Alford Silver Band
With a history dating back to the 1860’s, Alford Silver Band, based in Alford on the edge of the Lincolnshire Wolds, is a non-contesting – non marching band that concentrates it’s efforts in to good old fashioned Concerting.
Their brief is straight forward: to put smiles on faces through great Brass Band Music!
Having seen our work for other Brass Bands in the region online, Alford Silver Band contacted Cleethorpes Band to enquire about their ventilation system installed by Torr, and after glowing reviews, decided it was the right option and the right time for their band room renovation to include a new ventilation system.
The benefits of fresh air are obvious and well documented. Even with the threat of Covid-19 easing, for all round general health and well being, fresh Lincolnshire Wold air is welcomed under any circumstances.
This is especially true in a brass band room setting, where 28+ people are gathered in close proximity blowing down their brass instruments.
So a system that is removing stale air form the room, and replacing it with fresh tempered air from the Lincolnshire Wolds at a rate of 1,000 cubic metres per hour, is a valuable addition, and very much appreciated by the musicians.
And so the installation begins…
Some you can hide, and some you can’t.
In some buildings you have the ability to install the ventilation system above a ceiling where it remains unseen, and the only signs that it even exists are some vents in the ceiling and a remote controller on the wall.
In other buildings you don’t have that luxury, and the ventilation system has to be installed in the room, on full display to all and sundry, warts and all.
However, if done correctly, a ventilation system installation that’s on show can look attractive. In certain buildings it can lend to an ‘industrial’ aesthetic, which is all rather contemporary & chic at the moment.
We’ve even had a case recently where the system could have been installed out of sight but the client wanted it visible to add to ‘vibe’ they were going for in a modern restaurant & bar setting.
And such was the case with Alford’s Band Room. The system couldn’t be hidden away in a ceiling, and the room was modern but hardly ‘industrial’. This installation just had to look good. Here we’re going for the neat and tidy vibe!
Day 1 at Alford Silver Band starts with a nice blank canvas.
Thankfully, once the sausage roll was located and devoured, progress picked up somewhat.
And by the end of the first day, Andy puts the finishing touches to the supply air duct work.
Day 2 at Alford Silver Band starts with some holes.
On the other side of the holes the stale air is exhausted to outside through the bottom grille, and the fresh air is brought in to the band room through the top ducted grille.
And meanwhile, progress continues inside with the return air duct work being installed. This is the part of the system that sucks the old air out of the room.
With the duct work complete, Garry tests the function and safety cut out features of the additional duct heater. This 3kW inline duct heater is capable of warming the temperature of the incoming fresh air by up to 10°C. Perfect on a chilly rehearsal evening.
And finally, the system is thoroughly tested and commissioned prior handing over to the band’s committee.
It’s nice to see the Alford Silver Band back in their band room, and no, there hasn’t been a power cut, they’re practising for Christmas Carols in the dark!
The system we installed here in Alford was a Mitsubishi SAF 1000E7.
These fantastic units are known as Heat Recovery Ventilation Systems. They use clever internal technology to utilise the temperature of the stale air being removed from the room to warm the cooler incoming fresh air being brought in to the room. This is called ‘Tempering’ and it’s like a form of free heating, making these units very efficient.
If you’d like to read in more detail about how these units work, we’ve written about the process in our post about Woburn Sands Brass Band in Milton Keynes.
And if you’d like to see more of our ventilation installations for Brass Bands, both the visible and the invisible types, there are several articles you can read about them on our website here. Alternatively, you might like to take a break from the brass banding world and see one of our ventilation installations that was just for model trains!
So finally just to express our thanks to all at Alford Silver Band for choosing Torr for their ventilation installation works.
If you’d like to pay them a visit and see where they are performing next you can find them online through their Website or on Facebook.
If you’d like any more information on ventilation, refrigeration or air conditioning, you’ll find your friendly local experts here.
