How are old/historic buildings retrofitted with modern-day amenities such as plumbing, electricity, and air conditioning?
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Army vet here – at Fort Bliss the old barracks had “[swamp cooling](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evaporative_cooler)” in the summer and an oil fired heater in the winter (burning oil heated water through pipes in the ceiling).
The contractors yanked the evaporative cooling and pulled the boilers. HVAC units were installed in all the barracks rooms and over the unit offices. The old water pipes were left in place (and sealed off) the old duct work for the coolers were removed or sealed since they were there for a cooling system that needed outside air. The unit offices at the north end of the barracks had some ductwork because the HVAC for them had to cool/heat multiple rooms and the basement.
Now they could do this because they could cut into the side of the building to give the soldier rooms their own HVAC. One building had the heater and cooler on the room – the Army just had the contractors dismantle the old system and replace it with a modern HVAC.
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