The majority of the US is in a temperate climate. This means that although the temperature does not reach extremes found in tropical and arctic latitudes, there are major seasonal weather variations. Most Americans choose to use a central air or HVAC system to control interior temperature. For large HVAC jobs like schools and warehouses, the cost of ventilation means that careful planning must go into designing the systems. Average temperatures, energy savings, humidity, local and national codes and indoor air quality are just some of the factors that most be considered on public works projects.
The first step for a large building is using central air handling units, instead of individual ventilators in each room. In some instances like a isolated field house, a unit air conditioner may be a better choice because they take up less floor or roof space. Individual units are harder to maintain in a group and cause other ventilation and moisture problems when combined with a central unit. Central heating is especially popular with teachers because it is quieter and therefore they do not mind using it in the classroom. Denver air conditioning companies installed central heat in Denver high schools over 30 years ago and the system has been a success. Central heat is less prone to drafts because of multiple sources of air. A professional HVAC company can maintain a central unit and tweak the global settings to control humidity.
The consolidated design of central units allow them to be serviced without disturbing the work in a building- and they generally take up less interior space. To meet EPA certification for government buildings, HVAC systems must meet certain requirements. Coils must have sloped non corrosive drain pans to prevent water from stagnating or rusting the system interior. They should be in a wall cabinet with easy access that also reduces sound. This means double wall replacement doors with tight seals. EPA filters are always at least two inches thick. A well designed filter bank will take these high performance filters over a large area for max lifetime. Air filter monitors notify Denver HVAC techs when to replace the filters, as well as any major problems in the system.
To maintain indoor air quality, the easiest solution is to increase air flow from outside. This must be balanced with cost, because to increase air flow, your HVAC system must run longer. The minimum government standard devised by www.ashrae.org is 15 cubic feet/min of airflow per person in schools. Many systems just meet this standard for minimum cost. Energy recovery equipment can minimize the cost from increased ventilation airflow. Energy recovery is popular in Air conditioning in Denver and the east because the technology in this option saves money on large scale HVAC systems.
