So much exercise. So many sweaty bodies. So much heat! While the average gym user may not think much of the implications of mass exercise, we were intrigued by the possible implications of having to compensate for the heat produced by exercisers in one indoor space. We wondered if these types of rooms needed different thermal controls than other rooms. We asked ourselves, was the HVAC system regulating humidity? Were the people in the gym comfortable? How could a room stay comfortable when the people inside it were constantly physically active? A couple of us are regular gym users, and were familiar with the room; the other two were about to become so. When we first entered the room together, we felt a strong rush of cool air escape the glass-enclosed space. As we walked around the room, it felt fairly cool; there was a constant flow of air throughout the space, making it cool on our skin. We agreed that the room might even feel too cold if one was NOT working at a high level of activity. But this was all conjecture. We would have to find out more to really know whether or not the room was thermally comfortable to its users.
Room Observation
The West strength and conditioning room is located in the Student Recreation Center. It receives a large amount of north light as the northern wall consist primarily of windows. There are windows on the east, west, and south walls that face the interior of the building. It is a double-height space with electrical lighting. The room has approximately 30 individual workout machines that are used throughout the day. These machines include typical cardio equipment such as treadmills, stairmasters, eliptical machines, and stationary bikes.
Designer's Intent
We supposed that the room was supported by a substantial HVAC system: the room is a large, double height space, with a relatively high and constant level of physical activity and high occupancy levels. Given that this room use is unique within the Recreation Building, we guessed that it would require its own Thermal Zone within the overall building. We wondered if the room might have been designed to control humidity, perhaps through an evaporative cooling process. In our first visit to the room we found a temperature sensor located on the Southeast corner of the room. We located ten air vents on the ceiling, but weren’t sure where to find the returns.
