Close the Fume Hood
Close the fume hoods whenever you’re not using them. A single fume hood left open all the time wastes up to $1,000 per year. When you are using a hood, don’t open it all the way – the glass is supposed to be protecting your face.
How many hoods does the College of Science have?
The College of Science has 459 hoods: 35 in Galvin, 212 in Jordan, 104 in Nieuwland, and 108 in Stepan.
Why do hoods use so much energy?
Fume hoods continuously exhaust air out of buildings, air which is then replaced with fresh air that is heated, cooled, or both. As a result, a typical fume hood consumes an astounding three times the energy of an average American house. An open fume hood is essentially an open door with a big fan pulling inside air outdoors.
How does shutting the hood reduce energy consumption?
The big savings come in with what are called variable air volume hoods. The lower the sash, the less air they exhaust, and as a result, less energy is consumed. Keeping just one variable air volume hood closed when not in use rather than leaving it open all the time saves $1,000 a year and is equivalent to taking 3 cars off the road.
Constant air volume hoods (typically older hoods) exhaust the same amount of air all the time, so there is less potential for savings. However, keeping them closed prevents the room air from being sucked out so the heating or air conditioning doesn’t have to work as hard to keep the room a comfortable temperature. Also, keeping hoods closed is always safer because it prevents chemical fumes from coming into the room.
What kind of hood do I have in my lab?
Jordan and Galvin have variable air volume hoods while Stepan and Nieuwland have constant air volume hoods.
