Field notes on building automation and HVAC controls for Tampa Bay owners and facility managers — control devices, equipment and plant sequences, trending and fault detection, networks, retro-commissioning, and the cost of an open system you actually own.
Temperature, humidity, pressure, CO2, and flow — what they measure, accuracy, placement, and why calibration matters.
Modulating vs two-position, valve and damper types, actuator sizing, and why they make or break control.
How field, unitary, and supervisory controllers work together — the hardware that runs your sequences.
Analog and binary inputs and outputs, and why the points list drives cost, capability, and the bid.
How VFDs save energy by varying fan and pump speed, and how they integrate with a BAS.
Pressure-independent control, reheat, minimum airflow, and how Guideline 36 standardizes it.
Supply air temperature control, static pressure reset, economizer, mixed air, and safeties.
Chiller staging, chilled water reset, pumping, condenser water control, and plant optimization.
Tower fan staging, condenser water reset, minimum flow, and waterside economizing in Florida.
Dewpoint control, reheat, energy recovery, and demand-based ventilation sequencing.
Hot water reset, heat-source staging, reheat coil control, and why reheat is not waste done right.
Why historical data is the key to finding waste and faults, and how owners should use trends.
How automated FDD finds hidden energy waste and equipment problems before they cost you.
Prioritizing alarms, avoiding alarm floods, and turning alerts into action instead of noise.
Running equipment only when needed and pre-conditioning a building just in time for occupancy.
Supply air, static pressure, chilled and hot water reset, and demand-based trim-and-respond.
Field controllers, supervisors, gateways, and the IP backbone — and why open architecture protects you.
How a tune-up recovers lost building performance and energy in an existing building.
The basic risks of internet-connected controls and the steps owners should expect.
What drives the price, and how to think about BAS payback for a Tampa Bay building.
What belongs in a controls scope, and how to keep it vendor-neutral.
What a BAS controls, its components, and what it does for an owner.
Interoperability, vendor lock-in, and what to specify for a BAS.
Why a DDC retrofit is often the highest-return upgrade for an older building.
Standardized high-performance control sequences, and why to specify them.
Open protocols, documentation, and keeping ownership of your BAS.
How each works, what code requires, and where each saves in a humid climate.