Offices, hotels, schools, retail stores, sports facilities and other building types typically have rooms that can be efficiently heated by the use of electric heaters, such as convectors, radiant ceiling panels or infrared radiant heaters. For these applications, the “appearance” of the heating unit is just as important as its performance.
I live in Central Florida, and while it can get pretty hot in the Summer we also tend to get afternoon thunderstorms that come and go in a flash. I have been connecting gauges, checking charges and even pulling vacuums in the rain as well as under umbrellas or cardboard boxes most of my career and only recently did I stop to think if this was a good idea.
In this project, Faure QEI used the Envenio Onboarding Program to leverage on-demand CFD simulation software, EXN/Aero, alongside support and training from Envenio engineers.
The project set out to assess the performance of a hospital operating room, with the aim of identifying and suggesting any overall improvements that could be made.
When I started in this industry, there were three common refrigerants: R-12 for medium temperature applications, R-22 for air conditioning and R-502 for low temperature systems. I have not seen a white or purple cylinder of refrigerant for quite a while. These refrigerants were based on three elements - chlorine, fluorine, and carbon for CFCs like R-12 and R-502; and hydrogen, chlorine, fluorine, and carbon for HCFCs like R-22.
According to a survey of over 200 contractors, the top three fleet concerns for service businesses are labor costs, fuel costs, and vehicle maintenance.
Each of these business challenges provides their own unique issues to service businesses with fleets of any size. The common thread between these challenges is a lack of accountability with the drivers. If there’s no system of monitoring behavior and keeping track of certain information, then how do you know what is causing each of these types of pain points?
When electrical equipment must be maintained or repaired while energized, an arc flash hazard may be present. Affected workers need to know what steps should be taken to stay safe. Arc flash warning labels can provide this information, right where and when it’s needed. As a result, experts in electrical safety recommend using standardized and helpful arc flash labels
Dew point is one example of a very useful measurement to understand, design for and test for in an HVAC/R system. Take an evaporator coil, do you know how to calculate the exact temperature at which that evaporator coil will start to condense moisture? can you tell the exact temperature at which a surface inside of a space will start to condensate and possibly grow mold? These are both cases where a basic understanding of a psychrometric diagram can help a technician.
Typically when selecting heating solutions for a building, decisions are made based on its main function. It gets a bit more complicated, however, when the property is designed as a multi-purpose facility – possibly being used for retail, residential, and office space all at once. These buildings often present unique heating challenges that vary from room to room, calling for a diverse portfolio of solutions to ensure energy efficiency and occupant satisfaction.
Refrigerant circuit restrictions can be common things like a plugged filter drier or a restricted metering device. They can also be more difficult to diagnose and exotic issues like a kinked liquid line, blocked evaporator feeder tube, or a compressor connected improperly with a discharge line full of solder (I’ve seen it).
To start with, let’s talk about the symptoms.