Heating Help

Rubber Tube

@ February 6, 2006 7:06 PM in DIY tube job, nice! (hr)

I have only worked with one of the older style Laing heaters. It is connected to polybutylene tube, and is running to this day as root warming in a small greenhouse. It actually outlasted the greenhouse due to an unexpectedly high snow load. Just a thought, but could part of the problem be with the rubber tube? These new heaters have completely redesigned controls from the older one I worked with. The systems I have seen with rubber tube have always had some rubber "sediment" in them. I can see where Laing pumps might have difficulty with that. -Andrew

Link

@ February 3, 2006 2:57 PM in Caleffi.

Caleffi -Andrew

Looks great

@ January 19, 2006 12:48 PM in We're havin' some FUN now! (SE)

That is going to be one clean installation. Very nice. The boiler pumps may need to be larger than 15-58's. We typically use 26-99's on 15-60's. -Andrew

Old Thread

@ December 21, 2005 1:05 PM in Stapler for radiant plates

This thread was more geared toward extruded plates, but I think a pneumatic tool would be good for sheet metal plates also. Old Thread -Andrew

Heat Loss

@ November 23, 2005 10:53 AM in Ergomax Vs. Super Stor Ultra

The tank-within-a-tank water heaters have the inherant disadvantage of having the high temperature boiler fluid on the outside where the heat loss occurs. This results in more standby loss, especially if the tank is poorly insulated. -Andrew

Windhager

@ November 3, 2005 5:41 PM in Biomass energy and a project for ME

We're just waiting for everything to be made ready for the US. -Andrew

A few suggestions

@ October 21, 2005 7:50 PM in new install of vitodens 200

The boiler pump must pump into the boiler return, which is the fitting on the right as you face the boiler. The supply on the Low Loss Header should be the upper fitting. The Low Loss Header is upside-down, which is fine but the air vent is now on the bottom. As suggested, an air vent near the top of the low loss header would be a good idea. I would agree with using a diaphragm expansion tank rather than the compression tank. Any plans for an indirect water heater? You have one of the most efficient gas burning appliances in the world so it makes sense to use it for as many purposes as possible. Also, as suggested previously, the condensation neutralization kit would be a good idea for corrosion reasons. Is the boiler pump a 26-64 or 26-99? You have made an excellent choice in the Vitodens. With a few system modifications it should give you many years of service with very few problems. -Andrew

Actually

@ October 19, 2005 10:58 AM in \"Engineered\" above the sub-floor dry systems...

We are now supplying all the plywood parts for this type of install. We are creating the return bends on our CNC router using plywood that is slightly thicker than 23/32 in order to account for the thickness of the fin. HB, we now have several OEM's on board selling the ThinFin product. In the past it was difficult to get our own distributors to stock larger quantities. -Andrew

But

@ October 13, 2005 9:22 AM in Looking for the best radiant solution

My point was simply that Viessmann does nothing half-way. That's why the price is higher. It's a commitment to quality. I've seen many comments toward menufacturers in the past regarding a lack of an ASME rating. My comment is not untrue. If it was something over which Buderus had no control, it would be a cheap shot. -Andrew

There are many

@ October 12, 2005 10:54 PM in low mass condensing boilers

The Munchkin has a few shortcomings with respect to quality of construction. The Triangle Tube Prestige looks interesting for particular applications, though I have yet to work with one. There is no wall hung condensing boiler better than the Viessmann Vitodens. -Andrew

Heaters

@ October 12, 2005 10:21 PM in Looking for the best radiant solution

Last I heard, Buderus had not yet gotten their wall hung heater classified as a boiler. That's likely part of the price difference, and perhaps indicative of commitment? Viessmann does nothing half way. If you spring for the Vitodens you will never be dissatisfied. In a full radiant installation, I would recommend a Vitodens boiler with extruded plates either above or below the subfloor. Tekmar's indoor temperature feedback does not do much for you with a Vitodens because they do not interface with the Viessmann Comfortrol control. Tekmar's thermostats are very nice. I specify them almost exclusively. Carpet is very effective at cutting a radiant floor's output. Steel panel radiators or radiant walls/ceilings work very well in carpeted areas. Extruded plates can also be used for radiant wall applications. Avoid sheet metal plates; they are little more than shiny tubing holders. Panel radiators work extremely well with the Vitodens and thermostatic radiator valves. To reduce the system cost, I would recommend using more radiators and less radiant floor. It reduces the labor number significantly. When it comes to finding a good contractor, it can be very difficult to determine which are good and which are bad. The detail contained in their estimate is pretty indicative of their attention to detail when it comes to your heating system. What kind of warranty do they give on their workmanship? Do they service what they sell? -Andrew

Diameter

@ October 10, 2005 8:03 PM in small temp probe in temp well

What is the diameter of the probe? MAMAC Systems has some nice wells. -Andrew

Engineering Drawings

@ October 10, 2005 7:15 PM in Paul Rohrs software

We are using Microstation V8 to create scaled mechanical drawings. With drawings like this, the finished product is much easier to predict. There is a lot of information not included in mechanical schematics that is included in a scaled drawing. -Andrew

But

@ October 9, 2005 7:32 PM in Adding antifreeze to system

head loss is non-linear. According to Dowfrost data, the specific heat is 7.5% less for 104F Dowfrost propylene glycol at 50% versus 30% solution, and approximately 14% less than water. -Andrew

Venting

@ October 9, 2005 7:06 PM in Replacement Prestige - DF

The Prestige looks very interesting. Can it be vented with stainless steel? -Andrew

It's even more

@ October 9, 2005 4:20 PM in BTU formula

than that. High temps increase heat loss in the distribution piping, stanby losses on the boiler, and decrease the accuracy with which the system tracks the thermostat setpoint. There is also the approx 10% combustion efficiency that can be gained from running low temperatures. Condensing boilers usually modulate, and the modulation affects savings as well. Adding propylene glycol to a system decreases the specific heat of the fluid. The manufacturer should have data tabulated. When it comes to low temperature heat emitters, more mass = less responsive, so plates should outperform a thin pour, and a thin pour should out perform a slab. Low temperature response = savings. There are control "patches" to help higher mass systems perform better, though they will never achieve what a low mass heat emitter can. Efficiency is a complicated concept when it comes to heating systems. It goes far beyond combustion efficiency. -Andrew

Transfer Pump

@ October 9, 2005 4:03 PM in Adding antifreeze to system

Use a transfer pump to circulate a pre-mixed propylene glycol solution. That way there is no loss. A makeup water connection should not be used on a system containing antifreeze. -Andrew

Viessmann

@ October 9, 2005 1:48 PM in SuperStor Ultra?

Sorry I should have mentioned in the post. It's a Viessmann horizontal tank. -Andrew

Manifolds

@ October 7, 2005 9:00 AM in snow melt manifolds

There aren't many manifolds made specifically for slabs. We've been manufacturing these for a while. They are powder coated 304 stainless. This one had a custom cnc machined lid. -Andrew

Tanks

@ October 6, 2005 9:32 PM in SuperStor Ultra?

Viessmann tanks are incredibly well built; they're also close to twice the price of the Crown. In my opinion, Crown tanks are the next best thing. Coil diameter is important (triangle tube excepted) when choosing a tank. I would recommend a tank that had a large diameter, low head loss coil. How about a 53 gallon horizontal Viessmann tank with a 119 gallon solar-heated version below it for preheat? -Andrew

EC

@ October 6, 2005 7:32 PM in MY old residential boiler..

Take a look at the Viessmann EC boilers. They have a very small footprint. -Andrew

As far as I know

@ October 4, 2005 8:53 PM in Need source for 8' extruded plates

There is only one source. 406-587-3442 -Andrew