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Your Building is Wasting Money

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Energy Star, the energy audit experts, say that buildings account for 50% of the energy used in the US. The unfortunate fact is that $0.30 of every dollar spent on expenditure is lost through inefficiencies. About 30% of the energy used in big buildings is lost. Older buildings are especially prone to energy leakages.

How big buildings waste energy

  • Poor energy controls

Most buildings with several sectors consuming different energy cannot tell which sector is consuming how much energy. This is due to the lack of sub-metering. This also means that people working in those buildings cannot see the direct correlation between their activities and energy use. Wasteful habits are common which include leaving the lights on at night, leaving computers and other machines on stand-by, and unnecessary use of hot water taps.

  • Inefficient HVAC working

No matter how efficient a HVAC system is rated, there are things that invalidate this high efficiency. It is common to see people switching on the AC while the windows are open, or while direct sunlight is still coming into the room. Gaps in the buildings structure also leak in cold air making the heater work harder than it should. Clogged filters also require the HVAC to work harder to move the air.

  • Old elevators

Old hydraulic type elevators that are over 20 years old had bigger motors that worked slower. The motors had a power rating of 50 HP unlike modern elevators that have smaller but more powerful motors. The higher horsepower rating of the hydraulic elevators is lost through inefficiencies.

How to save energy and money in buildings

  • Shading systems

Intelligent blinds can be installed to give shade automatically according to the glare of sunlight. This reduces the working load of the HVAC.

  • Intelligent lighting

Good lighting controls can utilize daylight and artificial lighting more efficiently. Lights come and vary in intensity depending on the brightness of daylight. Wall switch dimmers can also be installed in areas with a lot of natural lighting. Dimmers have been shown to reduce power consumption by bulbs as much as 50% while extending their lifetimes.

  • Occupancy sensors

These sensors turn off the power when the area they cover is not occupied. These sensors work well for areas that are infrequently used like storage rooms, conference rooms and the restrooms.

  • Load controls

Plug load controls help eliminate vampire power draws in working areas. They will cut off power to machines on stand-by mode when these areas are not occupied.

Doing an energy audit is the surest way of identifying how a big building is losing energy and the correct remedies for these leakages.

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How Elevators are Wasting Energy for Your Building

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Every high-rise building must install an elevator. This is a requirement by ADA (Americans with Disabilities) Act of 1990. The federal law was enacted to stop discrimination against people with disabilities by private entities.

Elevators account for up to 5% energy use in buildings and this can easily go up to 15% during peak hours. While many ideas on saving energy have come during energy summits, none of them has focused on energy efficient elevators.  In this guide we discuss how elevators waste energy for your building and measures you can take to stop the wastage

Hoisting

Hoisting is the mechanism that is used to pull the elevator up. Hoisting can either be hydraulic or traction. Hydraulic lifts use more energy, are expensive to maintain, and use cable ropes. This is an old technology mostly found in elevators manufactured in the 1990s.

Traction hoisting is a new technology that uses coated belts and counter weights, is affordable to maintain, and will save you money in the long run. Traction also efficiently cuts down the amount of time between floors.  Replace your old hydraulic elevator with the traction lift.

Idle Time

Elevators are left running even when not in use, this wastes a lot of energy. According to ACEEE (American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy) improved controls, which are inexpensive, help save energy by turning off ventilation systems and lights when the elevator is not in use. You can also save energy and money, especially in residential building, by shutting down the elevator during off-peak hours.

Lighting

Though lighting does not hog a lot of energy in elevators, replacing older model bulbs with LED bulbs will be a smart money-saving move. This will cut power use. You can also get LED push buttons.

Destination Dispatch

Elevators waste a lot of energy by having stop at every floor. Destination dispatch involves pressing the floor number while outside the elevator. This system is efficient because it groups and delivers people in an efficient manner.

At any given time there over 1 million elevators in operation and half of those are hydraulic. Most of these elevators are over 20 years and therefore nearing their end of life. Though elevators don’t use a lot of energy, the costs will eventually add up.

You can check the energy efficiency through smart tracking. You can also hire a skilled consultant to check the energy efficiency and to make improvements where needed.

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Saving Your Building Money with LED Lighting

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LED lights have been around since the early 60s, but by then most people hadn’t realized the benefits of using them. Nowadays, most businesses have started using them as substitute to other lighting systems due to their positive impacts such as energy efficiency. This lighting refers to both in and on buildings using LED post tops, LED wall packs and LED bollards.  Buildings require high supply of electricity and using ordinary bulbs incurs huge expenses.

Nonetheless, you can minimize these expenses by switching to LED lighting from Titan Enersave. Not only does it save you money in the long run, but it also brings tons of benefits which cannot be achieved when using regular lighting. Titan Enersave is a Canadian lighting consultancy situated in Burnaby B.C which provides exceptional energy efficient LED products and services at affordable prices. There’s a reason to make the switch, especially now that every household and business has a role to play in reducing their carbon footprint.

Some of benefits of LED lighting include:

  • Energy efficiency

Regular lights such as incandescent bulbs convert 20% of electricity to light and 80% of it is converted to heat. On the other hand, LED lighting converts, 80% of electricity to light and only 20% is converted to heat, thus reducing the amount of energy wasted.

  • They last longer

Titan Enersave LED lights last up to 25 times longer compared to incandescent light bulbs. Consequently, once the LED lights are installed, you are certain that they will last long and you won’t incur high expenses to replace them regularly.

  • They produce less heat

When using traditional light bulbs, a lot of heat is released to the environment and your AC units use more electricity to cool the building which leads to high cooling costs. However, Titan Enersave LED lights produce less heat thus the AC units have less cooling work to do and in the long run, you end up saving money spent on cooling.

  • They have good light distribution

Traditional lightings tend to emit light in different directions and the light ends up in areas where it’s not required. On the other hand, LED lighting has better quality of light distribution by focusing light in one direction. This means that you can get the same level of brightness using a few LED lights compared to traditional lighting.

Titan Enersave partners with electrical contractors and BC’s top tier POWER SMART Alliance lighting distributors to give clients an impressive range of unique energy saving products and services tailored to suit their individual needs and budgets.