McConnell Hall
HEATING
McConnell is heated with hot water from the Central Heating Plant. Heating units
called "fan coil units" are located along walls that have an exterior exposure.
The fan coil units are located within the metal enclosures wherever there is a
grill on the top panel. McConnell has "individual room control" for
heating. A wall mounted thermostat is located in each room. When the
thermostat begins to call for heat, an automatic valve in each fan coil unit starts to
open, providing a flow of hot water through the unit. During this stage of the
process, the fan coil unit acts like a radiator. If the room needs additional heat
after the hot water valve is fully open, a fan motor turns on to blow hot air into the
room.
If rooms are not warm enough during the winter, those problems are often caused by the fan speed switch on the unit being set too low or turned off, or by items stored on top of the grill blocking the flow of heat.
If rooms are too hot during the winter, the wall mounted thermostat may be set too high or there may be an equipment failure that should be reported.
Room temperatures are automatically set back at night and on weekends. If you are using a room during those periods and want more heat, you can move the small metal lever on the bottom of the thermostat to the right. Moving the lever to the right will return the room to normal occupied temperatures. Please move the lever back when you leave. If you move the lever, and it immediately flips back to the left, the room was already in the occupied temperature mode.
VENTILATION
There is a building-wide fan-forced ventilation
system. During occupied hours, large fan systems located in the basement provide
ventilation air to the entire building. The outdoor air is warmed using Central
Heating Plant water before being introduced in the building. The ventilation air
enters all rooms through slots on the side of the light fixtures.
DOMESTIC HOT WATER
Domestic hot water for sinks is heated by an
electric hot water heater located in the basement. An electric recirculating pump
continuously circulates domestic hot water throughout the building, reducing the waiting
time when you open a faucet.
OPPORTUNITIES TO CONSERVE ENERGY
McConnell is one of the buildings reported to have
the most lights left on overnight. That is probably due to the large number of night
classes held in the building. If students are not waiting outside for another class,
please turn out lights when leaving the classrooms.
McConnell is also reported as one of the buildings having windows left open during the winter. Make sure thermostats are not set too high, and report problems with overheating rooms.
Keeping the grill area above the fan coil units clear of stored
items will significantly improve the energy efficiency of the heating system.
Do not use electric space heaters. Report problems with your heating system
that require the use of a space heater.
Keep heat-producing equipment (such as refrigerators, copiers, coffee pots) away from the
wall-mounted thermostat.
Keep windows closed and tightly latched during the heating season.
See the water conservation pages on this web site for ways to conserve water, especially
hot water.
Turn off all lights and electrical devices when leaving your area.
Turn off lights in common areas when not in use.
