air cooling system for old buildings

[brillito]

My company restores old buildings. This one was originally constructed in 1920. We want to keep as much as we can from the original architecture (5 stories high). We need to design an air conditioning system for it. What would be the best option? we are considering chillers or cooling towers. I don’t have to much space at all. Maybe some in the roof or in a basement. In the roof will need a special structure reinforcement that can be a bit difficult.
I am in Panama, Central America and we only have a few choices of air systems and there is very limited new technology which is not easy to find here. Our local mechanical engineers are not always updated with the new products. For this building, my company is looking for a new solution or technology even if we have to bring it from another country and that’s why I am doing my homework. Panama is a country of tropical climate all year round, so we don’t need heating only cooling.

 

[stanlsimon]

I would check to see how the building was designed. If you are in a strong seismic zone and the building is unreinforced masonry then I would seriously think about tearing it down. This is a question for a registered structural engineer.

If you have some structural drawings from 1920 that show some rebar and steel holding things together then it makes sense to remodel the building.

Find out who your local Carrier or Trane representative is and which models they stock parts for in your vicinity. There is no sense in selecting a type of system which is not avaliable.

Wet cooling towers can become a source of legionaires disease, the water treatment for these is expensive to keep organisms from growing. Do you have room to locate it 50 feet or far as possible from an air intake? Often they are located on the ground because of the weight issue.

Is it possible to use some of the floor space to create air handling equipment rooms, or does all of the equipment have to be outside? Roof top equipment is generally less expensive but subject to the ravages of mother nature.

Are you looking at one big centralized system or multiple units?

I really don't know enough about the usage of the building to make intelligent recomendations. Please provide more details.

 

[marcoh]

Have you considered a VRF system (Daikin, Mitsubishi)? Should be cost effective to install but probably won't have the life of a chilled water system.

 

[gepman]

I think that marcoh's suggestion is a good idea. I hadn't heard of this type of system although basically almost all industrial systems use this concept (since they are usually used for process cooling or other applications where they don't need or want outside air). It seems like it would be able to be retrofitted much easier in an old building without any room for ducts, etc. How do you handle any outside air requirements? Local ventilation?

 

[marcoh]

All the VRF system I have designed comprise multiple ceiling mounted FCU's, and an outside air AHU (filtration only, no cooling/heating) ducted to each FCU. There are a number of manufacturers out there but I have always designed around Daikin as they have the largest range and are the most efficient.

 

[AbbyNormal]

get the mini-splits with the inverters, your ME's know a lot more than you give them credit for

Take the "V" out of HVAC and you are left with a HAC(k) job.

 

[AbbyNormal]

Old buildings in the humid tropics never had mold as they were never maintained with an indoor temperature lower than the ambinet dewpoint.

You may want to consider a dehumidier on every floor, maybe something sized for about a 1/4 air change an hour.

The building is a few stories high could have humid air moving through it fairly regular, don't want to be hovering at 70% RH

Take the "V" out of HVAC and you are left with a HAC(k) job.

 

[AbbyNormal]

The same sales reps that call on me will be calling on your MEs down there, but at least your MEs speak spanish.

Same stuff as North America plus all the non UL listed stuff like Peake from Trinidad, the asian stuff

Take the "V" out of HVAC and you are left with a HAC(k) job.