Normally, you will be installing a duct system according to preestablished blueprints and drawings. Occasionally you may need to refer to other sources and review trade association standards. The ASHRAE Handbook of Fundamentals has three chapters dedicated to methods and procedures for selecting proper duct sizes. You should become familiar with the contents of these three chapters; particularly, if you are involved in the design phase of an air-conditioning system.

BALANCING DUCT SYSTEMS

A duct system is always installed to fulfill specific requirement features related in some way to the health and welfare of human beings. Equally important is the fact that a properly balanced operating system results in lower operating costs and significant utilities conservation. Consequently, it is important that these systems, regardless of the function, operate properly. When a duct system is initially installed, the required pressures and performance data are available from the construction drawings and the manufacturer's instructions. After installation, pressures and performance requirements should be measured to ensure proper airflow at different locations. Once the proper airflows are established, little change should take place within the system. Maintenance personnel must ensure that the system is operating correctly by conducting certain periodic tests. Tests are used for the initial and subsequent setting of grilles, diffusers, dampers, and registers to obtain the necessary airflow required by specifications, codes, regulations, or trade association standards.

It is important to understand the pressure in a duct carrying a moving stream of air. Certain changes in an existing duct system are often necessary and you should be able to accomplish these changes. In addition, malfunctioning duct systems require immediate attention, and an understanding of the basic elements of the system is required before troubleshooting and corrective action can be undertaken. Furthermore, before a duct system can be properly balanced, certain essential knowledge of airflow is required.

Static pressure is a measure of the outward push of air on the walls of a duct. When air is not moving within a duct because a damper at the outlet is closed, the static pressure can be measured by means of a pressure gauge installed in the wall of the duct. If the damper in the duct is then opened and the air is flowing, static pressure continues to be present. It will be reduced when the damper is opened, but the static pressure can still be read on the gauge.

When air is flowing in a duct, there is another pressure - in addition to the static pressure - that can be measured. This is the pressure exerted by the moving airstream. This pressure acts in a plane perpendicular to the direction of airflow. To illustrate, imagine a horizontal duct without any air flowing in it. When a thin, flat piece of metal is suspended with a movable hinge from the top of the duct, it will hang straight down when air is not moving. When air flows, the hinged piece of metal swings upward toward the top of the duct. The velocity pressure is the force that causes the deflection of the hinged vane (obviously, the greater the air velocity, the greater the pressure acting on the hinged vane and the greater its deflection from the perpendicular).

The velocity pressure cannot be measured as easily as the static pressure. When a hollow tube is inserted in the moving airstream, and a gauge is connected to the end of the tube, the gauge registers a certain pressure. This pressure is larger than the static pressure because the gauge indicates the sum of the static and the velocity pressure. This sum is known as the total pressure. Since

Figure 13-4. - Velometer set.