8 foot by 8 foot room with an 8 foot ceiling
height.

So what amount of air do I need to move to keep the room at 82°F (28°C)? My
incoming air temperatures are 68°F (20°C) during the lights on period.

Tdiff = 28 – 20 = 8°C

For Celsius the formula comes out at:

CFM = 1.75 x 2000 / 8 = 438 CFM

For Fahrenheit we get the following:

Tdiff = 82 – 68 = 14°F CFM=3x2000/14=429 CFM

Remember, Tdiff shows how much your temperatures will rise above your inflow air
temperature for a given wattage and air movement.

If you are adding any carbon scrubbers or extensive ductwork, this is where you add to
the fan size to account for air pressure losses. You have to move this many CFM, or the
numbers don't come out right. Exactly how much these items diminish your airflow
depends on your exact configuration and is beyond the scope of this introductory
article!

What to do when your outside temperatures are higher than your maximum allowed
indoor garden temperatures!

YOU HAVE A FEW CHOICES:

1) Stop growing for a while till things cool off or try running your grow lamps at night
when inlet air will be cooler.

2) Reduce your lighting to drop the heat load. Not good if the incoming air is already
over critical when it arrives in the box. Might be possible if the inlet air temperature is
lower but you are running too many lights to keep up with the cooling.

3) Use active air conditioning.

Okay, there you have it – two very different approaches to calculating your
extraction requirements. What do you think? Do you prefer either or neither of
these approaches? Or perhaps a combination of the two?
My Simple Rule of Thumb

IF YOU WANT TO KEEP THINGS REALLY SIMPLE, JUST REMEMBER THAT YOU
WANT TO REPLACE THE AIR IN YOUR INDOOR GARDEN EVERY ONE TO THREE
MINUTES. IF YOU'RE IN A HOT AREA, EXCHANGE IT EVERY MINUTE; IF YOU'RE
IN A COOLER AREA, YOU CAN TAKE UP TO THREE MINUTES.

A Comment from Patrick King, the president and owner of Chillking Chillers....

If you are going to discharge from a room you must have "make up air". The intake for
exhausted air needs to be 20% larger than the discharge air. Otherwise it will draw air
throughout the structure. I have seen buildings with dust lines on the floor near the
wall. This is from air intaking along the walls edge on the floor, it escapes through the
air gaps. This can cause a great load on air conditioned buildings. This suction will draw
air from anyplace it can. Most structures are fairly airtight, however there is always
small air gaps along the base plate of the walls. A fine dust will be pulled into the
building, the worst part is that this dust is very bad for asthma patients or others with
allergies and breathing disorders.
 Installing the right heating system in a room is important, and not just for the comfort brought by a
pleasant temperature. Heating a room can help to eliminate dampness, but only if it is also ventilated
correctly. Poor ventilation results in an increase in humidity, and that can encourage mold to grow on
everything from walls to carpets. The secret is to ensure a steady flow of air through a room while it
is being heated, keeping the temperature constant but preventing a buildup of moisture. The volume
of air that must be circulated through the room is measured in cubic feet per minute -- CFM -- and
determining the correct volume is the key to a successful heating system.
1

Measure the length, width and height of the room, using a tape measure. Round all the values up to
the next full foot, to simplify the calculations. For example, if a room length is 17 feet and 7 inches,
round it up to 18 feet.
2

Multiply the three values together to determine the volume of the room in cubic feet. For example, if
the length is 18 feet, the width is 12 feet and the height is 10 feet, the room volume is obtained from
the equation volume = 18 x 12 x 10, giving a room volume of 2,160 cubic feet.
3

Multiply the volume of the room by the number of times the heated air is to be changed every hour.
The result is the volume of heated air that passes through the room in one hour. For example, if the
air is changed six times every hour, multiply the volume of air determined in Step 2 by six. Using the
example data from Step 2, the result would be six times 2,160 cubic feet, or 12,960 cubic feet of air
passing through the room per hour.
4

Divide the value obtained in Step 3 by 60, the number of minutes in one hour. The result is the
volume of air that must be passed through the room every minute. For example, 12,960 divided by 60
equals 216, so 216 cubic feet of air must be fed into the room every minute. The room requires 216
CFM for heating.
Things You Will Need
 Tape measure
 Calculator
 Tip

 The number of times that the air in the room is replaced can be determined with precision only by
reference to the output capacity of the heating system, the desired temperature of the room, the
temperature of the air entering the room and the heat-loss characteristics of the building structure. In
practice it's a value determined by trial and error, by using the room and deciding whether or not it is
comfortable.
Warning

 Balancing a heating system can be a complicated process. Atmospheric conditions change constantly,
and the heating system must respond accordingly. If in doubt, consult a qualified heating engineer
before adjusting the system.
General Ventilation: How much
airflow do we need to ventilate?
April 29, 2016 | BY CONTINENTALFANS
How much airflow do we need to ventilate?
Airflow for general ventilation can be calculated by:

1. Area method
2. Air change method
3. Occupancy method
4. Heat removal method

Area Method
Derives the ventilation rate from the area of the space (in square feet) to be ventilated multiplied by
the ventilation rate per square foot.

Example: For residential bathrooms up to 100 sq. ft. in area, HVI recommends an exhaust rate of 1
cfm per square foot. A bathroom is 6′ to 10′ or 60 square feet.

Airflow = Q = 1 cfm/sq.ft. x 60 sq. ft. = 60 cfm

Air change method

Derives the ventilation rate from the volume of the space (in cubic feet) to be ventilated multiplied by
the number of total air changes in one hour.

Example: For an auditorium, the suggested air change rate is 4 to 15 air changes per hour. An
auditorium is 80′ x 90 ‘ with 20’ ceiling or 144,000 cu. ft. Use 10 air changes per hour.

Airflow = Q- 144,000 cu. ft. x 10 AC/hr/60 min/hr = 24,000 cfm

Occupancy method
Derives the ventilation rate from the number of people that will occupy the space at any given time.

Example: For an office, the recommended ventilation rate is 20 cfm per person. The occupancy of a
general office is one person per 80 to 150 sq. ft. An office is 40′ x 60′ or 2,4000 sq. ft. Occupancy =
2,400 sq. ft. / 150 sq. ft. per person = 16 people.

Airflow = Q = 16 people x 20 cfm per person = 320 cfm

Heat removal method

When the temperature of a space is higher than the ambient outdoor temperature, general
ventilation can be used to provide “free” cooling. What is needed to calculate airflow is the amount of
heat to be removed in BTU/hr, the desired indoor temperature and design outdoor dry bulb
temperature.

Example: 200,000 BTU/hr to be removed, 70 degree desired indoor temperature and 50 outdoor dry
bulb temperature.

Airflow = Q = 200,000 (BTU/hr) / (1.08×20) = 9,260 cfm

An air change is how many times the air enters and exits a room from
the HVAC system in one hour.

Engineering room airflow may present a real challenge when balancing

an HVAC system. Most calculations only use the heat loss or gain of a
room to decide on required airflow and often don’t take into
consideration required room ventilation needs. Let’s take a look at how
an air change calculation may simplify this step in your air balancing.

What is an Air Change?

An air change is how many times the air enters and exits a room from
the HVAC system in one hour. Or, how many times a room would fill
up with the air from the supply registers in sixty minutes.

You can then compare the number of room air changes to the Required
Air Changes Table below. If it’s in the range, you can proceed to design
or balance the airflow and have an additional assurance that you’re
doing the right thing. If it’s way out of range, you’d better take another
look.

The Air Changes Formula

To calculate room air changes, measure the supply airflow into a room,
multiply the CFM times 60 minutes per hour. Then divide by the volume
of the room in cubic feet:
In plain English, we’re changing CFM into Cubic Feet per Hour (CFH).
Then we calculate the volume of the room by multiplying the room
height times the width times the length. Then we simply divide the CFH
by the volume of the room.

Here’s an example of how a full formula works:

Now, compare 7.5 air changes per hour to the required air changes for
that type of room on the Air Changes per Hour Table below. If it’s a
lunch or break room that requires 7-8 air changes per hour, you’re right
on target. If it’s a bar that needs 15-20 air changes per hour, it’s time to
reconsider.

Room CFM Formula

Let’s look at this engineering formula differently. For example, what if

the airflow is unknown and you need to calculate the required CFM for a
room? Here is a four-step process on how to calculate the room CFM:

Step One – Use the above Air Changes per Hour Table to identify the
required air changes needed for the use of the room. Let’s say it’s a
conference room requiring 10 air changes per hour.

Step Two - Calculate the volume of the room (L’xW’xH’).

Step Three - Multiply the volume of the room by the required room air
changes.

Step Four Divide the answer by 60 minutes per Hour to find the required
room CFM:
Here’s an example of how to work the formula:

When designing or balancing a system requiring additional airflow for

ventilation purposes, remember this room will normally demand
constant fan operation when occupied. This may present a problem for
other rooms on the same zone, so take that into consideration.

Many of these rooms may require a significant amount of outdoor air.

The BTU content of this air has to be included in the heat gain or heat
loss of the building when determining the size of the heating and cooling
equipment.

Practice these calculations several times in the shop or office. Then do

the calculations in the field several times over the next week to check
airflow in rooms with uncommon ventilation requirements. Study the
Air Changes per Hour Table to become familiar with the rooms that
need more ventilation than the heating or cooling load requires.