Category Archives: Tips

BIM (Building Information Modeling) is a work methodology that allows the integral management of construction projects, in all its phases and during the entire life cycle of the building, through virtual models and in a collaborative way between the different agents involved.

The BIM methodology has become one of the great protagonists of the current architecture. When applied to construction projects, it is possible to tackle the entire process quickly and easily. You can integrate all the elements that you will later include in the building and check how they are left. You can collect all the information on each element that participates in the project and how it affects the performance of the building.

This methodology greatly simplifies construction projects. But it is especially practical applied to ventilation systems. Data related to acoustic information, the energy consumption of the system, and aerodynamics of the fan are obtained.

With the BIM methodology it is possible to simulate the entire life cycle of the building even before it is built. In addition, it allows calculating how much the work will cost and setting the times that will be invested in the entire process. Without forgetting, it makes it easier to find possible problems at the beginning of the project, so that the necessary changes can be implemented.

Using the methodology it is possible to create 3D models and use them to observe the different currents, and the air sweep can also be represented. In this way, it will be possible to choose the ventilation system that is most suitable for the building.

An example of its use would be for example a large space, such as a school, a hospital, or a shopping center. Keep in mind that these are buildings that will have a large flow of visitors, so it is appropriate to use this methodology.

It is necessary to assess the importance of using the BIM methodology since it provides such detailed information that it manages to create a highly efficient project. In addition, when materials are added in the development of the process, it allows us to check how they will be and also how they will interact with the rest of the construction.

For example, you can check if any of the ventilation ducts is interrupted by some element of the construction, so you can find the solution even before the problem is real. It will be done virtually and without having to stop a work that has already started.

It should be remembered that in a traditional design, weeks or even months are spent designing what a building is going to be like and all that work can be ruined if there is any miscalculation. However, the BIM methodology is so precise that it can even estimate the impact that small changes will have.

Without a doubt, the BIM methodology has greatly changed the design of buildings and also of their ventilation systems. If you want to know more about updates, innovations, and news regarding HVAC tech, don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter.

When it comes to optimizing energy resources in residential buildings, it is not only important for the equipment used to generate both heat and domestic hot water.

So is the maintenance of the boiler room that guarantees that all the elements work correctly and risks are minimized as much as possible.

Today there is the Regulation of Thermal Installations in Buildings (RITE) that regulates the operation, review, and installation of boiler rooms. It establishes different requirements that must be met to guarantee your safety.

A boiler room is a space that houses production equipment for the production of heat and domestic hot water for users of a facility.

Although it seems common sense, this enclosure should only be used for this purpose. Unfortunately, this norm is not respected in many buildings, and the space used for the boiler room becomes yet another storage room.

This exponentially increases the risk of accidents, from fires to gas leaks, and should not be done under any circumstances. (If you want to learn some tips about safety measures for HVAC technicians click here)

Maintenance of a boiler room

-Correct use of the room

This should be the first step so that a boiler room is in optimal conditions: that its use is only for power generation. In addition, their access must be restricted to the person responsible for maintenance and to the representative of the neighborhood community or the owner.

This guarantees that the handling of the room and its equipment is only carried out by the person responsible for its maintenance, a technician legally authorized to carry out any operation in it, in accordance with current regulations.

-Maintenance contract for a boiler room

When it comes to community facilities, there is an obligation to contract the services of a specialized company that is qualified for such purposes. The company will be responsible for the correct operation and regular monitoring of the boiler room.

-Responsibilities of the company

It must supervise the proper functioning of all the components of the room, as well as correct any possible deviations that may occur. Likewise, it will ensure the safety of the installation and its correct regulation.

Likewise, it must issue the required documents that determine that the proper maintenance of a boiler room was carried out. As this is a mandatory requirement, its omission can lead to fines before the law.

But not only legal obligations make maintenance necessary, it is imperative to avoid any type of accident that leaves not only material but also human losses. Neglecting these tasks can lead to carbon monoxide poisoning, fires, or fuel leaks, all avoidable with good maintenance.

In addition, it improves the energy performance of the equipment, thus increasing its useful life and reducing emissions to the environment and saving fuel.

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The repair and maintenance practices of air conditioning and refrigeration equipment require precision instruments since minimal errors can translate into a loss of money, lack of comfort, damage to the environment or damage to the unit.

To carry out any connection to a team, the person who is going to carry it out must have the appropriate training and skills to execute a good practice that results in the optimal and efficient operation of the unit, avoiding second or third revisions, which will affect the encouragement and economy of the client.

Good preparation of the technician is accompanied by theoretical notions, but more important are the skills he has to carry out his activities in the field, which means knowing the diagnosis that must be made of an HVAC equipment and how to carry out its repair or maintenance.

At this point, the tools that the engineer or HVAC technician must use to carry out activities such as detecting leaks, analyzing the gas load, executing the refrigerant gas recovery, applying autogenous welding, among other activities, come into play.

For the implementation of these different actions, the industry has made available to technicians a series of tools, which if at first, they could have been somewhat rudimentary, have currently evolved significantly, offering greater comfort and safety in their use, in addition to transmitting more accurate results with little margin for error.

Multi-Plug Remover: It is very useful to extract pivots in the case of recovering refrigerant gas. If you are recovering from a system that has these types of valves, you should try to remove the pivots from all of them. Another function that it has is that it serves to change the defective pivots that can cause leaks in the refrigeration system, avoiding the overflow of large quantities of refrigerant. This remover connects, closes and the manometer can be attached to it.

Recovery equipment (reclaimer, tank, and scale): Is a machine that is connected to the HVAC system and to the cylinder to recover gas depending on the method to be used (recovery in the gas phase, recovery in the liquid phase, Push / Pull method, liquid and steam method). This machine will extract all the liquid and gaseous refrigerant from a system, to leave it free and susceptible to being charged or recharged again.

Recovery tank: It is a cylinder that must meet DOT specifications. They are recognized because the little ones (13.6 kg and 22 kg) are painted on the shoulder area of the tank and the rest is gray. This tank consists of a “Y” valve, which has two inlets, a red one for liquid refrigerant and a blue one for gaseous, so at no time should the hoses be reversed and there is no need to mix gases. It should be noted that only the gas recovery tanks are identified to use used refrigerants, therefore, cylinders should not be used for new refrigerants, much less disposable ones.

Scale: This will be used for the weighing of the recovery tank, which must not be loaded beyond 80% of its capacity, so the technician must have a calculator on hand to determine not to exceed this limiting percentage. In the market, there are conventional scales, but you can also find electronic portfolio type scales that through a screen allow the cylinder to be loaded at 80% of its capacity, without exceeding it.

Torque wrench: This is a tool used to tighten nuts or bolts on an apparatus. It is worth noting that this should be used every time a manufacturer indicates a specific torque value, which could be indicated employing a table or in a manual, in such a way that the necessary torque force is applied to tighten a screw in a piece of equipment.

Failure to use this tool could cause leaks in the refrigeration compressors through the seals, or leaks in the mechanical seals, causing the screws to be slit due to over-tightening or being loose.

Phase sequencer: They use an electrical circuit with no moving parts. When the appliance is connected to the mains, a green light will illuminate when the phase sequence is correct, or a red light if it is inverted. There are currently phase sequencers that provide clear indications of three-phase systems using an LCD screen, in addition to determining the direction of rotation to signal the correct connections. They indicate the phase sequence and offer a frequency and voltage range (up to 700 V) suitable for commercial and industrial applications.

Hook ammeter: Used in the HVAC industry since the units run on electrical energy, this tool consists of an apparatus that has pliers, as well as a screen, in which the current intensity parameters in a line. Thanks to the hook ammeter, technicians avoid the inconvenience of having to open the circuit in which you want to measure the current to place a classic ammeter, guaranteeing greater safety.

Perhaps it is a somewhat ambiguous word for many, but the Inverter technology allows the technician to better regulate the voltage, current, and frequency of an appliance, thus making it the highest level of energy efficiency on the market today. In addition, it provides other benefits such as greater durability, better performance, and low noise level.

Inverter technology consists of the use of electronic devices to control the consumption of the output power of an electric motor, either direct (DC) or alternating current (AC), by modifying the operating frequency. To achieve this, this technology uses two important tools:

The Power Stage where rectification and inversion are performed through the use of power electronics devices, diodes in the rectifier and power transistors in the inverter.

And the Control Stage where the motor operating frequency is decided, through the use of sensors that monitor required output power parameters.

Control is carried out by means of algorithms known as pulse width modulation, which modify the frequency of the voltage in AC equipment, or of the current in DC equipment.

Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) systems have been introduced in Japan for over 20 years and have become popular in many countries. However, they remain unknown on the American continent.

Although intense marketing of VRF systems began a few years ago, several systems are likely to have been sold over the course of the year, amounting to tens of thousands of tons of installed capacity. Obviously, the market is still quite small compared to the market for chilled water systems. Despite this, VRF systems are marketed throughout the Americas by at least 5 manufacturers.

Many HVAC (Heating, Ventilating and Air Conditioning) professionals are familiar with “mini-splits” ductless residential systems and a variation of this product, usually described as “multi splits,” which include multiple indoor evaporators connected to a single condensing unit (Exterior).

By the way of installing them, the VRF systems are similar to the previous ones, although there are those of greater capacity, which can be connected to various types of evaporators, they also have a system for the management and control of the refrigerant and oil within the system same.

Conventional systems transfer heat from the building to the refrigerant, through the circulation of air (in ducted systems), or water (in chiller systems). But, regularly VRF systems do not provide ventilation, so it is necessary to install an alternate ventilation system.

The term Variable Refrigerant Flow refers to the ability of the system to control the amount of refrigerant that passes through the coil of each evaporator, this is achieved because it has sensors at its input and output, connected to the microprocessor, which calculates the Optimal mass flow of refrigerant to maintain a constant degree of overheating by opening or closing the expansion valve.

This allows the use of many evaporators of different types and capacities, individual control by zone and heat recovery from one zone to another (there are systems that provide cold and heat simultaneously). Refrigerant flow control of VRF systems is carried out in condensing units, it is the biggest technical challenge, and the origin of many system advantages.