Air Velocities in Ducts

Recommended maximum air velocities in ventilation ducts

Air velocities in ducts should not exceed certain limits to avoid high pressure losses and unacceptable noise generation. The values below are common guidelines for some typical applications.  

Air Ducts Air Velocity
(m/s) (ft/s)
Combustion air ducts 12 - 20 40 - 66
Air inlet to boiler room 1 - 3 3.3 - 9.8
Warm air for house heating 0.8 - 1.0 2.6 - 3.3
Vacuum cleaning pipe 8 - 15 26 - 49
Compressed air pipe 20 - 30 66 - 98
Ventilation ducts (hospitals) 1.8 - 4 5.9 - 13
Ventilation ducts (office buildings) 2.0 - 4.5 6.5 - 15

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