Saltwater and HVAC....

[JennM]

How about something industry related that isn't political or controversial?? :lol:

Wondering if anybody has any suggestions for my HVAC problem...

My shop is 2 1/2 years old, it was a new construction when I moved in. In June, my AC unit went down - capacitor and fan blower went kaput. Had it fixed, new blower - the old one looked 20 years old because of the saltwater evaporation. Last week it went again. HVAC company will replace it "this once" under warranty but I just saw the blower the guy took out and it too, looks 20 years old, all corroded from the saltwater. They won't replace it again under warranty.

I'm looking for help/suggestions on how to minimize the wear and tear on my HVAC system - the tech is going to do some research too, but I would think that this is a common problem among all facilities that have large quantities of saltwater and any sort of heating and cooling system.

If anybody has any ideas on how I can deal with this problem, I'd really appreciate it.

We do run a dehumidifier during the cooler months to help with condensation on the windows and that helps somewhat, but it's a small band-aid on a bigger problem...

Thanks,

Jenn

 

[JennM]

35 views and nothing?

C'mon folks - somebody has to have run into this problem?

You can even fight over what the best fix is.... :lol:

Jenn

 

[Zeppelin]

Jenn

Usually when saltwater evaporates, its the water, not the salt. Thats why you use plain R/O water for topoff. The salt, for the most part stays put in the tank. There is a little salt creep, but not that much salt in the evaporation. You dont have a tank on one floor with the sump in the basement or something where you could have a leak in the plumbing, and saltwater is running over to the HVAC unit and dripping on it do you? Just a thought.

I only have 6 tanks going, so I know its not the water volume of a full blown shop.

Larry 8)

 

[JennM]

Hi Zeppelin, thanks for the reply.

I have about 2500 gallons of tanks in that part of the store (and 1000+ in the "new" part of the store).

The HVAC unit is in the ceiling - so no, there's nothing running into the unit. The shop is humid - but so is the climate here in the summer. During the cooler months we use a dehumidifier to keep the windows free of condensation but my evap rate is high.

I do realize that most of the salt stays in the water - but there is no doubt that some of it is finding its way into the fan - it was all crusty and looked 20 years old, and yet I saw the same fan new in June.

Plenty of hobbyist have the same issue with their HVAC units "aging" prematurely in the presence of a lot of water... just wondering how folks deal with it?

Jenn

 

[Anonymous]

Having spent 5 1/2 years in the military as a low-grade enlisted working on aircraft that were nearly twice my age and still flying, I have the perfect answer for you....

A disciplined corrosion control procedure.

Meaning, once or twice a month get up there and clean that sucker! - And unless you hire in maintenance on your ductwork you'll probably wind up with problems there before long too so I'd recommend budgeting that service in once or twice a year - if not quarterly. And also schedule regular air filter changes while you're at it.

I'm just a dumb, green hobbyist with only a couple nano tanks and no worries that way though, so wtf do I know? (Take it for what its worth I guess...)

 

[Anonymous]

We run into the same problem Jenn, although in the store now it's not so bad since the ceilings are higher, but in one of our older shops they had to install a ventillation fan on the back of the store to suck the air out of the equipment room before it got to the A/C. It worked kind of. We still have some pretty bad condensation issues in the winter, but I too afraid to look into the costs of a dehumidifier for a 10,000 sq foot store.

One of the things that we did try was putting heavy vinyl curtains over the tops of all the systems. I hoping this will keep more of the moisture inside and out of the air circulation. But we will see.


I'm asssuming that this is more of a problem for stores because most of our tanks are open, which increases the evaporation. So I'm imagining that anything ytu can do to enclose the moisture will help, wether it be by putting tops on all of your tanks and sumps or whatever. That was where the idea for the curtains came from.

 

[dcamp]

I had to install a large air exchanger in my store. It sucks humid air out of the store and exchanges it with drier air form outside. It is not a complete cure but it did extend the life of the fan motors on both units. It also eliminated condensation on windows, fixtures and the floor. It also must be serviced twice a year, but you can service it yourself.

 

[Anonymous]

What did it run you?

 

[dcamp]

It was about $3,000 installed and well worth it. The best part was no condensation on the ductwork and sprinkler system dripping water on customers or into open systems. At times it was like a rain forest in here but not anymore.

 

[Anonymous]

How big is your store?

 

[dcamp]

My store is 2500 sq. ft. with about 4,000 gallons of saltwater in 15 different systems. The unit I got was a little over sized in case I add more systems.

www.coraldoc.com

 

[Anonymous]

Does it attatch to your HVAC somehow?

 

[dcamp]

No. it is a seperate system on the other side of the store. It has 2 inside air intakes that hook to the unit, and 2 lines that run oustide the building for exhaust and fresh air intake. Has it's own fan unit and humidity control. It is called a Energy Recovery Ventilator by Standex Air Distibution Products. Not sure if they have a web site.

 

[Jayson]

My shop is 3000 square feet 7000 gallons of water. I use a 3 ton dehumidifier. This is a roof top unit that was mounted inside the building. we mounted it inside the bilding to take advantage of the heat that it produces.I have some fancy duct work that has louvers so that I can direct heat outside or into my airhandler to heat the building. last winter I never had to turn my heat on! When the temp out side hit minus 50 I was still at 68 degrees in the store! I also have a HRV system to bring in fresh air. This sure helps when you get a 1000 lbs rock shipment in. For summer months I have 5.5 tons (1- 3 ton and 1- 2.5 ton)of AC. I do not use the dehu in smmer just the HRV and the AC. hope this helps

 

[Anonymous]

My problem is the size of the store. It's 10,000 sq feet with 15,000 gallons of water. The main issue is it's a lease and I'm responsible for HVAC issues (excpet the compressors). I may have to do something though. Last winter it was prctically raining indoors near the front windows.

 

[dcamp]

Rover,
Can you section off the wet area of your store and just ventilate that area? In a store your size either way it will be a sizeable investment but, in the long run it will save you money on repairs to ductwork,blower motors, store fixtures ceiling tiles, metal roofing, and other things. Not to mention a customer or employee slipping on a wet floor and getting hurt.

 

[Anonymous]

Not really. The advantage is, most of our water is fresh, so the salt in the A/C isn't as bad a problem as the humidity. But the entire front of the store is big plate glass windows (pretty much ceiling to floor), which provides a pretty big area for condensation when it get cold. We have very high ceilings too, I'm expecting to see clouds rolling from the back of the store to the front one of these days. :lol: