Air Handling System Efficiency

Air-conditioning systems are generally designed with little spare capacity. That is, they have ducting and plants designed to handle just enough volume of air required for the location or locations they are supplying.

Air does not flow through air ducts in a linear fashion, but rather flows in an irregular pattern. Design of duct work takes this into account. Even a small contaminant build up, markedly effects the performance of a system. The irregular pattern of the build up increases system friction and changes the flow path through the duct. As the build up thickens, it reduces the volume of the duct work. The build up is uneven and accumulates at the worst possible points, i.e. at or near fire dampeners, turning vanes, major junctions and bends etc. Further dirt and accumulated material in filters, coils and fans have an enormous effect on the amount of air that can be supplied through the system.