Haven’t heard of the stack effect? It’s time to bone up because it’s most certainly impacting your office building and negatively affecting your energy efficiency. Electro Industries is here with what you need to know.

The Stack Effect

The stack effect refers to the way air flows in and out of your building. When it comes to airflow, always remember that hot air rises and cold air sinks. During the summer months when your cooling system is running, the air inside your building is much cooler than the air outside. As cool air escapes, warm air is sucked in. This is reversed in the winter months.

The Stack Effect and Energy Efficiency

The only way to completely avoid the negative impacts of the stack effect is to make your building airtight — this in and of itself is an impossible task. Buildings are never 100-percent airtight. This leaves you with major energy inefficiencies (which are only increased during the winter months.)

Imagine this scenario: The summer heat enters your building on the bottom floor as people come and go. Employees on that level become hot and crank the A/C to cool off. This causes employees in other areas of the building to be frozen out. Next thing you know they’re opening the windows to let the warm air in. The flow of cold air leaving the building has now increased and so has the flow of hot air entering it.

How Can I Combat the Stack Effect?

Offices can waste up to 20-percent of their energy. The best way to combat this wastefulness is to invest in a power monitoring system. Our power meters and submeters provide real-time data about how much energy your office building is using and will help you cut energy consumption where you need to.

When property owners all over the world need to cut down on their energy costs, they depend on Electro Industries. With over 40 years in the energy management industry and a full line of products to accommodate the needs of any business, it’s easy to see why we’re a worldwide leader in digital power monitoring. Contact us today at 866-928-7908 to speak with one of our associates.