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Commercial Articles
Preventative HVAC Maintenance For Facilities
Hidden Energy Loads
Green Buildings
Preventative HVAC
Maintenance For Facilities
Much like a car's regular service schedule,
preventative HVAC maintenance is planned to improve equipment
life and avoid emergency maintenance or repairs, lower utility
bills and create better comfort and improved health for buildings
and their occupants. Preventative maintenance can include lubrication,
cleaning, adjusting, and minor component replacement.
The amount of preventative HVAC maintenance needed at a facility
varies greatly, so it is always advisable to consult a professional
such as ICS - Intelligent Comfort Solutions. A comprehensive
preventative maintenance program can improve your HVAC system's
performance, helping to lower utility bills and increase
comfort. Here's how:
- Unless dampers are clean and well lubricated they can
stick, causing improper unit operation. This can increase
electric consumption and negatively affect indoor air quality.
It is also one of the most common problems with HVAC equipment.
- Using a higher efficiency filter can improve indoor air
quality as these capture dust that can promote mold growth.
For optimum performance, filters need to be replaced frequently.
The frequency can vary greatly depending on the type of
HVAC system, but it is best to inspect filters monthly to
determine when they should be changed.
- The condition of evaporator and condenser coils can directly
affect HVAC capacity, efficiency and operating costs - in
fact, studies indicate that the efficiency of a 10 ton unit
can be improved by up to 16 percent by simply cleaning the
coils. Normally these coils need to be cleaned once each
year to prevent mold growth and dirt buildup to maintain
the efficiency of the system. Only a professional like ICS
- Intelligent Comfort Solutions should complete this type
of maintenance because different cleaning solutions and
procedures are required for different equipment.
- Ducts need to be checked annually for air leaks. Once
air leaks are found, corrective actions like patching or
replacing gaskets and replacing screws or latches should
be completed. Conditioned air is at high pressure and thus
easily forced out through holes, so well sealed ducts are
important to system efficiency. Ducts also require cleaning
periodically - an inspection should be conducted at least
every two years, and if the inspection reveals contamination,
the ducts should be cleaned.
- The area around the air intake should be inspected at
least twice each year. Water can pool in this area, which
can lead to the growth of mold and spores that can be sucked
into the ventilation system.
- Belts must be properly aligned to maintain the correct
tension to prevent wear. Loose belts slip on the pulley
wheels, causing rapid wear and loss of torque. Belts that
are too tight put an excessive load on the motor and fan,
causing the belts and/or bearings to wear out quickly.
- The proper operation of fans, bearings and belts can
increase overall unit reliability, so these components should
be checked approximately every three months for optimum
efficiency and air flow. In addition, fans that are making
unusual noises should be serviced immediately as it could
indicate that a foreign body has gotten caught and could
damage the system.
Comprehensive preventative maintenance of HVAC equipment can
reduce operating costs, extend equipment life, reduce replacement
costs and provide a safer, healthier working environment. For
more information about preventative HVAC maintenance or for
a free quote, contact ICS
- Intelligent Comfort Solutions today.
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Hidden Energy Loads
In the same way that a microwave or DVD player continues to
consume electricity when not in use because of its digital display
clock, an unoccupied office space with all the lights off and
no equipment continues to consume electricity. In fact, even
if an office building is only 80% occupied, energy costs will
still be approximately 85% of the costs at full occupancy!
The reason for this is the hidden energy load — even though
the consumption may be small, it is still present. In an unoccupied
office space, most hidden energy loads are created by lighting
and HVAC.
Lighting load produced by security lighting accounts for almost
half of the hidden energy load of unoccupied office space. HVAC
load accounts for an additional 20% and is caused primarily
by two factors: energy used to circulate air through unconditioned
space and the additional energy required to condition occupied
spaces that neighbor unconditioned space.
To help reduce hidden energy loads in unoccupied office space,
turn off all lights except necessary security lights, and consider
putting motion detectors on these lights so they only operate
when necessary. In terms of HVAC, most buildings are zoned so
that in cases of partial vacancy, only occupied zones need to
be heated or cooled to comfortable levels, so set thermostats
accordingly. Finally, unplug all unnecessary or unused equipment
remaining in the space.
Could your unoccupied office space be causing hidden energy
loads and driving up your utility bills? Contact
the skilled technicians at ICS - Intelligent Comfort Solutions for a free estimate
to have your office space zoned efficiently to suit its
current use. For more information
contact us today.
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Green Buildings
A “Green building” has nothing to do with colour
and everything to do with design and construction. When both
minimize the burden on natural resources and meet strict environmental
standards established by the Canada Green Building Council (CaGBC),
a building is considered to be “Green”. The standards
cover the five principal categories of the LEED™ (Leadership
in Energy and Environmental Design) Canada certification program
for nonresidential and other buildings:
- Sustainable Sites
- Water Efficiency
- Energy and Atmosphere
- Materials and Resources
- Indoor Environmental Quality
More and more, owners from the public and private sector are
becoming interested in the green building concept. The construction
industry has responded by embracing the practice and contracting
companies like QPM are demonstrating a commitment to the environment
by working with owners to familiarize them with the benefits
of green building principles.
The numerous advantages of green buildings include reduced environmental
impacts, lower operating and energy costs, increased productivity
due to improved occupant comfort and health and reduced strain
on local infrastructure, among others.
From a construction standpoint, green buildings start with site
selection. In the development stage, the focus is on creating
a high performance, water and energy efficient, sustainable
building. This is achieved by using a range of state-of-the-art
green construction products to conserve materials and resources,
and improve indoor environmental quality.
QPM is keenly aware of the environmental issues associated with
commercial construction. For more information about making your
design build project green or for a free quote, please contact
us today.
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