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Density Air Curtains for Ovens and Kilns Kit
Frequently Asked Questions
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These air curtains collect cooler, denser air from floor level and distribute it across the top of the oven door. The denser air forms a “seal” that forces the hot, less dense air to stay in the oven. These operate with a low velocity, high air volume that minimizes mixing with the oven air.
Our air curtains are built to control density roll-out in the upper part of the oven door. They cannot control oven air blown out due to overpressuization or drafts blowing through the oven.
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The kit pieces are shown in the images above. There are two parallel runs of slotted duct that distribute air. You will get the slotted duct for the top area of the oven door and the blower plenum for the bottom. The rest is just standard 6-inch duct that can be purchased from home stores.
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Our air curtains operate at a low velocity and high air volume. Air knives, in contrast, operate at high air velocity, which actually creates mixing that draws air out of the oven. Drawing cooler air allows use of standard air handling blowers with no special (and expensive) high temperature requirements.
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The goal is to add enough denser air to keep air in the oven, without getting high velocities that cause mixing. The air curtain kit is designed around 1200-1300 cfm. This is typically good for doors 3 feet wide by 6-7 feet tall. This isn’t an exact science, so feel free to contact us with questions.
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We specifically designed and tested these air curtains to use standard, off-the-shelf materials that are then modified for this purpose. Using low pressure, ambient temperature air allows use of inexpensive materials.
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Through a lot of testing, we found that putting metal sheets between the oven wall and the parallel duct runs increases efficiency. It makes the air curtain into a vestibule, where the cooler air has more residence time to help seal against the hot oven air.