Transcript
HVAC Downtime Is Now a Health Risk
The CDC recommends improving your building ventilation system to respond to COVID-19.1
HVAC maintenance impacts:
- Cost of energy use
- Cost of depreciation
- Risk of downtime - Productivity loss, Repair and replacement cost, Failure to maintain healthy ventilation
The CDC and ASHRAE concur that ventilation should be increased in response to COVID-19.2 ASHRAE notes that aerosol transmission is possible, and studies have shown that humidity affects droplet size, and therefore how far droplets may travel and how they may accumulate on surfaces.3
Did you know your HVAC maintenance checks these important factors?
- Drainage. Excess moisture can cause asset failure or mold and water damage in your facility.
- Sensors and Controls. Controls and sensors keep ventilation at healthy, efficient targets.
- Lubrication. Wear and tear is crucial to asset longevity and efficiency.
- Clean Coils. Dirty coils make assets work harder, wasting energy and asset life.
- Visual Inspection. Trained technicians know how to spot issues before they cause downtime.
- Exhaust. Blocked exhausts can cause dangerous build-up and backflow.
- Fans. Preventive maintenance avoids breakdown of key active components.
- Filter Changes. Increased air exchanges and concerns about airborne particles make filter changes more important than ever.
- Refrigerants. Leaks can drive systems to overwork and failure
Maintaining Healthy Work Environments = Maintaining Your HVAC
Sources:
1. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/guidance-business-response.html
2. https://www.ashrae.org/file%20library/technical%20resources/ashrae%20journal/2020journaldocuments/72-74_ieq_schoen.pdf
3. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/epidemiology-and-infection/article/humidity-and-respiratory-virus-transmission-in-tropical-and-temperate-settings/DDD7C065E1162CDB039C398F2F2C44DF/core-reader#:~:text-Humidity %20can%20influence%20aerosol%20transmission, the%20virus%20within%20these%20aerosols.&text-On%20entering%20an%20environment%20with, within%20seconds%20due%20to%20evaporation.
