Heating Help

I enjoy reading your newsletter so much because it makes me think. Many of us do not think much any more. Probably because we believe that there are so many smarter people in the world that we could not match their ideas. But from my point of view all the "new" developments are just new variations of existing things. Take for instance engines. We still use reciprocating engines in everything, from autos to locomotives to ships. Yet they are just variations of the steam engine, where the piston has to reverse its travel twice each revolution. Do you know the power wasted to stop the piston and send it backwards? Making lighter pistons and rods is an improvement, but the problem still exists. And the bearings are primitive. How much power is lost to friction? At least use roller bearings. Hybrids are the rage, but to what advantage? The weight of the generator, motor and batteries (all of which needs to be dragged around with the vehicle) cancels a great deal of the improvement in fuel consumption. And have you noticed that the highway mileage is the same as the standard primitive setup? Another thing: because the internal combustion engine is most efficient in a small segment of its operating range, we have to have mulitspeed transmissions, variable valve timing, cylinders that don't fire some of the time, more than two valves per cylinder, etc., etc. - more weight, more controls, more cost. And more to fail. Smaller engines turn faster to make their power, which means wear faster, so we develop lubricants to try to mitigate that. More cost. Instead of removing the problem, again we try to overcome it. Did you ever consider why you change the oil so often in a car engine? Because it is the only power generating system that discharges its ashes into the lubricating medium. Turbines replaced steam engines long ago. And after 100 years, auto manufacturers are proud of their "advances" which deliver fuel mileage for the most part the same as a '49 Chevy (at about 25% combustion efficiency). In fact, it has been said that if the evolution of the auto were on a par with the computer industry, you would be able to buy a Rolls Royce today for about $100.

And so heating needs to follow that logic as well. We continue to see newer methods of installing radiant below various types of floors, trying to get the heat through an insulating material (the flooring itself) and at the same time not lose it to the space below. How about flooring that carries the heating water and conducts heat on the surface, while insulating below? How much time would that save an installation? And give a better, more efficient product? One of my biggest complaints concerning radiant flooring is the slow startup and cool down (canceling the benefit of setback). We invented hot water generators and boilers that are smaller, with much better heat transfer, only to then install buffer tanks to keep them from cycling. How long after that did it take to market variable capacity burners as a "breakthrough?" People are still buying water storage heaters with super insulation when they can have "on demand" Rinnai.

Another analogy: Guns (bad subject for some). It took 300 years to overcome the love of a wooden stock on a rifle - to use instead a material that would not warp or crack, or nick and dent, that would absorb recoil, provide a secure grip and be made into an ergonomic shape, cheaply. I love the challenge of hunting with a muzzleloader, but if I were to hunt for a living, I would much prefer a modern rifle with a metallic cartridge, waterproof, reliable, and easy to carry and aim - with a synthetic stock.

During the first gas "shortage" in the '70s, I joked about inventing a treadmill for health conscious people that had a generator built in. You could exercise and make enough hot water for a shower afterward. That idea evolved into a milk cooler that preheated hot water for cleansing cows (modifying existing air cooled units to use a water cooled condenser). Almost all hot water heaters in barns are electric. It was perfect because the water for washing cows' udders was kept at 110 degrees (a cow's body temperature is about 100 degrees - and so was the milk) so the need for the hot water was coincidental with the milking. And the leftover hot water was diverted to a second hot water heater, which brought the temperature up to 160 degrees for washing and sanitizing the piping after each milking. The milk has to be brought down to below 40 degrees in a short time and stored at around 38 degrees to prevent bacteria growth. I installed a few of them before Mueller (the milk tank people) began to incorporate the idea into their equipment. It's still a good idea, as you pointed out in one of your previous articles. (only not new, as I had done that on a smaller scale almost 35 years ago)

At some point in time we all look back and wonder why we make a living the way we do - how did we ever get into the business we are in? I'm among the few who know why I have (and made a living, to boot). As long as I can remember, I have always had to know how things worked. I am told that I took apart my father's watch when I was 4 years old. It never worked again, but I knew why. Remember the Brooklyn Water Works? It was in Freeport alongside the Long Island Railroad (which, by the way, had steam-powered locomotives then). You used to be able to drink the water from Long Island then, and they pumped it to New York City. That's why Conduit Blvd. was called that - the pipes ran under it. It was out of use by then, but as kids, we used to ride our bikes over there and I was amazed at the inside of that plant, with all the piping and huge equipment in there, and I wondered what it was all for. And, as kids will do, I threw some stones and broke the glass on some pressure gauges one day. Well, you know how they say you pay for your sins? I've been fixing things ever since. One of the first things I learned in the Navy was how to repair and calibrate gauges. And I guess that is why, even being retired, I still wonder why and how things work.....and why they don't.

One of my "heroes" (second to Terrell Croft) is Carl Keikaefer, of Mercury Marine fame. He developed an outboard engine by discarding all that was known at the time and starting from scratch. It was thought then that outboard motors had a finite level of horsepower that could be reached because at higher horsepower the motor would cause the boat to tilt and at some point capsize due the torque developed turning the propeller. He viewed this, determining that the shafts, gears and prop were the cause. So his engines were all made with the props turning the other way! He later installed dual motors with props that turned in opposite directions to cancel each other. Today's motors develop 300+ HP and torque thrust is not spoken of. You can Google him to learn more. We need more of that type of thinking. Stop trying to overcome the problems of existing devices. Make new ones that don't have problems. You are in a great position to spread the word. Speak to people that you meet in all your travels, tell them what I said. Listen to the harebrained ideas some of your students may have. Sometimes the greatest solutions come from those who are not encumbered by the baggage of knowing so much.....and the fact that "it can't be done". And don't be so hard on Screwdriver Willie (see his story further down the list of Hot Tech Tips - D.H.) We're a nation of tinkerers. Sent people to the moon by starting a bicycle repair shop.

Hope you enjoyed this. I'll be on your "Isle of Long" sometime in the middle of April, visiting my son. Stay in touch, and most of all........Keep up the good work.

Tom