Workers at Ceres City Hall will be enjoying the benefits of a new heating and air conditioning system (HVAC) since the City Council approved a contractor to install the equipment to replace the aging system.

The city has contracted with Valley Air Conditioning & Heating for $32,461. The bid bested the $50,762 bid from IC Refrigeration of Ceres. 

According to a staff report to the council from City Manager Doug Dunford and Public Works Director Sam Royal, the two air conditioning units on the roof of City Hall building over 20 years old and require replacement. “The past three years, there were many service repairs done on both units varying from heating failure in the winter season and insufficient cooling during hot summer days,” the report noted. “The units are coming to the end of their life cycle expectancy and overdue for full replacement.”

Air conditioning tonnage has nothing to do with weight. Instead, a ton, as used in the HVAC field, is a term that describes how much heat the AC unit can remove from a building in an hour. The measurement for heat is the British thermal unit (BTU). One ton of air conditioning can remove 12,000 BTUs of air per hour. A five- ton unit can move 60,000 BTUs.