Florida resort invests wisely in the Pinnacle® of Dehumidification, Ventilation & Energy Recovery
There are two schools of thought when it comes to selecting mechanical equipment for coastal properties:
(1) Minimize your investment; it’s going to have to be replaced in a few years anyway, and (2) Invest in the best; it will save you money in the long run. Luckily, when it came to selecting equipment for the luxurious Ocean Towers at Hammock Beach Resort in Palm Coast Florida, owner and engineer were on the same page -they wanted the best.
We wanted the best of the best
The resort Vice President Daniel J. Baker, P.E., GinnProperty Management, LLC, and the engineers at MECA Inc wanted equipment that would provide guests with uncompromised comfort and superb indoor air quality. They also wanted a high efficiency system that could withstand the coastal environment while meeting Florida's strict guidelines requiring positive pressurization and outside air.
"We wanted the best of the best" said Daniel Baker, former civil and environmental engineer and now acting Vice President of the Hammock Beach Resort. "The SEMCO selection was part of that decision."
Five Pinnacle Energy Recovery Units (ERUs), each with packaged DX units, were chosen to provide 100% outdoor air ventilation to the corridors and common areas of the two unit towers. The role of these ERUswas to provide dehumidified outdoor air to these spaces at a neutral temperature of approximately 66-67°F (dry bulb).
This centralized system enabled MECA engineers to "decouple" the building's latent load from the sensible load, which was handled by individual water source heat pumps in each unit. As a result, the heat pumps operate at a lower capacity, which is more efficient, and will ultimately last longer.
Early on, MECA engineers committed to continuous rather than intermittent bathroom exhaust for the new towers. Since Florida code requires buildings to be positively pressurized, intermittent exhaust (though considered by some to save energy) inevitably leads to control issues as the amount of outdoor air continuously varies and conventional systems typically are designed with constant flow as the building controls are not as complex for most multitenant building applications.
Furthermore, designed correctly, continuous exhaust can actually reduce the overall cfm being forced through a system, which reduces fan energy as well as the energy required to condition supply air. Best of all, with the SEMCO units in place, Ocean Towers recovers most of the energy from this continuous exhaust.
The end result is a system that provides 100% outside air at a comfortable humidity level without the typical energy penalty. And while owners and guests enjoy the quiet comfort of their individual heat pumps, this centralized ventilation system is likely increasing the lifespan of associated equipment, including the heat pumps themselves which operate less due to the semi-conditioned air being supplied by the SEMCO units.