HVAC Maintenance
Don’t leave your church out in the cold
As published in Worship Facilities, Apr/May 2005
"We have come to expect the air to be comfortable at our worship facilities. After all, it would not be a good sign if the congregation broke out into a chorus of "Someone's freezing Lord, kum ba ya."
Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems (HVAC) may be the last thing on our mind as we enjoy a good worship service. However, if they were to malfunction, chances are we would be distracted from our singing and focused on our shivering neighbor or sweating spouse.
Maintaining your facility's HVAC equipment will have many obvious benefits including lowering utility costs, increasing life of equipment, decreasing repairs, and providing occupants with healthy indoor air quality (IAQ). Equipment that is not monitored or maintained properly could be forced to work harder, compensating for dirt build-up or malfunctioning parts. Maintenance could also prevent that big breakdown that inevitably happens during an important event which is of course scheduled for the hottest or coldest day of the year.
BBJ Environmental Solutions, a company focused on achieving good IAQ, located in Tampa, Florida, suggests a few easy steps to keep your HVAC equipment in tip-top shape. The first suggestion, as one might expect, is regularly changing your system's air filters. Each system's environmental conditions are different so BBJ recommends visually examining your filter on a monthly basis to determine a schedule best suited for your system. Usually, this will be anywhere from one to six months. When a filter is roughly 60% covered, it is time for a change. The type of filter is also a consideration. Filters that are pleated and made from cotton or synthetic materials may cost more, but will no doubt collect more microorganisms and act more efficiently in protecting your equipment from unwanted particles.
Evaporator and condenser coils should be cleaned once or twice per year to keep them operating at peak performance. Clean coils will ensure that air flow is kept at a maximum. Using a 1,000 seat auditorium as an example, a packaged central air conditioner could be one choice of equipment selected to cool the building. With this type of unit, the evaporator and condenser are located in one cabinet which is usually placed on a roof or on a concrete slab outside the building. This type of unit is built with access doors to each different component within the unit. The coils, just one of the accessable components of the system, should not be cleaned with a corrosive material, nor should they be cleaned using excessive pressure from a power washer. A self-rinsing, detergent-style cleaner formulated specifically for coils would be a good solution choice.
After the coils have been cleaned they should receive an antimicrobial treatment. This will provide the equipment with an extra barrier of protection against mold and bacteria. The coils have a drain which allows condensation to flow from the coils to a drain pan. The drains should be examined to ensure that they are not plugged. Plugged drains can cause the drain pan to overflow, allowing condensate to possibly leak into the building. The drain pan should also be cleaned. Standing water in drain pans is an excellent breeding ground for mold and algae. Just like the coils, drains and drain pans should be checked and cleaned once or twice a year.
Fans are another piece of equipment located inside the cabinet. The blades of the fan should be cleaned once or twice a year. These fans can be very large and can often have multiple sets of blades on one shaft. This means that cleaning the fans can take a significant amount of time. Bearings and belts should also be visually examined. Newer equipment will most likely have self-lubricating bearings. However, some bearings need to be occasionally greased; but be cautioned as over-greasing a bearing is just as harmful as under-greasing a bearing. When equipment is operating at high temperatures (above 104 degrees) greasing should done more often. Belts should be examined to ensure that they are well-adjusted and properly aligned. Belt tension should be set so that the belts does not slip or do not pull the motor excessively.
For the 1,000 seat auditorium suggested above, the HVAC equipment would most likely have a damper. A damper is a device that varies the airflow. In this example, the damper would be controlled electronically to vary the amount of air that is pulled into the unit. Since dampers can be constantly adjusting, it is important to keep these moving parts in full working order. A clean and well-lubricated damper will operate at peak performance, allowing just the right amount of air into the equipment. After cleaning and lubrication, a damper should be run through its full range of movement to ensure it is working properly.
The cabinet that holds the equipment should be examined semi-annually. Cracks in the cabinet can lead to excessive dirt on the equipment. External cracks can also negatively affect the air pressure inside the cabinet. In addition, the cabinet should be examined for corrosion since it is in direct contact with the elements. Missing screws and latches should be replaced as needed.
Natural precipitation and lack of drainage can cause water to collect around HVAC equipment. Standing water can be a breeding ground for mold and fungi. If these contaminants are growing near the air-intake of a unit, they can become part of the air stream going into the unit. As much as is possible, keep the area around HVAC equipment water-free.
Properly maintained HVAC equipment will decrease the amount of dirt that enters ductwork. Still, even with good IAQ, the North American Duct Cleaners Association (NADCA) recommends all supply and return air ducts be inspected every two years. If the inspection yields more than a little dust, the ducts should be cleaned. Anyone can check the ducts by simply removing a grille and looking inside the duct. However, cleaning the ducts is a job that should be done by a professional.
All of the above suggestions can be performed by a certified maintenance inspector. However, given a little knowledge and background, most of these tasks can be done by volunteers. Cleaning the evaporator and condenser coils is a job that should be left to a trained professional. It will take approximately an hour and cost about $50. The key to making these maintenance tips pay off is to know who did what and when they did it.
I am reminded of a story from the Old Testament where a general, Naaman, was told by Elisha to dip seven times in the Jordan River to be healed from his skin disease. At first Naaman refused because it seemed like too simple a solution. The general's servants convinced him to give it a try, and of course he was healed. The above mentioned suggestions are relatively easy steps to maintaining your investment in HVAC equipment. The time involved in these steps is minimal, as is the cost. I encourage you to give them a try.
QUICK-LINKS
BBJ Environmental Solutions, Inc.
Phone: (800) 889-2251 or (813) 622-8550
URL: www.bbjenviro.com
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