Mother Nature is always full of surprises. No one ever knows with absolute certainty what extremes the weather might deliver, from freezing cold or blistering heat to a hurricane or tornado. This scenario is particularly challenging for operations leaders. No business wants to be forced to close its doors, but is it possible to brave […]
Cooling season is coming, and for facility managers everywhere, equipment maintenance is top of mind. During the shift from heating to cooling, HVAC units require maintenance to ensure all systems are running optimally. But while seasonal maintenance is always a good idea, it doesn’t always prevent equipment from experiencing catastrophic failure or unwanted downtime. That’s […]
For facilities managers, the change in season also ushers in the need for maintenance on HVAC units as businesses shift from cooling to heating. Regular maintenance is a key part of making sure an HVAC system is running optimally, but merely performing seasonal check-ins won’t protect your equipment against catastrophic failure. That’s a job for […]
The food service industry was hit hard by the pandemic and unfortunately, the problems aren’t in the rearview mirror just yet. When restaurants across the nation were forced to close, owners looked forward to a time when their empty tables would be full again. But with that day here, many are still struggling; not because […]
A common source of HVAC energy waste is blower /supply fans running 24/7/365, including unoccupied and overnight periods where the supply air is definitely not required. SiteSage internet-connected thermostats allow you to set fan mode in AUTO or ON by time block, thus ensuring that fans only run when needed and capturing the associated savings. […]
HVAC equipment can fail in the most interesting ways, but fortunately SiteSage delivers the data to help understand equipment issues, and allows you to make remote adjustments to help negate their impact and compensate with other units. The first chart shown here features data from a Heat Pump installed at a California retailer. With the […]
Let’s suppose your Heating and Cooling equipment is in perfect health and your thermostats are internet-connected and set with a perfect schedule to maximize comfort and energy savings. You have reason to be proud and thankful! However, all of this technology is still at the mercy of a small temperature sensor that reports room temperature […]
Powerhouse Dynamics CEO Martin Flusberg tackles the perceived cost of proactive equipment maintenance, and why it may actually cost much less than the more common “run to fail” approach. Read the full column in Energy Manager Today or on the Noesis blog.
This post will be a short one because this topic won’t take long to dissect: it’s about set backs, the temperatures we set thermostats to when comfort heating or cooling isn’t required, such as when stores are closed. Quite often I hear concerns from operators or even HVAC technicians regarding night set backs for thermostats. […]
What’s an Economizer? An economizer is a simple, elegant idea intended to save businesses money by delivering cooling to their buildings with much less energy consumed and much less cost. In a nutshell, an economizer is a mechanical vent attached to a roof top unit (RTU) that opens to draw-in outside air for cooling a […]
This is a portion of a post on MultiBriefs Exclusive. If you can’t stand the heat, stay out of the kitchen. It may be an old adage, but five minutes in a bustling kitchen leaves little doubt that it’s also literally true. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, restaurants spend approximately three times more […]
Tip 2: Control HVAC Costs In the second of the series of posts on energy efficiency in restaurants, let’s look at the highest cost in most areas of the country – heating and cooling. The starting point is to make sure that HVAC settings consider comfort first, but also costs. Adjusting settings by as […]
