Keeping Your Site Heated Over the Winter Break

As 2020 draws to a close, sites are readying themselves for the winter shutdown. Before you can enjoy your well-earned rest, however, you need to sort out your building’s heating program. If you turn your heating off over the break, the whole fabric of the building will take a long time to warm back up again. This could result in work getting off to a slow and rocky start in the New Year, with weeks of delays to your project.

So, what are the benefits of heating your site over the break?

• It adds extra security – with heating running, many sites will fit out their buildings with temporary doors and board off windows. Not only does this maximise your heating’s potential, but it adds an extra degree of security too as your building is better sealed than usual.
• It can stabilise the building - By having the heating running whilst the building is unoccupied, there is a better chance of stabilising the building. No-one is switching the heaters off, moving the ducting, leaving the doors open or even opening the windows because they’re too hot.
• It can combat damp – Is your building suffering from damp areas? By having your heating running over the two-week break, this provides a long enough timeframe to thoroughly dry your building out and avoid delays when work begins again.
• It prevents condensation – By keeping a constant temperature over the break, the formation of condensation will be prevented as the building will not cool down.
• It boosts morale – Having your site team return to a warm, dry building in the New Year will give a significant morale boost. It will also increase productivity and reduce the risk of accidents caused by decreased mobility from working in a cold and damp environment.

How can you make sure your heating is effective, safe and controlled when you are not on site?

An indirect oil-fired heater is the most effective and safest unit for this job.

The dry heat supplied by the indirect oil-fired heater will raise the building’s temperature, lowering the relative humidity and therefore allowing the air to absorb more water from surrounding surfaces. The constant air movement distributes evenly around the building, unlike electric heaters which can produce isolated heat spots, increasing the risk of cracks in plaster.

The combustion of an indirect oil-fired unit is within a steel chamber contained within a heater unit. Generally, these units are sited externally, placed approximately 10 metres from the building. Therefore, the heated dry air is distributed inside the building via flexible ducting. With indirect oil-fired heaters there is no risk of fire, even if the machine fails, unlike with gas or electric heaters. You will therefore have the peace of mind that your site is both effectively heated and safe over the break.

For greater control over your heating, you can employ the use thermostats. Thermostats, when used as “frost-stats”, will monitor the building and turn the heaters on if the temperature drops below 5 or 10 degrees. So, you can be assured that, even on the coldest days of the break, your heating will still keep your building warm.

How can RVT help you?

RVT offer a range of indirect oil-fired heaters, designed to optimise the heating and drying-out process. These highly effective units are available in different sizes and efficiencies, capable of heating both smaller and larger scale buildings.

All our indirect oil-fired heaters are suitable for use with HVO (Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil) fuel, an environmentally sustainable, high performance fuel which will reduce your greenhouse gas emissions by up to 90%. This fuel is also a safer alternative to diesel, with a lower viscosity, meaning it has excellent cold weather performance. You can find out more about HVO fuel here.

RVT are specialists in Climate Control and heating solutions and our team of experts are on hand to discuss your requirements.

Give us a call on 0808 178 3286 today or click here to submit an online enquiry.

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