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kath_inseastpa

GT for a church -practical?

kath_inseastpa
14 years ago

Our meetinghouse (aka church) is considering this option. Currently have gas, forced air, no AC, and (3) zones in a 55 year old building. In the winter, thermostats are turned down to 58 and are programmed to heat to 68 with the "awake" cycle beginning at 0700 on Sunday (people arrive at 0945) and then shutting off at 1300 on Sunday (people leave by 1230). Outside groups using the building rely on manual manipulation of the thermostat to get an area comfortable. Thus, they arrive hit 68 degrees which kicks on the system to meet demand and then hit "run program" i.e., return the system to 58 degrees when they leave two hours later.

Typical weekly use is:

- (4) hours on Sunday and

- throughout the week: (6) two hour time slots that occur day or evening in different parts of the building: multi-purpose room/kitchen, library, meeting room, or class rooms. This use pattern is an average. Building could be unused for three consecutive days one week and then used six days the following week. Duration is rarely more than three hours (except for Sunday).

Take out of the equation all other factors (energy effiency of building) except hours of use versus non-use of the building. Is this an application (infrequent, unscheduled, and short duration heat demands) in which GT is not the best choice if the priority is economic recovery on investment?

Has anyone installed GT or performed the calculations in this type of situation, where the heat demand fluctuates from day to day and week to week? What did you find?

Appreciate any feedback. Thanks.

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