The benefits associated with hiring the right emergency heat repair HVAC contractor:
Restoration of the heat in your home;
Protecting you and your family members from the elements;
Eliminating the potential for electrical fires;
Eliminating the need to burn smelly, dangerous accelerant-based heaters;
Developing a positive relationship with a skilled professional in the case of future needs arising;

What are the risks associated with hiring the wrong emergency heat repair HVAC contractor?

This is where you have to be careful.  The very nature of an emergency situation implies that you are basically in a frenzy.  You want your heat restored.  At times like these, many people make the mistake of not being thorough during the hiring process.  That is a mistake – and one that can be serious.  Here’s what can happen:
You end up paying far too much for services rendered;
You end up paying for substandard services;
The contractor that shows up to your home takes advantage of the fact that you are in an emergency situation;
Low-quality work standards may cause the need for various other, more expensive repairs;

So how can I ensure that I’m hiring a quality emergency heat repair HVAC contractor?

It’s not really that difficult to do.  You just need to slow down, take a few deep breaths and refer to the following tips:
Realize that when you are in an emergency situation, that is the best time to be logical and not panic;
Realize that while any emergency service technician is going to charge you hefty fees, that’s no reason for them to outright rob you;
Make sure that you have a clear understanding of what you are going to be charged and what services are going to be provided;
Get everything in writing before any work is performed;
Go with your instincts concerning the professionalism and character of the emergency heat repair HVAC contractor that you are considering hiring;
If you get bad vibrations from a given contractor, call another one.  Don’t be in such a hurry to have your heat restored that you make a bad decision that you will regret.

On his computer he searched for “Emergency Portable Air Conditioners Dallas” and Google directed him to us. This was at 8:45am. Our phone conversation ended by 9:00am and within an hour we were on site with three of our 1.5 ton Spot Coolers.

15 minutes to install one in the kitchen, server’s area and the dining area. Cool air was flowing right away.

By noon on Saturday we had visited the other tenants of the shopping center and took care of their needs as well.

It took almost three weeks for the landlord to have the a/c units replaced and our customers were so thankful for our quick service, fair pricing, meeting their needs and taking care of them.

I left there that morning with the satisfaction of taking care of our customers, but best of all, I left with the tastiest Mile-High Peanut Butter Chocolate Cream Pie I’ve ever had!

Spot Cooling Systems, Inc. of  Carrollton, Texas will offer Port-A-Cool’s extensive line of evaporative cooling units that are designed for portable spot cooling and can reduce temperatures by 30 degrees F using tap water. Various models are available to suit any budget and accommodate 500-4,000 square feet. Spot Cooling Systems, Inc. will also offer factory trained and authorized service and maintenance of Port-a-Cool units.

This agreement furthers Spot Cooling Systems, Inc. commitment to growing their product offering to markets not traditionally covered by emergency cooling companies. Spot Cooling Systems, Inc.  commitment  includes offering a broad product selection, competitive pricing, and fast delivery.

About Port-a-Cool

Port-A-Cool, LLC began production of evaporative cooling products and accessories in 1990 and quickly became a global industry leader. The company is headquartered in Center, Texas, and is dedicated to both industrial and residential products. Established as the ideal way to cool industrial work areas, as well as professional football players on the sideline. Port-A-Cool, LLC, is a trusted manufacturer of high-performance, yet economical, evaporative cooling systems. For more information on Port-A-Cool, LLC, and its brands, visit www.port-a-cool.com.

About Spot Cooling Systems, Inc.

Since 1984, Spot Cooling Systems has provided portable air conditioners and spot coolers on demand throughout Texas, the United States and around the world.  The units are used for hospitals, computer rooms and high rise buildings, data centers, retail outlets and residential applications.

Spot Cooling has been a pioneer in the perfection of portable air conditioners.   As one of the early developers in portable air conditioner rental and sales, they recognized the need for improvement in the existing spot coolers on the market.  To meet the need for high-quality American-made products showcasing the latest technology, Spot Cooling Systems created the highly versatile ExtraCooler line of spot coolers. Spot Cooling Systems, Inc. has earned a distinguished reputation for steadfast service and unmatched value.

For more information on Spot Cooling Systems, Inc. and its brands visit www.extracooler.com

Visit us at Booth #154
October 19th, 2011
Dallas Market Center
2200 North Stemmons Freeway
Dallas, TX 75207

ATTEND BOMA Dallas now has online registration for this year’s trade show, plus special prizes for Real Estate members only. There will be a Happy Hour, sponsored by Office Boy, at the end of the show with special food and drink, FREE to Real Estate members. Come and make this your evening meal, visit with old friends, make new friends, keep up to date with the latest trends in our industry, and view products and services from the finest group of Allied members anywhere!

Spot Cooling Systems, Inc. will be showing their latest Portable Air Conditioners, Spot Coolers, Evaporative Cooling Units, and the new ZoneAire small office/residential air conditioner. We look forward to seeing you there!

This series on Environmental Threats and Their Costs starts with the biggest threat to computer hardware, temperature.

Temperature

Temperature is the main environmental threat to computer hardware. The generally accepted, ideal temperature is between 68 and 74 degrees Fahrenheit (20 to 24 degrees Celsius).

Excessive heat degrades network performance and causes downtime. As the temperature increases, a heat sinks fan works harder to cool the central processing unit (CPU). Continuous overworking causes the fan to fail, leading to a machine overheating. A machine shuts down when it reaches an unsafe temperature in order to prevent permanent damage. An administrator must then be located, day or night, go to the machine, and reboot it after it has cooled. Consequently, services hosted by a down machine are unavailable until it is restarted, which can take minutes or hours. If the server hosts critical services (e.g., e-commerce, user validation, email) that are not distributed to backup servers, revenues can be lost, users cannot login, and communications are interrupted. If the shut down is not done properly, data can be lost.

Excessive heat and rapid temperature changes also damage equipment. Rapid temperature increases can increase humidity, while rapid drops can cause water in humid air to condense on equipment. Together, heat and moisture accelerate the break down of materials used in microchips, motherboards, and hard drives, which is called premature aging. In worst cases, a machine won’t shut down when the temperature exceeds safe levels, and circuits are damaged. Ultimately, heat-damaged equipment must be replaced, increasing the cost of network maintenance.

Controlling temperature is becoming more important and more difficult because of changes in equipment design and greater use of network services. New equipment runs hotter because it runs faster and does more work. Also, more circuits are placed closer and closer together, trapping heat in a smaller space. Smaller equipment also means that more equipment can be placed in the same space, usually packed tighter together. The increase in density of equipment causes a rise in the amount of heat dissipating in a rack cabinet. Increased network usage also increases heat, so as usage levels change during the day, so does the temperature and the need for cooling. For networks that operate near capacity 24 hours a day, every day of the year, there is little, if any, time for machines to cool down.

Look for our next article which addresses the problem of humidity in the server room.

HVAC is a shortened term for Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning – related technologies dealing with indoor climate control. HVAC technology has been developing since the industrial revolution, and the systems and tools used are constantly evolving, with new innovations being introduced all over the world.

Heating, ventilating, and air conditioning technologies are used to provide warmth and comfort in cold climates, to improve the quality of air indoors, and to keep buildings comfortable when outdoor temperatures become unbearable.

HVAC, specifically air conditioning, is particularly important in arid American cities, such as Phoenix, Arizona, where the temperature hits 100° over 100 days per year, on average, putting Phoenix’s climate on par with Baghdad and other Middle-Eastern cities.

Heating systems often differ in their central components, which can include boilers, furnaces, or even heat pumps, which draw heat from the air or ground and convert it to either heat or cool air.

Ventilating may be done through either forced ventilation, which uses fans & other technology to draw or force air movement and improve air quality, or natural ventilation, which involves utilizing natural convection and allowing warm air to rise and escape while cool air is drawn in naturally.

Air conditioning is often misunderstood as the creation and circulation of cold air. The technology actually works to remove heat from the air, leaving the indoor climate cool and comfortable.

In the past few decades, technological developments have allowed for great improvements in HVAC system energy efficiency. Other technologies, such as Geothermal Heat Pumps and radiant floor heat, are becoming more popular due to their efficiency as well. A local HVAC contractor can help you decide what type of system is best for you.

Portable air conditioners are sized according to BTUs, which stands for British Thermal Units. A BTU is a unit of energy that is commonly used in the power, steam generation, and heating and air conditioning industries. Generally speaking, a portable air conditioner’s BTU rating describes its power and cooling capacity. Naturally, the higher the BTUs, the stronger the portable AC. Portable air conditioners have cooling capacities that usually range from 12,000 BTUs to as high as 77,500 BTUs, and the size needed to cool a room will depend on the area being cooled.  Thus, an incorrectly sized portable AC with insufficient or excess BTUs will result in inefficient cooling.

Before you decide on your area’s BTU requirements, first compile the following information:

• Calculate your room’s square footage by multiplying its length by its width.
• What voltage is available – 115, 208/230 or 460
• Type of ceiling – drop down plenum (you will need a place to exhaust heat)
• Where can we drain condensate? Will you need tanks or a pump?
• What kind of equipment is in the room, such as server racks, telephone switching equipment, power supply backups, any types of heat generating equipment and people.
• Are there any windows in the room?

After these have been verified, it is then time to determine your BTU requirements. Simply look to the chart below:

For example, if your room measures 20 feet by 20 feet, your calculations will look like so:

20′ x 20′ = 400 square feet

400 square feet = at least 12,000 BTUs

As such, if your room measures 400 square feet, you will need a portable air conditioner that offers 12,000 BTUs of cooling. Note that the figures in the chart above are estimates based on average room conditions in a moderate climate.

To comprehensively and effectively address the environmental impacts of computing/IT, we must adopt a holistic approach and make the entire IT lifecycle greener by addressing environmental sustainability along the following four complementary paths:

Green use — reducing the energy consumption of computers and other information systems as well as using them in an environmentally sound manner
Green disposal — refurbishing and reusing old computers and properly recycling unwanted computers and other electronic equipment
Green design — designing energy-efficient and environmentally sound components, computers, servers, cooling equipment, and data centers
Green manufacturing — manufacturing electronic components, computers, and other associated subsystems with minimal impact on the environment

Background information: The U.S Environment Protection Agency launched energy star’, a voluntary labeling program in year 1992, which is designed to promote and recognize energy-efficiency in monitors, climate control equipment, and other technologies. This resulted in the widespread adoption of sleep mode in computers and electronics popular among consumer electronics. The term “green computing” was probably introduced after the Energy Star program began; there are several USENET posts dating back to 1992 which use the term in this manner. Concurrently, the Swedish organization TCO Development launched the TCO certification program to promote low magnetic and electrical emissions from CRT-based COMPUTER DISPLAYS; this program was later expanded to include criteria on energy consumption, ergonomics, and the use of hazardous materials in construction. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has published a survey of over 90 government and industry initiatives on “Green ICTs”, i.e. information and communication technologies, the environment and climate change. The report concludes that initiatives concentrate on greening ICTs rather than tackling global warming and environmental degradation through the use of ICT applications. In general, only 20% of initiatives have measurable targets, with government programmes including them more frequently than business associations.Many governmental agencies have continued to implement standards and regulations that encourage green computing. The energy star program was revised in October 2006 to include stricter efficiency requirements for computer equipment, along with a tiered ranking system for approved products. More than 26 US States that have established state-wide recycling programs for obsolete computers and consumer electronics equipment. Green Computing Impact Organisation (GCIO) is a non-profit organization dedicated to assisting the end-users of computing products in being environmentally responsible motivating community of environmentally concerned IT leaders who pool their time, resources, and buying power to educate, broaden the use, and improve the efficiency of, green computing products and services. Members work to increase the ROI of green computing products through a more thorough understanding of real measurable and sustainable savings incurred by peers; enforcing a greater drive toward efficiency of vendor products by keeping a community accounting of savings generated; and through group negotiation power.

It is becoming widely understood that the way in which we are behaving as a society is  environmentally unsustainable, causing irreparable damage to our planet. Rising energy prices, together with government-imposed levies on carbon production, are increasingly impacting on the cost of doing business, making many current business practices economically unsustainable. It is becoming progressively more important for all businesses to act (and to be seen to act) in an environmentally responsible manner, both to fulfill their legal and moral obligations, but also to enhance the brand and to improve corporate image. Companies are competing in an increasingly ‘green’ market, and must avoid the real and growing financial penalties that are increasingly being levied against carbon production.

IT has a large part to play in all this. With the increasing drive towards centralized mega data centers alongside the huge growth in power hungry blade technologies in some companies, and with a shift to an equally power-hungry distributed architecture in others, the IT function of business is driving an exponential increase in demand for energy, and, along with it, is having to bear the associated cost increases.

How to Contribute in Green Computing

As computers play an ever-larger role in our lives, energy demands, costs, and waste

are escalating dramatically. Consider the following from the Climate Savers Computing

Initiative:

In a typical desktop computer, nearly half the power coming out of the wall is wasted

and never reaches the processor, memory, disks, or other components. The added heat from inefficient computers can increase the demand on air conditioners and cooling systems, making your computing equipment even more expensive to run. Even though most of today’s desktop computers are capable of automatically transitioning to a sleep or hibernate state when inactive, about 90 percent of systems have this function disabled. Some 25 percent of the electricity used to power home electronics—computers, DVD players, stereos, TVs—is consumed while the products are turned off. Turn off your computer at night so it runs only eight hours a day—you’ll reduce your energy use by 810 kWh per year and net a 67 percent annual savings. Purchase flat-screen monitors—they use significantly less energy and are not as hard on your eyes as CRTs.Purchase an Energy Star–compliant computer. Note that laptop models use much less energy than desktop units.  Plug your computer into a surge protector with a master control outlet, which automatically senses when the computer is not in use and cuts power to it and all your peripherals. Plan your computer-related activities so you can do them all at once, keeping the computer off at

other times.  Consider a smaller monitor—a 14-inch display uses 40 percent less energy than a 17-inch one. Enable the standby/sleep mode and power management settings on your computer. Forgo the screen saver—it doesn’t save energy or your screen unless you’re using an old monochrome monitor. Review document drafts and e-mails onscreen instead of printing them out. Power off your monitor when you are not using it instead of using screen savers. Consider using an ink-jet printer—although a bit slower than laser printers, inkjets use 80 to 90 percent less energy. Buy vegetable or non-petroleum-based inks—

they are made from renewable resources, require fewer hazardous solvents, and often

produce brighter, cleaner colors.  Turn off all printers and peripherals unless you are using them. Do not leave the computer running overnight or on weekends. Choose dark backgrounds for your screen display—bright-colored displays consumer more power.  Reduce the light level in your room when you are working on your computer.

Network and share printers where possible. Print on recycled-content paper. Look for non-chlorine bleached papers with 50 to 100 percent post-consumer waste. Use double-sided printing functions. E-mail communications as an alternative to paper memos and fax documents.

Create Green Machines:

Activating the power management features on your computer saves energy and money while helping the environment. Your computer’s SLEEP and HIBERNATE settings are two of the most effective ways for you to make your computer more environmentally friendly. You can activate these functions manually or through your operating system’s pre-set power management settings.

Sleep Mode

Sleep or standby mode conserves energy by cutting off power to your display, hard drive, and peripherals. After a pre-set period of inactivity, your computer switches to a low power state. When you move your mouse or press any computer key, you exit sleep mode and your computer takes you back to its previous operating state. Sleep mode is an especially effective way to conserve battery power in a laptop computer. However, if your computer loses power for any reason while in sleep mode, you may lose unsaved work.

Hibernate Mode

Hibernate mode saves energy and protects your work by copying system data to a reserved area on your hard drive and then completely turning off your computer. It also reduces wear and tear on your components. When you turn power back on, your files and your documents appear on your desktop just as you left them. Be sure to set your system to automatically go into hibernate mode any time your battery power reaches a critically low level.

Server room cooling needs

Before purchasing air conditioners for a server room, you’ll need to calculate how much heat must be displaced. With the excessive amount of heat produced by the server room equipment, you can’t choose a portable air conditioner based on the general square foot recommendations alone. Instead, you’ll need to pay attention to the entire BTUs generated in the server room.

In principle it’s easy to calculate the size of air conditioning unit you’ll need for your server room just add together all the sources of heat and install an air conditioning unit that can remove that much cooling. In practice however, it’s rather more complicated.

Calculating The Heat Load

The amount of heat generated is known as heat gain or heat load. Heat is measured in either British Thermal Units (BTU) or Kilowatts (KW).

1 KW is equivalent to 3412 BTUs. 12000 BTU = 1 Ton of Cooling Capacity

Factors Include:

• The floor area of the room
• The size and position of windows, and whether they have blinds or shades
• The number of room occupants (if any)
• The heat generated by equipment
• The heat generated by lighting

To calculate the heat load you will need the following information.Room Area BTU = Length (m) x Width (m) x 337

• • South Window BTU = South Facing window Length (m) x Width (m) x 870
  • North Window BTU = North Facing windows Length (m) x Width (m) x 165
  • If there are no blinds on the windows multiply the result(s) by 1.5.
  • Windows BTU = South Window(s) BTU + North Window(s) BTU
  • Total Occupant BTU = Number of occupants x 400
  • Equipment BTU = Total wattage for all equipment x 3.5
  • Lighting BTU = Total wattage for all lighting x 4.25

Total Cooling Required

Add all the BTUs together

Room Area BTU + Windows BTU + Total Occupant BTU + Equipment BTU + Lighting BTU = Total Heat Load

Total Heat Load divided by 12000 = Total Cooling Tonnage

For example if the calculated BTU = 16400 BTU then 16400/12000 = 1.36 Total Cooling tonnage required. Since the requirement is 1.36 Tons you would consider using our SCT18, 1.5 Ton unit to cool your server room.

Choosing A Unit:

Portable air conditioners, also called spot coolers, are ideal for server room cooling because they focus a lot of cooling energy exactly where it’s needed.

Considerations:

What type of outlet power is available?

Spot Cooling Systems, Inc. makes this calculation simple.

Our 1 Ton SCT14 and 1.5 Ton SCT18 units operate off standard 115 volt, 60 Hz, 1 phase, power on a 15 Amp circuit.

Our 2.5 Ton SCT30, 3.5 Ton SCT42 and 6.5 Ton SCT83 operate pm 208-230 Volt, 60Hz, 1 phase power on a 20, 30, 60 Amp circuit respectively.

The 5.4 Ton ECHD65 operates on 208-230 Volt, 60 Hz, 3 phase power on a 40amp circuit and the 6.5 Ton SCT83B unit uses 460 Volt, 60 Hz, 3 phase power on a 20 Amp circuit.

Is Your Server Room Firewalled?

All Spot Cooling Systems portable air conditioners discharge the heat removed form the room to an open ceiling cavity. In the case of a firewalled server room that heat has nowhere to escape. The simple solution to this is to install a firewall damper to which duct work can be attached to allow heated air to discharge to an open location.

Designed for portability and convenience, EXTRACOOLER® portable air conditioners set up in minutes and roll easily from the shop floor to offices areas.  The EXTRACOOLER® air-cooled portable air conditioner line consists of six models, offering from 14,000-77.500 BTU/hr.

Cools Quietly. EXTRACOOLER® cools quietly at office-acceptable sound levels without significantly addition to background noise.  Ideal for supplemental of temporary cooling in server rooms, offices, meeting areas, or classrooms, Featuring backward-inclined plenum evaporator and condenser fans, EXTRACOOLER’s® operate at the lowest decibel level for portable air conditioners.

Cools Effectively. EXTRACOOLER® delivers a full performance at a wide range of temperatures and altitudes with a thermostatic-expansion valve – not found in ordinary units.  This valve automatically adjusts to the environment, allowing the units to operate under more extreme temperatures.

Cools Efficiently. Just plug in an EXTRACOOLER®  and cool – no special electrical requirements are needed.  Most EXTRACOOLER models are single phase (460V 3 Phase option on the TZ-60A4).  EXTRACOOLER® costs less to operate because it draws the least amount of amperage on a per-ton basis when compared to ordinary industrial air conditioners