hvac
PROJECT
Heat Pumps Upgrade School HVAC Efficiency Middle school replaces 37 water-source heat pumps.
M
argarita Middle School, in the Temecu-
groupings of Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio (SEER).
FL; sales representative Tony Lobito of KSR Associates,
la, CA, school district, used vertical wa-
“The major challenge was constrained space of the ex-
Los Angeles; and FHP regional sales manager Nic Jones,
ter-source heat pumps for heating and
isting utility closets,” said Darren Smith, P.E., and
worked with IDS Group Mechanical Engineers, Irvine,
cooling. When a planned renovation was designed in
LEED-accredited professional with Enovity, Irvine, CA,
CA, and NKS Mechanical Contracting, Anaheim, CA,
late 2015, the California Clean Energy Jobs Act (Prop 39)
the project facility’s engineering firm and the prime engi-
to meet performance requirements and ensure that the
funded a retrofit to include all-new heat pumps, a central
neering consultant, which supervised building energy
heat pumps fit in the restricted space in the existing me-
boiler plant, ventilation fans, and a DDC control system.
analysis and system commissioning. “We had to find heat
chanical closets.
School administrators jumped at the chance to upgrade.
pumps to fit the closets that provided sufficient energy
To select a new heat-pump brand, the installation team
efficiency to meet Prop 39 payback requirements.”
evaluated multiple manufacturers and models based on
Twenty-nine FHP EP and eight EC heat pumps are installed in exterior closets, with access from the classrooms. Model EP single-compressor water-source heat
two qualifications. First, physical size, because the exist-
INSTALLATION
pumps have EC motors and use three motor taps to stage
ing mechanical closets limited dimensions of the heat
The installation team replaced 37 water-source heat
airflow with the compressors to reduce energy demand
pumps. Second was an index of installed cost/ton for
pumps totaling 209 nominal tons. FHP, Fort Lauderdale,
and improve dehumidification at low stage. The EC mo-
46
COMMERCI A L A RCHI T EC T URE
SEPTEMBER 2017
commercialarchitecturemagazine.com
