Maximising Air Conditioning Efficiency

Several factors can affect the energy consumption of a air conditioning system:-

• Controls set accurately.
•  Zoning of different areas to enable independent management.
•  Behaviour of occupants in the building.

1. Controls
Controls offer good opportunities for energy savings. Options include:-

Time controls: These are useful to cater for the occupancy of the building and eliminate unnecessary operation.

• Set simple time controls, ensuring ventilation is not left on unnecessarily.
• Where occupancy varies throughout the week, seven-day timers can be installed to ensure air conditioning does not operate in unoccupied spaces.

Temperature controls: These increase ventilation rates when internal temperatures reach pre set levels, helping to avoid overheating. Thermostats should be carefully located, ensuring that they are situated away from draughts, direct sunlight and heat sources such as radiators or office equipment.

2. Zoning
Dividing a cooling system into area zones allows different parts of a building to be cooled to different temperatures at different times. Considerations for zoning of air conditioning:-
Advantageous for larger buildings, especially those with areas having different cooling requirements or occupancy levels.
Heating, ventilation and air conditioning within  zones should be co-ordinated to ensure optimal efficiency of the total system.

Turnkey Air Conditioning Ltd has outstanding expertise in the specification of state of the art energy efficient air conditioning systems and controls.

3. Occupant Behaviour
The way in which building occupants use heating and air conditioning systems can have a considerable effect on the system’s energy consumption and cost of operation. Staff awareness of how they can interact with the air conditioning system to maximise its energy efficiency and optimise comfort is an important consideration.

• Default temperature settings should be explained to staff and they should be shown how thermostats work, to avoid them being used as on/off switches.