The Benefits of Zoning Systems in Commercial HVAC

Here’s a recipe for discomfort: Build a commercial property in a continental climate, such as Sioux Falls, SD. Fill it with people and equipment that both give off heat. Finally, give it only one thermostat.

That single thermostat will only read the temperature in whichever room it’s stationed in. It won’t sense when other rooms get too hot or too cold, which will lead to sour attitudes and worse productivity.

A traditional single-thermostat HVAC system also wastes money. In order to keep one room comfortable year-round, you have to pay to heat and cool every other room in the building. That’s perfectly good money you could have spent on office birthday party cake, right out the window.

Is there a better way? You bet. It’s called a commercial HVAC zoning system.

What Is an HVAC Zoning System?

To an HVAC zoning system, each room (and/or group of rooms) in a building is its own separate zone. Every one of those zones has its own individual thermostat, all of which feed back to the control panel – the brain of the operation.

The control panel wouldn’t do any good if it only knew the temperature inside each zone. That’s why it uses that information to open and close motorized dampers inside the ductwork, delivering hot and cold air exclusively to where they are needed as the result.

5 Benefits of Commercial HVAC Zoning Systems

1. Control. Fights over the thermostat are a thing of the past inside a zoned building. Every zone’s temperature can be individually adjusted by its occupants – or set remotely by whomever is accountable for the energy bills.
2. Savings. Thirty percent of the average commercial building’s energy usage goes toward HVAC. (One scientific study found that the rate can be higher than 70 percent in some homes.) Once you’re no longer overheating or overcooling any part of your interior, your own building’s percentage only stands to decrease.
3. Eco-friendliness. Every BTU your furnace and air conditioner spend on an unoccupied room is fuel gone to waste; greenhouse gasses emitted to no gainful purpose. Zoning doesn’t eliminate HVAC wastage, but it does curtail it significantly.
4. Compatibility. Want to keep your current furnace, air conditioner, air handling unit and ductwork when you upgrade to zoning? Not a problem. The zoning system is comprised of sensors, thermostats, motor-driven dampers and control panels. It does not replace an HVAC system; it only upgrades it.
5. Convenience. Installing a zoning control system won’t just simplify commercial property management. It also won’t interrupt your business, because it is a fast and straightforward project for a Sioux Falls commercial HVAC technician.

If you would like to bring your commercial building into the 21st century, offer a comfier workplace to your employees, and invest in an upgrade that will improve your property value, then we welcome you to contact Haugan Heating & Air Conditioning today. We service residential and commercial properties throughout the greater Sioux Falls, SD area!