Heating Question

[blairs]

I have a question that I am hoping someone can answer or explain to me. I live in a high rise building and have heating/ac units in each room. They are McQuay floor units. My apt does not seem to get warm enough and I am constantly complaining to management. They tell me in order for the units to work, I need to keep them on all day long but this was not the case last year..I was able to turn the heater on for a couple of hours and the room would get very hot and I didnt need to leave it on all day. Does this make sense. How should these units really work. Should they be left on all day or is the hot water temperature the building is supplying to the units not high enough.

Thanks in advance for your responses.

[BaldLoonie]

If they worked fine last year and not this year, my guess is something has gone wrong. If they cut back the water temp, it would take longer to heat back up. If they are paying for heat, leave it up.

[Noel Murdough]

The landlord likely has an outdoor reset system installed, to keep costs down (it is more fuel efficient to run at the lowest water temperature that will do the job).

He's right, if the water temperature is reset, the air temperature in the room can't be deeply reset.

The added bonus, the fresh air folks can't blast the heat and throw up the sash. They get cold. That fuel doesn't get wasted.

See them here....

http://www.tekmarcontrols.com/

http://www.heat-timer.com/?page=mpc

http://www.heat-timer.com/?page=hwe

Noel

[maxster]

if you go around the rooms and grab the pipes(with the stats set up to the highest setting),you should not be able to put your hand on either copper line.make sure the filters are clean and the squirrel cages are clean...Mcquays have an "toggle" auto/manual switch for the fan...in AUTO the fan cycles with the stat call for heat in MANUAL the fan runs all the time heat or not!when it gets real cold out with that wind blowing leave that toggle in the AUTO.when the heat satisfies the fan in the MANUAL will pick up the cold wall and cool down the heated air from the last cycle...as a draft.if the whole APT is the same on heating then the building isn't supplying 160F to 180F as typical on those hi-rise applications.ask your neighbors how their spaces are to prove out the building isn't supplying true temps.with the sun swinging on those apts you don't need to leave them on all day...you had your routine with them and the time for the heat to come up?somethings going on.just one question are the units top flash up to the grills if they are in cabinets and do you have the spaces cleared infront of them for return air circulation.