Kristin,

When I was on staff at Colonial Williamsburg, throughout the 1990's, we had a campaign of replacing aged HVAC system in several of the historic buildings, and from my experience the installations and operation of those systems went very smoothly.

I'd suggest contacting someone on staff there - perhaps Dr. Thomas Taylor - Architectural collections conservator & collections manager, or Catherine Anderson - conservator of exhibits and environment, as a starting point for any questions you may have.

In designing these systems there was very close collaboration between the architects, engineers, and conservation staffs that was essential for their success. This isn't just something that you want to turn over to a commercial company without some serious consultations with those who possess expertise.

There are grant categories, by the NEH preservation & access program for instance, that will fund the involvement of consultants to plan on HVAC upgrades or replacement systems.

Cheers!
Dave

David Harvey
Conservator
Los Angeles, California

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