The issue of energy
efficiency is still with us despite various
initiatives to reduce energy consumption.
We’re still using more energy than power
stations produce at peak times in the Los
Angeles area.
A lot of initiatives
have been implemented in the residential
area, such as Energy Star and rebates, to
entice consumers to buy more efficient
appliances.
The commercial arena is
obviously one of the most fruitful areas to
reduce massive amounts of energy. However
this is moving slowly due to some valid
issues. In the commercial HVAC area
(Machado’s focus) duct sealing is
practically non-existent due to the fact
that pressurizing large systems is difficult
or impossible and thus is not required.
Efficient insulation and
windows are problematic because everything
has an effect on each other. For instance if
you have 15% more heat efficient windows but
the ducts leak 40%, does that mean that your
windows are only saving you 9%. Who do you
blame? You only know that your electric bill
hasn’t gone down as much as your window
sales rep said it would long after the fact.
If correctly installed the windows would
work at an improved 15% if the rest
of the building components were operating
correctly.
The same could be true
for insulation.
Infa-red imaging is now becoming more
available, thus spotting incorrectly
installed insulation is becoming easier.
(see a movie)
There are so many
factors that play on each other. Cooling
coils, filters, Freon charge, dirt,
blockages, leaky ducts, incorrect layout,
carpets and people are just a few of these
factors that come to mind.
All of the above factors
influence each other and improve each other
or degrade each other. What a headache!
There is of course a
solution to all of the above. Obviously, if
each component is correctly installed and is
functioning correctly they will complement
each other and improve energy efficiency
saving you money.
The biggest point here
is
education and looking
- not fancy gadgets (although fancy gadgets
are a passion of mine).
Do the registers point
to the heat source in the room?
Is the flex duct
squashed anywhere?
Are the ducts leaking?
Are the filters blocked?
Has the installation
been fitted to the manufacturer’s
specifications?
Is someone leave
the doors open and letting all the cold air
out?
(OK, there are a LOT
more questions that need to be asked and
checked for – we’re working on a list.)
The next question
is, how am I doing (in dollars improved) and
what should I focus on next?
This is a good problem
to solve. Normally you have to wait a month
for the electric bill. The outside
temperatures vary massively from month to
month (affecting usage) and the performance
of other building equipment is all lumped in
the electric bill, so it’s difficult to
isolate one component.
There are systems out
there that will tell you everything you need
to know, but they’re so expensive that the
return on investment is hardly worth it.
The Machado
Environmental Corporation is working on a
new energy efficiency program for
implementation in small and medium sized
commercial buildings to solve the second
question.
Solution: Stay
tuned to this e-newsletter.
If you’re interested in
participating in our Beta testing, please
drop us an e-mail at
dan@machadoenviro.com
