Commercial laundry heat-loss · ASTM C680

Where a laundry loses heat — and what it costs

Updated 22 June 2026 · ASTM C680 / ISO 12241 method

Walk the hot side of your laundry, tick the equipment you run, and watch the savings from removable insulation add up live — energy, money and CO₂, with payback. Assess your savings potential in a few minutes.

Surface ≤45 °C touch-safe Up to 96% heat-loss cut Payback ~9 months ASTM C680 method
Annual savings
£39,223
vs. uninsulated baseline
Payback
9.0 mo
full-site, recent project
Energy saved
854 MWh
fuel not burned / yr
CO₂ reduction
184 t
per year
Tumbler dryers
7.9 mo
£19,974/yr · 6 gas-fired units
Flatwork ironers
5.9 mo
£11,947/yr · roof lift-off panels
Boiler house
11.3 mo
£7,301/yr · doors, valves, feed water

Reference site: UK commercial linen plant — full-site Inzonex Modular Insulation across the boiler house (2 steam boilers), 6 gas-fired tumbler dryers and 2 flatwork ironers. 130.3 m² insulated, steam ≈ £45.94/MWh thermal, ~95% average heat-loss reduction (ISO 12241).

Where your laundry loses heat

Walk the hot side — by area

Open each area to see the equipment and the savings removable insulation delivers. Ready for the full picture? Build a remote whole-laundry study — last card, no site visit.

Build a remote heat-loss study for your whole laundry — no site visit. Tick the equipment you run, adjust the rough sizes, and the panel shows the total energy, money and CO₂ that removable insulation would save, with payback. Then send it for an exact quote.

Assumptions: · hot-side hours per ASTM C680 defaults

Get a tailored assessment for your laundry

Tell us what you'd like us to look at — we reply with an exact quote + a PDF breakdown (kW, MWh/yr, CO₂, payback). One email, no spam.

What would you like us to look at?
Tumbler dryers Flatwork ironers Boiler house Steam / condensate lines Whole site

Gas-fired tumbler dryers run whenever the plant runs — their top burner + heat-exchanger surfaces run ~115 °C, with the back to ~120 °C. We provide modular removable insulation for that equipment, with access for sight-glass frames and dampers, and leaving burner intakes and controls clear.

A flatwork-ironer roof is a large, continuously hot surface (~66 °C) radiating into the hall. The roof is built from lift-off panels — we insulate each panel individually, so the insulation lifts with the panel for maintenance and refits exactly. No access lost; fast payback.

The boiler house runs hottest. Bare doors, burner flanges, economizer chambers, manholes, valves and feed-water pumps here have high surface temperatures (FLIR-measured) and steady losses — usually a clean payback once the bare spots are covered.

Interactive boiler heat-explorer. See the Cochran steam boiler in 3D — bare vs insulated, six views — and the savings across every fitting. Open the tool →

Put a number on a single item

Pick any hot surface, enter its size and temperature, and see the energy, money and CO₂ that Inzonex modular insulation would save — with payback. ASTM C680 method, no sign-up. Not a laundry? Run the whole-plant industrial heat-loss & CO₂ study.

Open the calculator →
Why Inzonex

Engineered to fit, fasten and serve

Three details that set Inzonex modular insulation apart on laundry hot surfaces — and why it keeps performing year after year. Product & tech specs →

Easy installation

Snap-button fastening

Stainless snap buttons fasten and release each cover by hand — no tools, no fixings drilled into the dryer or ironer. Covers go on fast and unclip in seconds for routine access, damper checks or inspection, then snap back exactly.

Serviceable · reliable

Panel-matched & replaceable core

On ironers each roof panel is insulated individually so it lifts with the panel; the cover unzips so the mineral-wool core lifts out for washing or renewal. The shell stays in service — only the core is replaced.

Modular & form-fitting

Follows the equipment's shape

Modular sections wrap the exact geometry of dryer bodies and boiler fittings — minimising creases where water, lint or chemicals could pool. The clean, tailored finish also drops radiant heat into a hot, humid hall.

Methodology & buyer questions

Laundry heat-loss — FAQ

How much heat does an uninsulated laundry lose?
An industrial laundry loses tens of kilowatts continuously from bare boiler doors and valves, the tops of tumbler dryers (burner and heat-exchanger surfaces) and the roofs of flatwork ironers. On the canonical model used here (ISO 12241, convection + radiation, lightly-ventilated hall) a bare dryer top at ~115 °C loses ≈1,300 W/m², an ironer roof at ~66 °C ≈590 W/m². Removable insulation cuts each by ~95%.
What temperatures are the main laundry surfaces?
Steam boiler doors and fittings run 120–190 °C; gas-fired tumbler dryers run hot — top burner/heat-exchanger ~115 °C, back ~120 °C, sides ~100 °C, front ~84 °C; flatwork-ironer tops ~66 °C; feed-water and condensate lines ~90–102 °C. The surface temperature drives the loss — each is modelled at its real operating temperature.
Which equipment is worth insulating first?
The hottest, longest-running surfaces. Gas-fired tumbler dryers usually save the most — their hot tops run whenever the plant runs. Flatwork-ironer roofs are a large continuous hot area and pay back fast. The boiler house has the highest surface temperatures. On a recent UK laundry the dryers paid back in ~8 months, the ironers ~6, and the boiler house ~11.
How do you insulate a flatwork ironer when the roof must lift for maintenance?
The ironer roof is usually built from lift-off panels. We insulate each panel individually, so the insulation lifts together with its panel for maintenance access and refits exactly. No access is lost and the hot roof stops radiating into the hall.
Can you insulate gas-fired tumbler dryers safely?
Yes. We cover the hot top burner and heat-exchanger surfaces, the back and the upper side panels — templated around bolts, sight-glass frames, dampers, brackets and flue stubs. Burner air intakes, controls and access points are left clear. The cover surface stays below 45 °C, reducing burn risk in tight dryer aisles.
How is Inzonex different from insulation jackets / blankets?
Inzonex is an engineered modular system — not a loose jacket. Each cover is templated to the exact geometry (boiler doors, valves, dryer bodies, ironer roof panels, irregular fittings) — the complex spots where flat blanket suppliers stop. Stainless snap-button fasteners close it by hand: no tools, no fixings drilled into the equipment. The form-fitting build follows the surface, so there are minimal folds where water, lint or chemicals could collect. The insulating core (PAROC stone wool) is independently replaceable; the outer shell is silicone (standard) or PTFE. The result looks tailored — not a sack, and unclips for cleaning and inspection.
Does insulating hot surfaces lower the laundry hall temperature?
Yes. Less radiant and convective heat enters the hall from dryer tops, ironer roofs and the boiler house, so the ambient temperature falls — a real comfort gain in a hot, humid laundry — on top of the touch-safe ≤45 °C cover surface.
What is the lead time and warranty?
End-to-end — production + delivery + installation — about 4–6 weeks in Europe and 8–12 weeks worldwide (sea freight). Minimum order 100 pieces. The outer shell lasts on the order of 15 years; the PAROC stone-wool core is independently replaceable. Rated for service up to +600 °C. Covers carry a 3-year warranty (excluding leaks and similar process faults), and an optional annual paid service keeps them performing.
Want the maths? Every figure comes from the same ASTM C680 / ISO 12241 model — read the full methodology →