HVAC/R Hurricane Preperation:

Hurricane season is officially here and living in Florida makes us susceptible to more of these storms than any other state. Of the lower 48 states Florida has more coastline than any other, measuring in at 1350 miles of total coastline, with California coming in second at 840 miles of coastline. Our states unique peninsula shape also adds to the chance of getting hit by a hurricane and means that we can get hit at any time, from anywhere. Knowing what we know about the unpredictable nature of hurricanes, and our state wearing a bulls eye on its back for being hit; having a game plan for your HVACR system is vital. Just like anything else there are many crucial steps to preparing your HVACR system for the hurricane season.

One of the many steps to ensure that your outside units are ready for hurricane season is

Are You Using Vibration Analysis?

The value of chillers and mechanical equipment to a building is significant and maintaining those machines is important to ensuring their proper life expectancy. Vibration analysis coupled with your already existing preventative maintenance plan is the way to doing that.

Having clean air in any conditioned space is an important matter. Ensuring that the air is clean used to be dependent on the air filter and maintenance of the air conditioning unit. Ultraviolet-C lights have changed that and are growing in popularity; they are a great addition to ensure cleanliness of conditioned air as well as having other great benefits.

There are many parts that compile a buildings HVAC/R system and the coils are one that can have many effects on the buildings conditioned air space. Coils are an integral part of any HVAC/R system and as with any main component; proper care should always be taken. For any system to run at its optimum performance having clean coils and filters is imperative.

Coils need to be clean in order to reach the units full capacity. Clean coils also allow the full efficiency, indoor air quality, and long term system performance goals to be reached. Coils which are dirty and have blocked air flow will lose significant capacity; causing the unit to run harder and longer to reach desired temperature, if at all. This causes loss of efficiency, which in turn raises energy consumption and can drastically raise a buildings energy costs.

 Looking for a few simple and easy steps to save money on energy bills? There are a few simple and cost effective tips listed below which may help save money on that dreaded energy bill:

• Ensure that unit refrigerant charge is at proper level, service contractor to check and adjust charge properly.
• Keep the house closed tightly during the day, leaving windows and doors open lets unwanted heat into the conditioned air space and causes the unit to work harder.
• When shopping for a new central air conditioning, purchase the highest SEER unit that is financially possible. Higher SEER units are more money in the initial purchase but will pay for themselves through cutting energy bills
• Install a programmable thermostat, installing a programmable thermostat allows you to vary temperature based on time and vacancy, which also lowers the energy consumption.
• Make sure that the condenser is located in a shady spot and has room to dispose of heat from the conditioned space. Don’t crowd the condenser with bushes or shrubs.
• Consider installing reflective window tint to reduce the amount of heat entering the home.
• Turn off lights when not in use, lights produce heat which causes the system to work harder than needed.
• Seal any air leaks that may be present around windows, doors, etc. These leaks cause outside air to enter the conditioned space and make the system work harder.

 These tips coupled with last publications tips and a service plan will help increase unit life; all while lowering energy consumption and saving money!  These tips do not replace the need for a professional maintenance plan, which should be in place for all units. If you have any HVAC/R questions or needs contact us at (305)826-2240

Saving money is always a good thing and in some cases it can be easier than you may think. Here are some tips that may help you save money with your air conditioning system and will cost you little to nothing:

Property managers and engineers alike understand the importance of proper maintenance on all building equipment, but chillers are the apex of this long list.

A chiller with a 5 year life which has been properly maintained and logged can be 20-25% more efficient than if that same chiller had not been properly maintained. With these numbers in place a chiller whose full-load efficiency was .60 kW per ton would jump to between .72 kW per ton and .75 kW per ton if not properly maintained.

Knowing these numbers it is easy to understand why your building should have a proper maintenance plan in place. While the upfront cost of the maintenance may look expensive, it will save you and your building money in the long run. The lower utility costs and upkeep of the equipment will offset the maintenance cost sooner than many would expect.

Cooling Towers are a main part of the HVAC system in many buildings and just like any other mechanical piece; towers should be properly maintained to assure optimum performance and