HVAC failure | Warren Forensics

Tag Archive: HVAC failure

Lack of HVAC System Design and Poor Installation Lead to Extreme Conditions

September 9, 2021 12:27 pm Leave a Comment

Construction defects can appear in many forms. The building does not necessarily have to fall down. There are many types of construction defects, including roof leaks, water intrusion into walls, as well as Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) defects.

One extreme example of this was an office complex I was called to for an investigation of the source of mold observed on the walls. The occupants complained that they could not find a temperature setting on the thermostat where they could make the office comfortable. When I inspected the office, I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. A band of black mold (more…)

The Condensate System – An Important Item in Routine HVAC Maintenance

May 20, 2021 11:09 am Leave a Comment

HVAC systems are almost everywhere in the United States now. As a life-long resident of the humid south that grew up in a home without central air conditioning; I definitely appreciate the ability of a well-designed and maintained HVAC system to remove the oppressive summer humidity.

The very humidity that makes your clothes damp with sweat and hastened the invention of cooled leather seats in automobiles also has another route to create havoc…condensate.

In order for an HVAC or “air-conditioning system” to reduce the humidity in the air of your home or office it must first cool the air down to a point where the air can no longer keep the moisture in suspension as water vapor. The moisture must condense… creating condensate. This is what is happening when your cool beverage of choice “sweats” on the exterior of the container in the humid summer. Now that you have liquid water, as opposed to water vapor, this condensate must be directed out of your conditioned space to prevent water damage due to backed up or leaking condensate. (more…)