ENERGY STAR Labeled Building Profile

Tabb Middle School was the first school building in the York County School Division (YCSD) to have a geothermal heating and air-conditioning system installed. The school was originally built in 1967 and received a complete renovation in 2000.  A classroom wing, a new media center, and an auxiliary gym were added to the original structure, increasing the total square footage to 96,284.

The renovation design centered on the educational environment and incorporated many high performance sustainable building features, including:

• Removed stone ballast from the old rubber membrane roof and installed a gabled roof over the old roof. This design reduced the amount of construction debris going to the landfill, saved a significant amount of construction funds, and provided an attic space which serves as a mechanical mezzanine for heating and air-conditioning equipment..
• Added an 8,371 square foot classroom and media center wing, which provides much needed classroom space, additional shelf space, and room for additional instructional technology.
• Replaced an electric water heater with a high efficiency gas water heater .
• Installed low-flow plumbing fixtures throughout the school.
• Replaced the original, inefficient T-12 light fixtures with new high-efficiency T-8 fluorescent lights in all classrooms and offices.
• Installed a new Direct Digital Control (DDC) building automation which provides:
• Individual building automation controls for each classroom, enabling the occupant to adjust the temperature up or down 3?F and override the "off" schedule in 1 hour increments
• Heating and air-conditioning (HVAC) system shift to setback temperatures at night and on weekends and holidays
• Start and stop times for HVAC equipment that recalculate daily based on room temperature and outside air temperature
• Exterior lighting control based on time of day and outside light levels
• Records of temperatures, alarms, and equipment run times to verify proper operation
• Permanent CO₂ and humidity monitoring
• Replaced the original air-to-air heat pumps, which had reached the end of useful life, with a high-efficiency geothermal heating and air-conditioning system. This system included the following features:
• 82 geothermal heat pumps
• A ground coupled closed water circuit to 192 vertical loops buried in the ground (200 ft. depth), which transfers heat to or from the earth
• Dedicated fresh air make-up systems
• Four dual heat wheel style energy recovery units

In 2003, occupancy sensors were installed in classrooms to turn off the lights when rooms are unoccupied. These sensors also signal the building automation system to reset room temperature setpoints when no one is in the rooms.

Communications:

In 2006, Tabb Middle School had the distinguished honor of being the first middle school building in Virginia to earn the ENERGY STAR. Many representatives from other school systems, architects, and professional engineers have toured this facility to observe the implementation of high-performance, sustainable building technology. YCSD also participates in various Earth Day activities and EPA's ENERGY STAR Change a Light campaign.