Ice rinks
Prevent humidity from arising
Ice rinks are built around a large ice surface that inevitably cools the building – and everything in it. When air from outside enters the structure, the moisture within that air condenses on any cold surfaces. This results in:
- Corrosion and rot in structures and surfaces
- Growths of mould, mildew and bacteria
- Condensation on cold pipes dripping/running down walls and onto floors
- Condensation dripping from the ceiling onto the ice surface, making it uneven and unsafe
- Vapour that affects both visibility and safety.
An ice rink that is efficiently run and operated needs to prevent all these potentially costly problems.
Managing humidity
Ventilation using outside air only brings more moisture into the building. Heating doesn’t alter the dew point of the air.
Humidity management is the only way to reduce the moisture content or the dew point of the air within the structure.
Cotes adsorption dehumidifiers are the most effective – and most economical – way to control relative humidity.
Reaping benefits
Effective humidity management paves the way to widespread benefits for owners, operators and users of ice rinks. These include:
- Focus on prevention rather than remedial action
- Lower operating, maintenance and repair costs
- Faster return on investment
- Doing away with unnecessary heating equipment and heating costs
- Lower energy costs and reduced environmental impact
- Longer service life for key structures, equipment and fittings
- Greater comfort and more consistent indoor environment.
When energy costs are important
Cotes adsorption dehumidifier systems ensure low relative humidity at low temperatures, while making the most cost-effective and environmentally responsible use of energy.
The freezing systems installed in ice rinks produce lots of heat, which often simply goes to waste. Cotes has therefore developed a dehumidification system in which such thermal energy is exploited to dry the air.
This makes it possible to reduce the overall energy consumption of the dehumidification set-up by as much as 70–80%.
This benefits the environment as well as the rink’s operating costs. Read more about Cotes dehumidification technology.