Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Facilities Infrastructure topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
County consultant: jail HVAC needs targeted repairs before larger geothermal upgrades
Summary
Consultants and county staff briefed supervisors on a completed HVAC balancing study at the jail that identified underperformance, broken control components and humidity issues; they recommended coordinating the balancer and control contractor to prioritize repairs before investing in geothermal capacity expansion.
County Development Director Eric Furness and HVAC consultant Vic Amoroso told the Muscatine County Board of Supervisors on June 16 that a recently completed test-and-balance study of the jail’s HVAC system shows the facility is not meeting original design airflow and has broken or malfunctioning components that must be repaired or replaced.
Amoroso, who oversaw the diagnostic work, said parts of the campus geothermal and building air-handling systems are aging and that the jail — a 24/7 facility with code-mandated ventilation — is the system’s largest driver of demand. He said balancing found the return flow at some benchmarks was operating at 53–68% of the original design figures and that minimum ventilation CFM and heating flows were similarly reduced in places. The balancer reported the system could not develop the designed static pressure and that several terminal devices and control valves are likely inoperative.
The consultant and county staff recommended bringing the balancing contractor together with the controls and mechanical contractors to jointly troubleshoot the causes of low flow, identify broken dampers and valves, and prioritize repairs. Amoroso warned that a multi-month balancing effort can vary with changing loads and that the county should resolve building-side defects before spending on additional geothermal capacity; county staff said a previous contractor’s departure left the county with limited local maintenance support and unknowns.
Staff said the balancing work was paid for by the sheriff’s office and that they were prioritizing a list of repairs and cost estimates. Supervisors were briefed on temperature and humidity problems reported in past summers; the deputy/jail staff emphasized humidity control as the principal driver of summer discomfort even when temperatures were acceptable. The board asked staff to return with recommended next steps, a prioritized repair list and cost estimates; no immediate appropriation was approved at the meeting.
Amoroso suggested the county consider a high-level technical services contract to keep an expert available for troubleshooting and coordination while staff lines up repairs.
