A Closer Look At How Condensate Recovery Systems Work

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A Closer Look At How Condensate Recovery Systems Work

Water isn’t an infinite source. It’s one of our most precious natural resources. That’s why conserving water is so important. As a business owner, you have two bottom lines to consider—your financial and environmental bottom lines. Water conservation is beneficial for both. It saves you money on your water bill and helps preserve our planet’s water resources. One way to conserve water in your business is to install a commercial condensate recovery system.

What is a Condensate Recovery System?

A condensate recovery system captures the water that would otherwise be lost as condensation and recycles it back to the building, primarily to the HVAC system. This water is then used to pre-cool the air coming into your system, reducing the energy needed to cool the air. In addition, the water can water plants or be used for other purposes.

There are several benefits to using a condensate recovery system:

• Water conservation—You can save millions of gallons of water per year by using a condensate recovery system.
• Energy savings—Using recycled water to pre-cool the air in your HVAC system can significantly reduce the energy needed to cool the air, with some estimates at over 30%.
• Improved indoor air quality—The recycled water is used to humidify the air, improving indoor air quality.
• Reduced wear and tear on your HVAC system—The recycled water can help reduce the wear and tear on your HVAC system by up to 50%.
• Limit freshwater use for irrigation—The recycled water can be used for irrigation, limiting and even eliminating the need to use fresh water.
• Wash sidewalks, vehicles, and driveways—The recycled water can be used to wash sidewalks and driveways, saving you money on water used for this purpose

Use recovered water for flushing toilets—The recycled water can flush toilets, saving even more water. Flushing is a significant use of water in businesses. Our Wahaso Water Harvesting Solutions team specializes in designing and installing commercial condensate recovery systems. Our experienced engineers will work with you to develop a system that meets your specific needs and requirements.

How a Condensate Recovery System Works

A condensate recovery system includes a condensate pump, filtration, a storage tank, and a control panel. It can be stored on your roof or in another location where it can quickly process and reuse the water. The system works with forced-air HVAC systems that use cooling coils. As the air is cooled, moisture condenses on the coils and drips into a pan. When humidity levels in the air rise and condensation forms, the condensate pump activates. The water goes through a filtration system to remove any impurities and moves into the storage tank. Our system filters the water down to five microns and uses ultraviolet to sanitize the water and kill any bacteria. Wahaso has two standard options, a standard design with a 250-gallon tank and a larger unit with a 500-gallon tank. There are other options available for smaller and larger systems. When the storage tank is filled, the system pumps the water back into the HVAC system for pre-cooling or other purposes. The control panel monitors the humidity levels and controls the system accordingly. Our systems can fully integrate with your existing building management system for easy monitoring and control.

Are There Any Potential Problems With a Condensate System?

The original design uses gravity to return the water to the storage tank. However, sometimes flow rates are too high, or the system is installed on a higher floor, making gravity return difficult. In these cases, we can install small transfer stations on each floor to help gravity return the water more efficiently. Overall, our system is compact. The four components—tank, filters, UV, pump, and controls fit on a single skid or two if necessary for placement. Our system is pre-assembled for simple installation and hook-up. The simple design makes it easy to integrate into existing HVAC systems.

State and Local Regulations

Some states have regulations on how much water they can discharge into the sewer system. If your business is in one of these states, you may need to get a permit from the local municipality before installing a condensate recovery system. We can help you with this process and ensure your system meets all the requirements.

Maintaining Your Wahaso Condensate System

We design our systems for low maintenance. The only regular upkeep required is to check the system’s filters occasionally and the UV bulb to ensure they are working correctly. If you have any questions or concerns about your system, our team is always available to help.

Do you Need a Condensate Recovery System?

You can benefit from a condensate recovery system if your business uses an HVAC system with cooling coils. Reducing water and energy consumption is good for the environment and your company’s bottom line. More companies are realizing the benefits of water reuse and recovery and are installing these systems to save water, energy, and money. Also, recovery systems will become more commonplace as municipalities increase costs and restrict water use. Many businesses are already using these systems, and we expect the trend to continue to grow.

Why Choose Wahaso?

Wahaso is the leading provider of commercial condensate recovery systems. We have over 75 years of combined experience designing and installing these systems. We also offer a wide range of water harvesting solutions for commercial applications.

We have the knowledge and experience to help you find the appropriate solution for your needs. With our system, you can save water, energy, and money while contributing to a sustainable future.

Contact us today to learn more about our commercial condensate recovery systems and how they can benefit your business. We can set you up with a free consultation to assess your needs and recommend the best solution for your company.