Air Track HVAC Blog

Monthly Archives: September 2021

Winter Is Coming! Think About HVAC Maintenance for Winter

We can already feel the mercury dropping, especially at nighttime, as we are back in schools and companies are planning to call people back in offices from the long work from home culture. No matter how long the transition takes, it is always better to be prepared and give your employees, students, customers & other civilians the best comfort conditions and your HVAC system plays an important role in this.

Since Canada is known for its crazy weather, there might be a weekend coming very soon where we realize we need heat from the hibernating Air handling units, boilers, heat pumps, roof top units or furnaces and the system is just not ready. This is without a doubt the best time to schedule the winter – prep HVAC maintenance.

It is always better to be proactive than reactive when it comes to the harsh winter weather. Also, considering the global supply chain crisis, every industry is scrambling to get the required parts and raw materials for their projects, the lead times can vary a lot when the need is urgent. Commercial and industrial HVAC industry is no different to this squeeze in supply of HVAC equipment.

Importance of Winter Maintenance for your HVAC system

The annual tune ups and calibration of your HVAC system is the most important thing in your “to-do” list in order to avoid any untoward situations later on.

The benefits are as follows:

  • Life of the HVAC equipment or Heater. All manufacturers consider the scheduled recommended preventive maintenance services into account when forecasting the life of the Heater, VRF, chillers, boilers or any other equipment which provides comfortable conditions for a facility. The heater is unlikely to make it that far without maintenance. You get the longest possible effective life for your heater with regular care.
  • Avoid warranty being void. Sometimes it might just be the unfortunate factory or manufacturing defect and a major costly part of the equipment can fail. When you apply for warranty claims you need to provide the manufacturer reports of timely maintenance of the equipment in order to get the parts replaced.
  • Maximum energy-efficiency. The regular tune ups of the HVAC system ensure the units are running at maximum efficiencies and thus reaching designed temperatures in minimum amount of time. This will bring down the operating costs to minimum and ensure longer life of the equipment as well.  
  • Fewer repair calls. Being proactive with the scheduled maintenance most of the time results in fewer breakdowns and thus fewer repair calls.
  • Safer operation. Now that you have made the right choice of getting the equipment tested for pre winter maintenance, this ensures the chances for any major catastrophic event goes down and it is safer to operate.

HVAC and BACK to SCHOOL

Being in the HVAC industry for more than 20 years, we at Air Track consider it our duty to help & support all private and public industries, businesses and facilities to ensure a safe & speedy reopening based on the services we offer.

With our 24/7 response system, skilled & certified team members, we want to ensure that our customers get the best services in order for them to be at par with the recommended HVAC guidelines as per ASHRAE (American Society for Heating Refrigeration & Air Conditioning) & provincial Public Health Agencies (Public Health Ontario).

img2

RECOMMENDATIONS:

As per Public Health Ontario the following are some key points about focus on HVAC Systems in buildings amidst COVID -19

  • Enhancing outdoor air ventilation and/or enhancing filtration where possible, and a well-functioning HVAC system should complement other public health measures by removing and diluting virus from indoor air, thereby lowering exposure to COVID-19.
  • Increase outdoor air ventilation (minimize recirculation)
  • Increase filter efficiency

Filtration is another strategy to remove virus and other particles from indoor air. Filters require appropriate maintenance and may also be upgraded where the system allows to maximize effectiveness. The effectiveness of a filter is rated by the Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value (MERV, ranging from 1 to 16), based on the fraction of particles removed from air passing through it under standard conditions.ASHRAE’s COVID-19 guidance suggests using MERV 13 or higher rated filters based on their ability to filter out virus-sized particles.

  • ASHRAE recommends operating the HVAC system in occupied mode when people are present in the building including periods when the building is occupied by a small portion of the allowable capacity.ASHRAE also recommends continuing to run the HVAC system in occupied mode for additional time pre- and post-occupancy before switching to unoccupied mode
  • Routine inspections and maintenance as appropriate for the system are necessary.

Access the complete report with the following URL link

Source: https://www.publichealthontario.ca/-/media/documents/ncov/ipac/2020/09/covid-19-hvac-systems-in-buildings.pdf?la=en

img1

Considering most of the HVAC equipment will be running longer than usual, wear and tear & breakdowns are a definite possibility and being proactive can help both the facility & the HVAC contractor strategize the best way forward. Air Track’s Preventive Maintenance Programs are well suited to provide timely scheduled inspections, service delivery on breakdown calls & recommendations on replacement of old equipment.
Call us @ 905 330 4056 so we can evaluate your site.