Before recommending an air conditioning system for gyms, different aspects must be taken into account ranging from the facilities, the areas to be air-conditioned and the investment capacity of the end user. by Duván Chaverra Agudelo
Gyms are spaces that generally house a considerable number of people who at the same time, but in different phases, are exercising their body. This, added to the continuous lighting, generates a large amount of thermal load that must be eliminated in order to offer a higher quality service and much healthier in terms of air conditioning. "In a gym the air conditioning process is of high importance since there is generated high thermal load due to the constant physical activity of its occupants and the lighting that the space needs, and therefore the control of several fundamental aspects is required such as temperature, relative humidity of the site, renovation and speed of the distribution air, to be able to develop activities within a comfortable environment," explained Rafael Coronado, project engineer at ACL Refrigeration Industries, based in Barranquilla, Colombia. For his part, Luis Amoroso, consultant in Lamoroso, Brazil, highlights the importance of having an adequate air conditioning system in a space for exercise and sports, even more so if you take into account that training facilities are a natural extension of housing or work environments where clients seek comfort as one of the basic attributes in choosing where to train. "People associate positive experiences relating well-being with consumption, being natural that when looking for a gym, the expectation follows this relationship. It would not make much sense for the consumer to leave a store with comfortable facilities, adequate sound and temperature, after acquiring accessories for the practice of physical activity, and immediately enter a gym with literally 'spartan' facilities for training." And to perform the installation of a correct air conditioning system in a space such as a gym it is necessary to keep in mind the spaces where the systems must be located, as well as the functions of the living room. In this regard, Rafael Coronado says that "the main aspects to take into account when making a good air conditioning design for a gym is to have areas with defined activities, in order to make a good load calculation and from there execute a good design of the outdoor air intake system by effect of air renewal, and a pipeline design that ensures good air distribution throughout the enclosure; for this it is essential that there is a good space that allows us to work on these fundamental aspects". Luis Amoroso highlights some sites that require more attention: "There is no way to stop considering the need to draw up a plan looking for the air conditioning of the gym. Start with the most critical areas which are, generally, the indoor bike room (Spinning) and the cardiovascular sector, where the activities are more intense. Then extend it to the other dependencies, including the changing rooms, which need an effective ventilation system." Most suitable system
To choose the most suitable air conditioning system, there are many factors to take into account: onfrastructure, objectives and investment. According to that, there are different alternatives. In this regard, the Consultant of Lamoroso, Brazil, commented the following: "Fundamentally, the characteristics and definition of the air conditioning system are related to the desired result speaking in terms of comfort (central systems allow a distribution in a more dispersed way, which provides more comfort), availability of investment and operating costs (independent systems have a lower cost of implementation, but they consume more energy and have a shorter service life); everything is directly related to the size of the area to be heated."
Meanwhile, the representative of ACL Refrigeration highlighted a technology suitable to meet all the needs of air conditioning in a gym: "As we have mentioned before, it is of the utmost importance that within a gym factors such as thermal load, humidity control and air renewal are controlled; there is a very interesting technology, it is an indirect evaporative cooling system which is able to control all these aspects, since it introduces fresh and constantly renewed air, comfort temperatures are obtained, and there is no addition of moisture to the environment; in addition, all this is done by consuming only 10% of the energy used by a conventional equipment". Another of the guests to this article is Ariel Casanovas, representative of GSD Technology, who also spoke of a novel alternative for the air conditioning of these spaces and that is called EcoBruma: "The evaporative cooling system is ideal for air conditioning indoor or outdoor environments, since it is pressurized sprayed water. Unlike air conditioning, this system humidifies since the water is spread in microdroplets that then, with the help of fans, is distributed and manages to make an exchange of energy that when evaporation is achieved lowers the temperature. " Ideal temperature
According to Mercado Fitness in its report "What to take into account when air conditioning a gym", the ideal temperature in a place of this class should be between 20 and 22ºC, because if it is heated below that level energy would be spent unnecessarily and if it is done above this temperature it would not be comfortable for users of the fitness center. "The changing rooms and corridors feel comfortable at 22ºC, and during the summer months these areas can be kept, without receiving complaints, at a slightly higher temperature to save on cooling costs. But in the exercise areas it is preferable that the temperature is around 20ºC, "explains a section of the report. Our guests agree with the previous paragraph; Rafael Coronado highlights some ideal temperatures taking into account the area to be air-conditioned: "Being in a gym, the average human body temperature (37°C) increases due to physical activity, now within a place like this there are different areas that require different temperature conditions; for example, changing rooms require temperatures of 22°C to 24°C, aerobics and weight zones need temperatures of 18°C to 20°C, but in general you can maintain a temperature, in most areas, of 20°C to 22°C that would be a comfortable climate." For his part, Luis Amoroso made a deep analysis according to the gym area, with the aim of having a temperature equal to 23°C, which he considers ideal for the practice of exercise. "Although the demand must be analyzed by a specialist, evaluate quickly and approximately what the investments in air conditioning would be considering the following references and seeking to obtain a temperature equal to 23 ºC indicated for the practice of physical activity: - In bodybuilding, for every 15 m² a thermal load of 1 TR is necessary. Thus, a room of 300 m² will need 20 TRs which is equivalent to 240,000 BTUs (English Energy Unit).
- In the indoor bike room (Spinning), for every 10 m² a thermal load of 1 TR is necessary. Thus, a room of 50 m² will need 5 Trs, which is equivalent to 60,000 BTUs.
- In the changing rooms, the ventilation system must be able to promote 15 changes per hour, that is, the ventilation must be able to renew all the air in the changing rooms every 4 minutes." In short, equipment, coaches and common areas are the complement of a space where the environment and temperature play a fundamental role in the good performance during the exercises and in the comfort of the users. There are different alternatives for air conditioning according to the investment capacity of the end user. But what is clear is that you as a supplier of air conditioning systems must also make a deep and personalized analysis of the temperatures and the most important areas to air condition according to the type of establishment, in order to have the faculties that allow you to recommend and offer the best and most appropriate technology. To highlight
Case Study
Mercado Fitness shared with ACR LATINOAMÉRICA a case study of the Equilibrium Gym in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where the installation of a cold-heat equipment of the Carrier brand of 18,000 refrigerators was carried out, in which they took into account the number of people who exercise daily. "The internal temperature should not have a great thermal difference with the outside – 5ºC maximum – so that the client does not suffer sudden changes or get sick," says Maximiliano Estévez, head of the gym. Also, depending on the characteristics of the place, location, incidence of the sun, among other factors, the use of equipment in each area of the gym will be different. For example, in the 140 m2 bodybuilding room, during the winter season, the air conditioning equipment is turned on from 7:00 a.m. "and then with the heat of the people it remains at 22ºC," says the owner. "In the summer, the air conditioning works all day but there is the possibility of giving it a break, since it is a room with little solar incidence to be on the ground floor, and therefore not so much heat is generated." The only unrefrigerated place in the gym is the fitness room, of 170 m2, located on the first floor. There will be installed two teams of 18,000 refrigerators, since it is a space where the sun gives a lot. However, the most urgent thing was to heat that sector to placate the complaints of the partners in winter because of the cold. Estévez installed a turbo-heater with 36,000 calories "and greatly improved retention in the classes." In its two changing rooms of 32 m2 the gym has a turbo-heater of 20,000 calories. "With these devices I heat the dressing room in four minutes, and when the client goes to shower it has 20ºC of temperature," he says. In addition, the changing rooms have air extractors by mechanical ventilation.
