Commercial Heating and Cooling Information

Commercial Phrases

Here at Conditioned Air Solutions we handle residential as well as commercial heating and cooling needs.  Our licensed technicians will help you decide which products would benefit your business.  They do this by finding out the different attributes that make up your commercial space.  Here are some common commercial phrases and what they mean.

Chillers and Cooling Equipment

• Air Cooled Chillers – These absorb heat from process water.  The heat is then transferred to the air around the chiller unit. It is generally used in applications where the additional heat it discharges is not a factor.  They need less maintenance than water-cooled units. Air cooled chillers do not require a cooling tower or a condenser water pump.  They also consume approximately 10% more power than a water-cooled unit. This is due to wet surfaces transferring heat better than dry surfaces.
• Water Chillers – This type of chiller absorbs heat from process water and transfer it to a separate water source.  These sources could be a cooling tower, river, pond, etc. Industrial water chillers are generally used for large capacity applications. Where the heat generated by air cooled chillers creates a problem.  Water cooled chillers require condenser water treatment to eliminate mineral buildup. Mineral deposits create poor heat transfer situations that reduce the efficiency of the unit.
• Cooling towers – A cooling tower is a heat rejection device. It rejects waste heat to the atmosphere through the cooling of a water stream to a lower temperature.
• Critical cooling equipment – Critical cooling equipment prevents machines or equipment from overheating. This helps make your existing equipment work in top condition.
• Carrier AquaSnap – This is an effective all-in-one package that is easy to install and own. The chiller costs less to purchase and install than other chillers in its class, and operates quietly and efficiently.
• Panel Coolers – Panel Coolers are an affordable, low maintenance solution to cool control panels & electrical cabinets using cold air from compressed air.

General Terminology

• Water Boilers– Boilers can come in two types, hot water and steam. Hot water boilers are small, energy efficient and is also low maintenance.  Water is usually heated in boilers between 160 to 180 degrees Fahrenheit. The hot water is then circulated by pumps through pipes in the home or building.
• Building Automation Systems (BAS) – Building automation is the automatic centralized control of a building’s system.  This could include but is not limited to heating, ventilation and air conditioning, lighting.
• Roof top equipment – This is ypically packaged units. This HVAC equipment is found on rooftops of building to allow proper space if that is an issue. It is also a good option to keep it out of sight.
• Make-up air units – These compensate the exhaust air to keep up with codes and regulations.  They also are a good idea for general ventilation.
• Ductless equipment – Ductless split systems consist of the following matched components. The first is an outdoor unit with single or multiple compressors. This is also with variable capacity compressor or with a variable speed drive.  There is also an indoor unit that has a coil, air movement device intended for single zone air distribution. Finally a temperature sensing control and  a zone temperature control device. Each indoor unit is designed to condition a single zone.
• Heat Exchangers – A heat exchanger is a device that allows heat from a fluid to pass to a second fluid without the two fluids having to mix together or come into direct contact.
• Water Treatment Programs – Water treatment involves purifying water resources. By doing this it is eliminating the contaminants in a water supply. This helps to to make it healthy, safe and clean for a community and the natural environment.

See Also: Most Common Commercial HVAC Concerns

Heat Pumps and Heaters

• Water Source Heat Pumps – A water source heat pump is a variation of a traditional air source heat pump. Water is pumped from a well through an isolation heat exchanger. It is returned to the aquifer through an injection well.  The heat pumps reject the cold and absorb heat from the groundwater through the heat exchanger and pipes in the building.
• Hydronic Pumps, Boiler Pumps, Chill Water Pumps – Hydronic Pumps are pumps which are used in hydronic systems. A hydronic system is one where liquid acts as the heat transfer medium in heating and cooling systems. Common liquids are water, glycol, and refrigerants. A boiler pump is a specific type of pump used to pump feedwater into a steam boiler. Chilled water systems work much the same way as direct expansion systems work except they used chilled water in the coil.
• Radiant Heaters – Radiant heating systems supply heat directly to the floor or to panels in the wall or ceiling of a house. The systems depends on a couple things, largely on radiant heat transfer, the delivery of heat directly from the hot surface to the people and objects in the room via infrared radiation.
• Reznor Heaters – Reznor was founded in 1888 to manufacture the “Reznor” reflector heater, which used a luminous flame gas burner developed by George Reznor. This technological breakthrough was an immediate success. It led to the quick expansion of gas heating in residential and commercial applications.

See Also: How To Efficiently Use a Heat Pumps

Specific Purposes

• Chill Water Fan Coils – A fan coil unit contains a fan which draws the air in a space into the unit then blows it over a cooling or heating coil.
• Fan Filter Units – A fan filter unit (FFU) is a type of motorized air filtering equipment. It is used to supply purified air to cleanrooms, laboratories, medical facilities or microenvironments. It does this by removing harmful airborne particles from recirculating air. The units are installed within the system’s ceiling or floor grid.
  
• VRF, VRV – Variable refrigerant flow (VRF), also known as variable refrigerant volume (VRV), is an HVAC technology invented in 1982. Like ductless minisplits, VRFs use refrigerant as the cooling and heating medium. This refrigerant is conditioned by a single outdoor condensing unit, and is circulated within the building to multiple indoor units.
  
• VAV Boxes – This is a type of heating, ventilating, and/or air-conditioning  system. Unlike constant air volume systems, which supply a constant airflow at a variable temperature, these systems vary the airflow at a constant temperature.
  

Humidity Control

• Electric Reheat – This is one of several types of Heating, Ventilating and Air-Conditioning systems found in commercial buildings. The primary advantage of a reheat system is that it can provide relatively precise control of space temperature and humidity.
  
• Hot Gas Reheat – The hot gas reheat feature is designed to control humidity at a specific level in the conditioned space. This is usually required when the outside temperature is cool and humid. It controls humidity without expending additional energy to reheat the cooled air.
  
• Carnes Humidifiers – Carnes has introduced a  circuit board feature. This assists in monitoring the humidification operation of the humidifier. Integral to the circuit board is a Microprocessor, true LCD touchscreen, Digital Display and LED indicator lights. These features are available on all Carnes Humidifiers whether for Industrial / Commercial use or Residential applications.

See Also: Products

Consider the Room’s Purpose

• Clean Rooms –  This is typically used in manufacturing or scientific research. A cleanroom is a controlled environment that has a low level of pollutants such as dust, airborne microbes, aerosol particles, and chemical vapors. A cleanroom has a controlled level of contamination that is specified by the number of particles per cubic meter at a specified particle size. Cleanrooms are used in practically every industry where small particles can adversely affect the manufacturing process.
  
• Server Rooms – A server room is a room, usually air-conditioned, devoted to the continuous operation of computer servers.
  
• Labs – A place where tests and experiments are able to take place in a controlled environment.
  
• Low ambient controls – It controls head pressure in low outdoor air temperatures. It is mainly used on commercial equipment. A prime example would be cooling a server room with an air cooled condenser and DX evap. Fan cycling, Fan speed control, hot gas bypass are all means of controlling the head pressure.

Differences in Brands

• McQuay, Lennox, York Equipment – McQuay is a Daikin company. It is known worldwide for top quality HVAC solutions for almost any type of application. Lennox is a leading provider of innovative, home heating and cooling systems. York produces equipment to provide comfort for your HVAC need in your home or business.
• Trane Voyager Equipment – This is a type of equipment to help keep your home more energy efficient and easy to maintain a comfortable setting. It provides exceptional reliability, meets stringent performance requirements and is competitively priced.
• Trane Intellipak Equipment – Trane IntelliPak rooftop units impact the entire customer lifecycle. It does this by delivering industry leading energy efficiency with a low total cost of ownership.
• Liebert Systems – Liebert precision cooling systems provide critical cooling for data centers worldwide.
• Authorized Liebert Provider – An authorized Liebert provider is a person or company that has been cleared to work on a product that is still under warranty by another company without voiding the warranty. In order to become a provider, they would have had to complete a certification test administered by the Liebert of the product that they would be servicing.
• Aaron Equipment – Aaron Equipment is a industry leader in buying and selling new and used process machinery
• Carrier VVT Systems – Carrier VVT is a control system that allows one AC/Heat unit to service multiple zones or offices. Without this system, when your building is heated or air conditioned by rooftop units, you only have one thermostat.
• Trane Tracer Summit – The Tracer Summit system is designed to provide solutions needed by building owners. It is also for daily operations providing building control in one integrated system.

See Also: Brands We Service

Consider This

• Preventive Maintenance Plans – Preventive maintenance is work that is performed regularly on a scheduled basis. This is to lessen the likelihood of the piece of equipment from failing. Preventative maintenance is performed while the equipment is still in working condition. This is to avoid unexpected breakdowns.

See Also: Contact Us