I am bringing this idea because I have seen government electric bills running too high- exceeding the $15,000 per month average for a 30,000 to 40,000 sq. ft. building.
The current setting for government office air conditioning (AC) is set too low. Some offices have the AC too low in summer and too high in winter. Employees have to wear jackets in the summer at the offices and remove their sweater or dress coat in winter because the heat setting is too high.
Even today, in these days, the civilian and local business offices have controlled their HVAC to appropriate temperature without affecting operation.
Here is how to save energy and government funds by controlling the AC / Heating (HVAC) temperature and cutting off one hour of AC/Heating a day. When the operation of the office is not a 24/7 operation, the HVAC could even be turned off for 3 to 4 hours at night and /or Saturday, Sunday and holidays. The energy consumption would drop, thus savings in the energy bill would be reflected dramatically. This technique has been tested by some public energy services in different cities across the nation.
My recommendation is to have this tested at different government offices at different zoning areas and analyze the trend and production when controlling the AC and heating to different moderate temperatures. Below is a check list with some but not limited key points:
1—Set AC to 79 -81 degrees in summer or very warm temperatures.
2 – Set heat to 69-70 degrees in winter or very cool temperatures.
3 – Provide 1 hour per day to turn off the HVAC for major consumption areas. Some energy companies offer these services in exchange for a new remote control thermostat. Why not bring this to the government buildings?
4 – Turn off HVAC system for 3 to 4 hours at night for offices that are not 24/7 and 16 hours for Saturday, Sunday and holidays on offices that are not 24/7/365.
5 – Power buildings to high temperature cooling system and to low temperature heating system when building is not occupied.
6 - Ensure computers and LAN rooms (requiring a colder environment) operate on a dedicated AC unit system. These areas may be excluded for the 1 hour power-off – energy saving program.
See other ideas.
http://governmentreform.ideascale.com/a/dtd/Wind-turbine-and-Solar-Panels/122931-13060
http://governmentreform.ideascale.com/a/dtd/Equipment-CONSOLIDATION-and-ReUTILIZATION/123337-13060
