Summertime Commercial AC Repair Tips

Commercial AC Repair Tips To Keep Your Business Comfortable

We can expect hot temperatures for another few months and your business is depending on rave reviews for your air conditioner. If you don’t agree, turn it off for a few hours during office hours! By now, you have heard the major maintenance calls:

• Change your air filters each quarter. Dirty filters are the #1 enemy of your commercial HVAC. A dirty filter will cause your system to work inefficiently and stress components so that they wear out quicker.
• Do not cover registers or vents. The system was designed to circulate air throughout the building; covered vents are the equivalent of turning a portion of the air conditioner off.
• Make sure outdoors AC condenser or chiller units have free air movement in every direction. The refrigerant gases in the unit get extremely hot and need to be cooler quickly.
• Schedule an annual HVAC check-up to make sure everything functions properly and gas pressure levels are maintained. (Air conditioners used to use Freon, but it has been replaced in most units by an eco-friendlier alternative.)

How Low Should You Go?

Temperature settings in a commercial building are more than just a matter of comfort preference. Here are a number of tips to consider concerning AC settings.

1. Slow and steady is the way to go. Set the thermostat and leave it alone. Moving the temperature setting up and down suddenly does not produce the desired results, since it takes about 30 minutes to drop the temperature in a room. Better yet, use a programmable thermostat, set a schedule that works for your building, and live with the schedule.
2. Your building size and application will also determine AC use. Does your building have considerable south-facing glass walls? Are you generating significant heat, such as a restaurant, it will affect air conditioning use.
3. Workplace comfort affects productivity; people struggle to concentrate when too hot or too cold. Significant research has been done to determine the optimal office temperature and the results might surprise you. A summary of the research is that an office temperature of 74⁰ Fahrenheit was comfortable for 70% of participants. You may want to do research of your own.
4. Indoor humidity is also a comfort factor during the summer months, but year-round relative humidity of 40% seems to be agreeable to most people.
5. Employees and guests will naturally adapt their attire seasonally. Thinner, lighter clothes may be paired with a light sweater to be comfortable with air conditioning. Age and body mass index affect personal comfort since older and thinner individuals tend to feel cold more. Space heaters or fans will interfere with the ventilation and cooling.

Basic Commercial AC Repair and maintenance will keep your commercial air conditioning running smoothly. Your quick action on commercial AC repair will keep your guests and staff comfortable.

Have Questions About Your Commercial AC?

Northwind Air Conditioning and Heat can help with Commercial AC Repair and regularly scheduled HVAC maintenance. Contact us and get the answers you need.