low-cost steps that can cut cooling costs while maintaining (and even improving!) comfort. Ask these questions: • Do we need to tune up our air conditioning equipment? An advanced diagnostic tune-up is a low-cost service that can shave up to 7 percent off cooling costs. If equipment is at least three years old and four tons or larger, it’s a good candidate. • Are we matching the cooling schedule to occupancy patterns? Install controls to raise the temperature set point when students and staff leave. Check the set points on existing controls to ensure they are correct. • Do we have drafts? Simply sealing leaks in walls, doors, windows and roofs can reduce cooling costs by up to 30 percent. Plugging leaks will also keep out dust, noise and pests. • Does the air leave the register as a blast or a whisper? Leaky ducts can siphon off conditioned air and draw dirty air into the ventilation system. Facility staff can conduct a visual assessment to locate gaps and seal with ďŹ berglass mesh and mastic, mechanical fasteners or foil tape (but never duct tape). • How old is it? If it’s time to replace the cooling system, be sure to specify high-efďŹ ciency equipment that is sized correctly for the facility. Oversized chillers consume more energy and do not work as effectively. Promote Sleeping at School Look for low-cost savings in unusual places. Save $10 to $30 per monitor and $15 to $45 per desktop computer annually by placing them into a low-power sleep mode when not in active use. Sleeping computers still draw some energy, so be sure that staff turn them off when done, along with other equipment like printers and copiers. Simplify the job by plugging devices into power strips and turning off the power strip. Don’t forget about other energy hogs like ice makers, refrigerators, hot food holding cabinets and vending machines. Install controls on existing equipment. Adding controls to beverage vending machines, for example, can cut the unit’s energy use by 80 percent. Specify more-efďŹ cient models when purchasing new equipment and always look for the Energy Star label. It may be time to retool the maintenance calendar. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, a well-crafted operation and maintenance (O&M) program can save 5 percent to 20 percent on energy bills. That’s a big impact for a small investment. A typical O&M program may include activities such as cooling tune-up, cleaning coils, changing air and water ďŹ lters, verifying operation and adjusting setpoints of sensors and controls, calibrating thermostats and humidistats, cleaning light ďŹ xtures and group re-lamping. Replacing all lamps on the same schedule (group re-lamping) can cut lighting maintenance costs by 25 percent or more.
Source: APS Solutions for Business
Employ Creative Solutions If capital budgets are really tight, you might target your most inefďŹ cient systems ďŹ rst and then use the savings for additional capital investments. Consider performance contracting for comprehensive projects. Don’t forget about utility rebate programs. Then begin asking how much your schools can save. „ About the writer: Jennifer Rivera is marketing manager for the APS Solutions for Business program, which is funded by APS customers and approved by the Arizona Corporation Commission. The program has paid more than $3.6 million in energy efďŹ ciency incentives to Arizona schools since 2006, and projects implemented are expected to save these schools more than $320 million in energy costs. Learn more at www.aps.com/businessrebates.
Additional Resources Energy Design Guidelines for High Performance Schools: Hot and Dry Climates www.nrel.gov/docs/fy02osti/32103.pdf Energy Star for K-12 School Districts www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=k12_schools.bus_ schoolsk12 National Energy Education Development Project www.need.org School Operations and Maintenance: Best Practices for Controlling Energy Costs www.ase.org/uploaded_ďŹ les/greenschools/School%20 Energy%20Guidebook_9-04.pdf
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