Author: MaintenX

Historic buildings are one of those things where if we were to let them go, we would miss them after they were gone. A lot of our shared history is lost when one is demolished but keeping them around isn’t just about preserving memories; it’s also good for the environment.

One obvious benefit of buildings of a certain age is a simple one: it already exists. This is not just good from an economics perspective. It also serves to preserve a community’s legacy.

Benefits of Restoration

Some of the benefits of keeping a historical building include:

Retaining a community’s history

Celebrating the past

Illuminating the period of history in which it was created

Bringing economic success to the city or area in which it was built

Less construction and demolition debris

Energy savings

Awareness

You can support the effort to preserve an old building by generating awareness about the importance of preserving these precious, irreplaceable places by sharing news and updates on a page specifically created for the project on Facebook and Twitter.

Environment

Demolishing an existing structure and then building a new one in its place is not environmentally friendly. Constructing new green buildings and energy-saving structures is important, but restoring existing ones is as green as you can get. Remember the old phrase we all know: “Reduce. Reuse. Recycle.”. Repurposing an old building doesn’t just reinforce our knowledge and respect for the past. It also reduces waste and saves energy.

Smart buildings are structures that use computers to automate their internal processes —things like heating, air conditioning, lighting, and security. A smart building utilizes sensors and processors to gather and interpret data, which it then uses to tailor its processes to the needs of the people who work and live within its walls.

Strict Machine

This intelligent, self-regulating set-up helps building owners and facility management increase a building’s reliability and efficiency while simultaneously lowering energy consumption and cost. it can also substantially decrease the carbon footprint of the structures they sustain.

Making a traditional office or factory into a smart building is advantageous for both the building’s owners and the employees that inhabit it. Productivity can be substantially increased while cutting maintenance costs.

Optimal Performance

Optimal start/stop technology enables a smart building to automate processes by learning the best time to start the air conditioning system in each individual area. This system can also prioritize processes in order of decreasing urgency. In the event of a power outage, for example, a smart building can automatically turn on back-up generators and send power only to the most crucial areas and equipment.

Lowering Staff Expenses

A smart building can also help a company’s bottom line. Measuring instruments can trigger the sprinkler system when they sense the lawn needs watering. When a bathroom is out of paper towels or soap, maintenance staff can be automatically alerted.

Self-Monitoring

A smart building also has the ability to automatically regulate and monitor various functions and equipment. If an emergency exit sign goes out, an electrical outlet stops working, or if the fire alarm system malfunctions, managers, building owners, and maintenance staff will get a notification on the company’s internal network alerting them to the issue.

Turning your business into a smart building can be an expensive and complex process. But, if properly implemented, it can cut costs and increase productivity and security.

This is one of the more complex and intricate types of water cooling systems. Chilled water systems use heavy-duty machinery capable of producing much lower temperatures than many other types of cooling system. This machinery creates refrigerant, which it then puts through multiple cycles of condensation and evaporation.

If you’re willing to go the extra mile in terms of cost and maintenance, then you may want to invest in a chilled water system. But before making this decision, you’ll want to learn about its advantages and possible drawbacks.

Advantages

Chilled water systems are highly effective, powerful machines. They can achieve far lower temperatures than many simpler systems, making them a cost-effective choice for larger commercial buildings, despite the costs of installation and maintenance.

Disadvantages

As mentioned before, chilled water systems are expensive to set up and maintain. They require more power than many other systems, as well as frequent maintenance. You can expect to spend money on specialized maintenance, as this type of system is incredibly complex and requires a lot of expertise.

In very cold weather, these systems may require additional parts and add-ons. Extra parts can quickly add to an already high price tag, and will require even more maintenance.

Is it worth it?

Naturally, this will depend on what you want to get out of your cooling system. Chilled water systems are a popular choice for large buildings because they are safe, effective, and can be cost-efficient in many cases. If your building is smaller or you just don’t need the extra power that these machines offer, you may want to look for a simpler cooling solution. A closed-loop evaporative system is a simpler system that is less expensive and easier to install.

Still not sure about chilled water systems? Give MaintenX a call!

This system is similar to the open-loop evaporative system in some ways. It works by taking in water, evaporating it, cooling the remaining water, and repeating the cycle. Like the open-loop evaporative system, it requires chemical water treatment, protection from freezing temperatures, and other measures to ensure that water is kept circulating and impurities aren’t allowed to accumulate.

There are important differences, however. This system uses closed-loop piping that circulates a coolant solution back and forth from the tower, but does not circulate air and water from the outside. This protects the coolant loop from external contaminants, avoiding some of the worst complications of the open-loop system. This can make chemical treatment of the water much simpler than it would be if the entire system were exposed to outside air and water.

The tower water is still exposed, however, meaning you’ll need the same chemical treatment, blowback, and basin heating systems as you would with the open-loop system. Lime scale and other complications from contaminated water can also develop in the closed-loop system.

Still, these problems are not as big of a danger with the closed-loop evaporative system. Whatever contaminants enter the tower water stay there, rather than circulating throughout the entire system. This reduces the amount of resources needed to treat the water.

A closed-loop evaporative system can save on water costs compared to the open-loop version. As contaminants from outside water do not spread as readily throughout the system, the quality of outside water is not as crucial to the system’s functioning. This can make the closed-loop system an environmentally friendly option, as well as an affordable one.

In an open-loop evaporative system, air and water are pushed through the fill material, evaporating some of the water and cooling the water that is left. Water from an outside source replaces the evaporated water, and the cycle begins again. The temperature of the cooling water is dependent on the wet bulb temperature.

Open-loop evaporative systems do not generally require expensive or complicated machinery. They are a sensible option for warm climates, with cold climates requiring additional components. There are a few exceptions to be aware of, though:

Water treatment

The main expense and hassle of this type of cooling system comes in the form of chemical treatments, which are essential to maintaining the health of your system. To keep the pipes and other components clean and functional, you need a water treatment system that can be quite intricate. Evaporative cooling systems, whether open-loop or closed loop, can run into problems when the evaporated water leaves behind contaminants. Mold, bacteria, and lime scale are some possible complications of a poorly maintained water treatment system.

To avoid lime scale and other mineral deposits, minerals in the water need to be suspended so that they don’t accumulate when the water evaporates. Keeping the water treated can also ward off corrosion. The risk of corrosion is greatest when contaminated water evaporates, leaving behind corrosive material in greater concentrations.

Cold-weather problems

Open-loop evaporative systems will require extra heating and insulation if they are exposed to freezing temperatures. This is something to consider if you are installing them in a very cold area, as freezing water only contributes to the problems caused by accumulating solids.

In general, however, open-loop evaporative systems do not require highly complex equipment, and the relative cost is affordable.

Put simply, a closed-loop dry water-cooling system with a trim cooler is a closed-loop dry system, but with the addition of an auxiliary liquid-to-liquid cooler. This type of water-cooling system is most commonly used in hot, dry areas where regular closed-loop systems would not work effectively without the addition of trim cooling equipment. Using this added liquid-to-liquid trim cooler, the building owner or maintenance manager can “trim” the temperature to the ideal range for peak operation.

Advantages

It can deliver coolant temperatures significantly lower than a closed-loop dry system can manage by itself.

The addition of a trim cooler ensures that your system maintains peak performance when temperatures reach levels that a closed-loop system alone would not be able to handle.

Some other benefits include:

Close to 100% reduction in water use

Negligible dirt build-up in the system

Elimination of algae and bacteria (a common problem for open, tower-based systems)

Offers protection from both extreme hot and cold temperatures

Compliance with most federal and state environmental regulatory codes

The lowest operational costs compared to similar water cooling system types

Drawbacks

A closed-loop dry system with a trim cooler comes with all the drawbacks of the closed-loop dry system. In addition, this system requires additional coolant during the hottest times of the year. As with any liquid cooling system, it also requires periodic maintenance.

For many applications, trim cooling is a welcome addition to a closed-loop dry water cooling system and allows it to be used in places where a traditional liquid-to-liquid system won’t work.

A closed-loop dry cooling system utilizes an air-cooled fluid that removes heat from the closed-loop fluid. Closed-loop dry systems are comparatively cheap to operate. We’ll guide you through the basics of this cooling system type.

Low Maintenance

Closed-loop dry cooling systems are relatively easy to install and they don’t require as much energy to operate as other cooling methods do. Maintenance costs are normally quite low, usually only requiring inspections once or twice a year. The fluid cooler will occasionally need cleaning to remove dirt, leaves, and other debris that can build up in the system over time.

Location

One downside to a closed-loop dry cooling system is that it needs clear, clean air to operate efficiently. The fluid cooler should be placed in a location where it won’t be affected by wind, but also not too close to a building, so that air leaving the fluid cooler can properly circulate back into the system. In addition, the system should be placed in an area free of excessive dust, dirt, pollen, and leaves. In most climates, a good location for a fluid cooler is the building’s roof.

Water Conservation

What’s one of the biggest advantages of a closed-loop dry cooling system? Conserving water. A closed-loop system uses a set amount of water which it reuses for months or years, reducing water consumption by up to 98%.

Choosing a closed-loop dry cooling system for a new or existing building can be a great option for many applications, but it takes a lot of planning. Make sure you speak to a supplier with experience and expertise not only in the system design, but also in industries and optimal installation.

Regardless of the business you run, if you need an HVAC upgrade you’ll usually have to decide between liquid or air cooling.

Most people are accustomed to the traditional air-powered HVAC systems present in most homes and businesses. But liquid cooling systems have actually been in use for thousands of years. Resourceful ancient Romans used water supplied via their famous aqueducts to cool the stone walls of their homes and public structures.

Liquid Cooling vs. Air Cooling:

There are significant differences between liquid and air cooling systems.

When a traditional air cooling system is running, it creates quite a bit of heat. In a liquid cooling system, however, water transfers this heat away from the unit, allowing for maximum efficiency.

Which Is Better?

When it comes to operational efficiency, liquid cooling systems are #1. They don’t require as much energy to operate, and they cool air more rapidly than other cooling units.

Cost

Since they’re so effective at cooling and use fewer moving parts, maintenance and operating costs associated with a liquid cooling system are substantially lower.

But because they need cooling towers and water pumps, installing a liquid system is more expensive on the front end as compared to air cooling HVAC systems. A liquid cooling system also requires more space.

Maintenance

If you decide on a liquid cooling system, there are a few additional things to consider, such as water treatment to keep the water clean and running correctly through its various components. If you’d like to know more about liquid cooling systems, contact MaintenX!