From 05/25 – 06/07: The High Temp Hot Water System will be shutdown for annual repairs and maintenance. This outage is performed annually at this time of year. It is a shutdown of our campus main heating system referred to as the High Temp Hot Water (HTHW) system. The heat for this system is generated at the Central Plant and circulated throughout most of the academic buildings on campus. This outage is needed so that annual maintenance and repair can be performed on this system. Doing this work now is critical to ensuring it is working during the winter months when it is most needed.
This heating system is also part of the cooling system. To remove the humidity that spikes this time of year, the air circulating in a building is cooled down to about 55 degrees. This causes moisture to condense out of the air. Then the heating system heats the dryer air back up to comfortable temperatures. Because the heating system is turned off, the air may feel cooler than usual. The air conditioning needs to remain on to remove the humidity. If the AC is turned off, buildings would “sweat” on the inside and cause many other concerns.
This is the best time of year to do this. This outage cannot be performed in the winter because it is our main heating system. This outage cannot be performed later in the summer because the humidity is just too high and would cause more issues. The period right after commencement is the best time to perform this work due to the weather conditions and the low population on campus.
Please be aware that FM may not be able to address work orders for hot/cold situations during this period. If you believe there is an issue with the heating/cooling, please go ahead and submit the work order and FM will check it out, however, some of those conditions may be as close to "normal" as it can be until the outage is over and the heating system is back on. FM suggests that folks dress in layers to adjust to too warm or chilly conditions inside the building.
As always, thank you for your support and cooperation.
IMPORTANT