Building systems/HVAC Documents

BSD-107: Understanding Ventilation in Hot Humid Climates by Joseph Lstiburek — last modified 2008/08/21

Adding outdoor air in hot humid climates causes moisture problems right? Sometimes. It depends on the condition of the house before you start to add outdoor air. Contrary to popular belief, most houses in hot, humid climates are over ventilated due to duct leakage and induced air change from internal air pressure effects due to unbalanced air flow and door closure.

BSD-109: Pressures in Buildings by Joseph Lstiburek — last modified 2008/08/20

Air flow in buildings is one of the major factors that governs the interaction of the building structure with the mechanical system, climate and occupants. If the air flow at any point within a building or building assembly can be determined or predicted, the temperature and moisture (hygrothermal or pyschometric) conditions can also be determined or predicted. If the hygrothermal conditions of the building or building assembly are known, the performance of materials can also be determined or predicted

BSD-110: HVAC in Multifamily Buildings by Joseph Lstiburek — last modified 2008/08/20

Are multifamily buildings one building or a bunch of individual buildings sharing the same structure? Should services and systems be shared or individual? The passions regarding these questions are as strong as those separating Yankee fans and Red Sox fans.

BSD-119: Summer Condensation Problems in Ice Arenas by John Straube — last modified 2008/08/20

Ice rinks and arenas are a common building type in many communities. The trend over the last 25 years has been to operate these arenas for greater periods of the year, often throughout the summer. Also, an increasing number of such buildings are being built in areas with warm, humid summer weather. The result has been an increase in the number of reported moisture problems, most of which revolve around summer condensation. This digest will describe the causes and discuss potential retrofit solutions for summer condensation in ice arenas.

BSP-041: READ THIS: Before You Turn Over a Unit by Building Science Corporation — last modified 2008/09/09

How a unit is turned over and maintained has significant effects on the control of asthma triggers and other indoor and outdoor contaminants.

BSP-042: READ THIS: Before You Ventilate by Building Science Corporation — last modified 2008/09/09

Download the complete document to learn about practical recommendations for meeting your ventilation requirements.

BSP-050: Sizing heating, cooling and ventilation ducts, trunks, and runouts for energy efficient housing by Building Science Corporation — last modified 2008/10/06

A design process is laid out for sizing cooling and heating system capacity; for specifying the airflow and duct sizes to each conditioned space; and for specifying the free area needed to transfer air supplied to closed rooms back to the central return.

BSP-051: Refrigeration System Installation and Startup Procedures, and Air Conditioning Equipment Efficiency by Building Science Corporation — last modified 2008/09/09

Cooling system performance evaluation using a series of measurements including: air flow, pressures, temperatures, humidity levels, and power draw.