In the Heat of Summer: How’s your HVAC?

With July 3-August 15 recognized as National Air Conditioning Appreciation Days, we shine the spotlight on this often overused system.

When it comes to the coolness factor, air conditioners rank high. Not so much for their appearance or their trendiness, but for their “can’t do without it” functionality.  When excessive heat rolls in, air conditioning keeps us from experiencing the unpleasant physical effects of it. As long as the air conditioner works, we may even forget it’s there. Should it sputter or die out, we are immediately aware of the rising temperatures in our environment.

For home air conditioners, we change the air filter regularly, conserve energy when possible, and secure any gaps allowing the warm outside air to seep in. For commercial enterprises, airflow measurement is important in assessing an HVAC system. It helps ensure balance, energy efficiency, and cost effectiveness of the system.

The most effective way to test and verify these components is with airflow measurement instrumentation, such as anemometers or thermoanemometers (if they measure temperature). Many anemometers measure airflow, air volume and temperature, while other parameters may include humidity, dew point, and static/differential pressure. Read more.