The newest item in 475’s inventory is the first developed in-house. We’re proud to announce the arrival of the Rotary Switch, also known as 'The Miceli' in honor of its inventor, for Lunos e2 and eGO heat recovery ventilation fans. Our mission is to be a catalyst that pushes North American construction toward high performance, low-energy buildings. The real, on-the-ground work of providing solutions is responding to real customer issues.
The Lunos e2 and eGO decentralized heat recovery fans have been two of 475’s most-liked and best-selling building solutions since our inception (learn more about Lunos here). People love the flexibility of a decentralized ventilation system, the incredibly low power draw, and the ease of installation of a ductless system. Though some customers really like the idea of a system that runs on traditional rocker switches, others have found it confusing, or have tried to improvise other options that are not approved by the manufacturer. We listen to and appreciate the feedback we get and try to address issues whenever possible. So... enter 475 Director of Operations Phil Miceli.
You may have talked to Phil if you have ordered a pallet-size order, or if you’ve order items that needed to be shipped from Europe. Phil comes to 475 with a B.S in Industrial Engineering from NY Institute of Technology and an M.B.A. from Hofstra University. He works to improve and streamline 475 operations as we continue to grow.
Although Phil doesn’t have an electrical engineering background, he saw the opportunity to improve a product and came up with a solution.
Phil was one of the first full-time employees at 475, and just a month after he was hired, he noticed that one product seemed unnecessarily complicated. The LUNOS heat recovery ventilation system has four settings: off, low, medium and high. The switch plate that is connected to the system consists of two rocker switches, and each setting is achieved by having one or both switches in the on position. "Why do you need two switches for four settings? It bugged me" said Phil, when asked about his inspiration for the innovation. On top of his personal qualms with the switch situation, Phil and other company reps were getting less-than-ideal comments about the two-switch stich. So many comments, in fact, that we made a blog post explaining Which Switch is Which.
Rising to the challenge, Phil combined the same functionality achieved by the double-rocker switch control, including summer ventilation mode and deactivation of the filter warning light, into one rotary switch. With this new rotary switch, you can easily achieve all four ventilation settings by rotating the knob to the right. Assume a clock face.
- 12:00 = Off
- 1:00 = Low
- 2:00 = Med
- 3:00 = High
It's intuitive, easy to use, sleek, and has a gorgeous knob.
Additionally, if you move from Low to Med and back to Low again (within 3 seconds) it will put the system into summer vent mode (ventilation without heat recovery). Repeat those actions to take back out of summer vent mode, and in to heat recovery mode again.
We’re excited to see what Lunos ventilation customers, both past, and future, think of the new Rotary Switch. See the product page for pricing, more information, and installation guidance.
Drop us a line. We’re always looking for new ways to improve, and are happy to hear what you think of our newest addition
