UMD is home to over 12,500 people each day. That's a lot of people and space to maintain at a comfortable temperature. With the start of another Duluth winter, it is more important than ever for campus users to be on the lookout for ways to help UMD save energy and reduce our shared carbon footprint.

Scott Miller, a Financial Aid and Registrar Counselor, sent the Sustainability Office a question this fall regarding a thermostat setting which he thought was too high. The thermostat in question was set in an entryway in between an interior and exterior door, and read about 70 degrees. Sustainability office staff contacted the Building Systems Automation Center (BSAC) office to ask about it.

Ed Allan from Facilities Management set out to take a look at this thermostat and explain the issue: although the temperature reading said 70 degrees, the reading on the thermometer had nothing to do with the heater- it only controlled the fan. Ed's explanation was:

"There is a thermostat in this entry between the interior and exterior doors. The thermostat controls the fan motor inside the cabinet unit heater which is located on the same wall as the thermostat. There is not an automatic control valve inside of this cabinet unit heater, so the unit will give off heat even when the fan is not running."

Since the manual valve was closed, the unit was not actually giving off heat, although the thermometer read a very high temperature. While searching for this thermostat, Ed found a similar situation in another area. However, this valve was open and wasting energy. Ed says it's frequently the case that the BSAC staff uncovers ways to save energy while investigating other issues.

Being on a campus so large and structurally diverse, it can sometimes be intimidating to try to learn about the systems which heat and cool our campus. If you spot something you think is an issue, don't hesitate in reporting the issue so it can be checked out.

• If an area is consistently too hot or too cold, report it. The room, or an adjacent room, may have a manually controlled thermostat that is improperly set.
• During the heating season, always make sure windows are properly shut AND latched- if not latched properly, that cold outside air can cool a room very quickly.

Have an issue you'd like to report?

Call Facilities Management at x8262. Other ideas you have about energy conservation? We'd love to hear them! Just go to the Adding Up To Zero homepage and click on the Add Your Ideas link. Be an "Energy Bulldog"- you may help reduce our shared carbon footprint!