Whether in a high-rise office or two-storey home, elevators can consume vast amounts of energy. It may not seem like much compared to energy usage throughout your whole building, particularly in large-scale commercial properties. However, the savings in both money and energy when you switch to a more efficient system speaks for itself.
With ‘energy-saving’ continuing as a topical point of conversation in 2020, it’s important to consider and implement changes that can significantly reduce unnecessary energy consumption. It doesn’t have to be investment-heavy changes either – there are small upgrades you can make that will dramatically reduce your energy usage. Other changes have higher upfront costs but will save you energy and money in the long run. Let’s take a look at some of the solutions.
Farewell fluorescent, hello LED
Replacing the old lighting in your lifts with energy-efficient LEDs can reduce energy usage by up to 80% thanks to their low power usage and low heat output. In this environment, LEDs have a long lifespan and can last for years before they need replacing. LEDs are also available for your pushbuttons.
Embrace automatics
Did you know that outdated lifts consume the most energy when they are idle? This is a key area for improvement, making automated controls a worthy investment that could save you up to 70% in system energy usage. These digital-savvy controls will switch off lights, air-conditioning, fans and other systems automatically when the lift is idle. There are a couple of different concepts you can consider; data logging uses traffic stats to produce more efficient lift control procedures. Standby mode uses software to automatically switch off specific power systems when the lift is not in use, resuming once a user presses a button.
Revolutionize your starter
Mechanical starters are a thing of the past. Installing an innovative soft starter offers phase protection that can save energy. It protects against over-voltage and under-voltage, working in tandem with the load on the motor. This prevents brownouts caused by power drops and increases the component lifespan.
Go gearless
Hydraulic and traction make up the two main types of hoisting. Hydraulic systems devour energy and are expensive to maintain. Traction elevators are much more efficient, using power as they ascend and generating energy as they descend. If you have hydraulic lifts, consider swapping out for a gearless traction hoist, which reduces energy usage and creates energy that can then be harnessed and recycled. Although they’re not cheap, many traction systems use half as much energy as hydraulics, can be up to 70% smaller and have a longer lifespan.
Check your hardware
You can now find energy-efficient hardware in the form of regenerative drives that can recycle energy that the lift uses. As the lift slows down, rather than wasting the energy as heat, this system can transform that energy and feed it back into the building to use elsewhere.
Start from the bottom
If you’re considering installing lifts in your home property or commercial business, it’s a great time to embrace the new energy-efficient technologies. Most lifts that use these technologies have software-automated controls, sensors that switch off non-essential systems when they detect the elevator is idle and a streamlined dispatch system that collates stop requests to reduce wait time.
Why go energy-efficient?
One of the big reasons for promoting energy-efficient lifts in 2020 is because many were installed decades ago and will soon be reaching the end of their lifespan. This presents a great opportunity to examine the systems and make energy-saving changes – not only will this help the environment, but it’s also financially better in the long run and more efficient for the lift users.
If you’re considering installing a residential lift, this is also an excellent opportunity to explore the energy-friendly choices available. For home elevator installation, get in touch with our experts at Ascension Elevators, who will be happy to find energy-efficient elevator solutions tailored to your needs. With our five-star reviews on Google demonstrating our exceptional customer service, we’re the place to go in Calgary for all your elevator needs.
