In this Issue

• Hot Summer 10% Discount!

• Using Expanded Data Ratings - In order to select the right equipment for the job and create a Manual S report, you need a manufacturer performance data set that tells you what the equipment will do at your location.

• Equipment Data Sources - We've listed a sampling of manufacturer data sources so you can get the data you need for Manual S.

Elite Software offers over 30 programs for all kinds of mechanical, electrical, and plumbing design applications. This monthly email newsletter will announce new software, tradeshow events, and tips on using existing software in new ways to address various code related issues.

The standard nominal capacity and efficiency ratings for every model from every manufacturer of furnaces, standard air conditioners and heat pumps can be found at www.ahridirectory.org

However, using these standard nominal capacities is often not good enough. The capacity of either an air conditioner or a heat pump varies primarily with the outdoor temperature. The standard cooling rating for a unit is given for 95F outdoor temperature. Whenever the outdoor temperature is above 95F the actual capacity of a unit will be lower than its standard nominal rating. Extra humidity also decreases the actual capacity of a unit.

The latest residential code (IRC) requires that a designer calculate the correct heat load of the building and compare that calculated load against the actual net capacity of the equipment being installed.

One of the greatest difficulties in doing this is finding expanded ratings data and software that helps you determine the actual net capacity of a unit for the given operating conditions.

This newsletter lists many hard to find web sites with sources of expanded ratings data. These sets of data can be used with Elite's Rhvac program, both the online and Windows version, to calculate adjusted capacity ratings, and even create an ACCA Manual S report, if necessary.

And if you haven't done so already, be sure to check out Elite's first web based product, Rhvac Online. Modules for ACCA Manual J, D, and S calculations are available for as little as $49 per year. Register for a free trial version today at www.elitesoftapps.com

To celebrate the coming end of summer, take 10% off your entire order by entering the code SUM10 during the month of August into the special instructions field. If you have any questions, please feel free to call 800-648-9523 or 979-690-9420, or send email to info@elitesoft.com

Sincerely,

Bill Smith
President, Elite Software

Using Expanded Data Ratings

Expanded ratings data for HVAC equipment are data that show how the capacity and efficiency of the equipment vary under different operating conditions. The capacity of a unit varies primarily from changes in the outdoor dry bulb temperature, but also from changes in air flow and the entering dry and wet bulb temperature of the indoor air entering the cooling coil. Given that there are four parameters that affect the cooling performance of a unit, there are many variations in the way that manufacturers show these data sets in table form. The below image is one example of an expanded ratings table, and below that are links showing five other table formats that you might encounter while searching for expanded ratings data.

The following links take you to help pages within Rhvac Online (elitesoftapps.com).

Expanded Ratings Data - Example 1
Expanded Ratings Data - Example 2
Expanded Ratings Data - Example 3
Expanded Ratings Data - Example 4
Expanded Ratings Data - Example 5

Some HVAC manufacturers make their expanded ratings data open and available to the public, while others have special web sites that require an account in order to login.  For those sites requiring an account, obtaining an account can be as simple as registering, no credentials required, while others may require permission from a local distributor, or they may require the applicant to have an EPA number or contractor license number.

Note that for many manufacturers there are multiple sites containing product data. Sometimes a manufacturer will offer both a public and private login site for these data sets. Typically, the data will be provided as a pdf, with nominal capacity data listed up front, and the expanded ratings data shown at the very end of the document.

As you know, web sites are constantly changing. By the time you read this, some of the links listed below could be obsolete or not provide the desired data. More importantly, there could be new sites and pages available with the data you want. A good, simple search expression to use is the brand name followed by product data, as in, "Carrier Product Data." You will always get links to sites that will provide documents showing nominal capacity data. Its the expanded data ratings information that is more rare.

Once you obtain expanded ratings data, it is helpful to have software that can analyze these data sets. Most of the time you need information from the table data that does not occur right on the column headings of the tables. You most often need data for situations occurring "between the lines" on the tables, and this requires interpolation. Both Rhvac desktop and Rhvac Online have built-in features that can interpolate expanded ratings data. In addition, Elite Software even has a very low cost $49 online module called Manual S Calculator Online for this purpose as well.  See more on that calculator here.

Besides equipment web sites that display expanded ratings data, there are also web pages that go a step further and actually interpolate the expanded ratings data to deliver an adjusted net capacity of the unit in question. Most often, obtaining an adjusted capacity of a unit is the ultimate goal rather than just viewing the performance data sets themselves.

In alphabetical order, listed below are web links and comments for many of the most popular HVAC manufacturers. Be advised that just in the way expanded data table formats differ greatly between manufacturers, so too does the operation of their web sites. Some manufacturers have more intuitive web sites than others. Tips are given to help you navigate the various sites.

If you would like to contribute more web links for this type of equipment data or you believe that some of these links are in error or should be removed for any reason, please email info@elitesoft.com

Equipment Data Sources

back to top