Happy Earth Day. Think Turquoise!

As we celebrate Earth Day tomorrow, it's good to know that a lot of people are changing their thinking from green to turquoise -- by adding some clear-eyed, blue sky concepts. Check out this New York Times article, For Earth Day, 7 New Rules to Live By, for more understanding. -- Jim Olsztynski 

In this edition:

• Siggy's New Glitch & Fix -- Just Like A Boiler!
• Uponor Launches Website For Pros
• Lochinvar School Approved By NATE

NAHB Appeals For Lead Rule Extension
Citing a need for more trainers and a faster certification process, inaccurate test kits and a lack of preparedness on the part of the EPA, the National Association of Home Builders petitioned EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson to delay the Lead: Repair, Renovation and Painting Program Rule.The rule, slated to become effective April 22, requires all remodelers and other contractors working in homes built before 1978 to be trained and certified in lead-safe work practices and to use those practices in homes where small children or pregnant women live. EPA is also seeking to amend the regulation so that it would apply to all pre-1978 homes.

ASHRAE Conference Awash In Technical Papers
Guidance on how to improve building systems-from moisture issues to ventilation-including high efficiency HVAC&R systems and ventilation systems, is an important focus of the technical program at ASHRAE's 2010 Annual Conference, June 26-30 in Albuquerque, NM. The program features 10 technical paper sessions (with 29 papers presented), 16 conference paper sessions (40 papers presented), 61 seminars, 10 forums and one technical plenary session for a total of 98 sessions and 69 meeting papers.

Uponor Creates Website For Pros
Launched in early April, www.uponorpro.com is a one-stop-shop for radiant, plumbing and fire sprinkler professionals needing technical, marketing, training and general industry knowledge. While on the site, visitors can sign up for the new PROadvantage program and even correspond on PROtalk, an online forum, with Uponor technical experts and other industry professionals.

Lochinvar School Approved For NATE
Lochinvar Corp. announced that its KNIGHT Service School, part of the annual Lochinvar University program, has been approved for North American Technician Excellence, Inc. (NATE) training.

Milwaukee Electric Adds Uponor Pro-PEX Tools
Milwaukee Electric Tool Corp. announces a new partnership with Uponor to add M12™ and M18™ ProPEX® Expansion Tools to their line of products designed for the plumbing and heating trades.

Green Banks Thrive

Capitalizing on the green movement, a growing number of financial institutions have sprouted up in the United States and elsewhere. Promoting earth-friendly policies, these green banks have appeared in numerous U.S. cities and other countries, including France, Mexico, and elsewhere. Read more about these green banks.

Digital 2010 Radiant Flooring Guide Now Available

Are you at a client's home and forgot to bring a copy of the 2010 Radiant Flooring Guide? Or are you at a convention and need some quick information about using cork flooring over a radiant heating system?

Open your Internet browser, key in this address - http://tinyurl.com/rfg-digitalmag-2010 - and browse through the pages at your convenience. The Table of Contents contains links to take you directly to the article you want to read. Or you can browse through page by page as you would with the printed version.

Ads are linked to advertisers' web sites to provide more information on products or services readers are interested in.

The 2010 Radiant Flooring Guide is an indispensable tool for architects, heating contractors, mechanical contractors, floor covering retailers and installers, builders, wholesalers, radiant system specifiers and homeowners. It provides all the information for making proper choices on flooring over radiant heating systems, including an updated directory of radiant floor product manufacturers.

To purchase printed copies of the 2010 Radiant Flooring Guide for $15, contact Stephanie Weingartz at weingartzs@bnpmedia.com, phone 248-244-1275, or visit www.AECstore.com.

Students May See Green Future
Through Rose-Colored Glasses

To find out what America's students think about the energy future of America, the National Foundation for Energy Education (www.nfee.org ) recently conducted the National Student Energy Survey and discovered that most of the 4,611 participating middle and high school students indicated strong support for renewable energy sources. But while the survey shows that many students are optimistic about America's energy future, some of that optimism comes from a lack of awareness of the true facts, according to the survey's organizer.

©2010, J. Siegenthaler - all rights reserved

Just Like A Boiler

Click here for a full-size PDF view

The Glitch

Overview: A customer, who originally agreed to install a zoned radiant floor heating system supplied by a modulating/condensing boiler, changes his mind after the system has been designed. He now wants the system to be supplied by a geothermal heat pump. Since the radiant floor system used can operate on low water temperatures, the installer doesn't see this as a big deal. He decides to simply replace the boiler with the water-to-water heat pump using the same closely spaced tee detail as with a mod/con boiler. The piping he installs is shown below.

Exercise: Find at least five design omissions or other details that need changing.                        

The Fix

One of the big differences between a mod/con boiler and the water-to-water heat pump is that the latter is an "on/off" device. There is no modulation of the heat pump. It's either full output or nothing.

There is also very little water and metal content in the heat exchangers used in a typical water-to-water heat pump. This means there is very little thermal mass to referee between the output of the heat source and the needs of the distribution system. The end result will be short cycling under partial load conditions. The solution is to add a properly sized buffer tank.

Other errors include:

• Lack of purging valves on the return side of the zone circuits.

• Lack of adequate valving to purge the earth loop.

• Locating the circulator on the right side of the heat pump such that it "pumps away" from what is typically a high head loss heat exchanger within the heat pump. This placement will encourage cavitation within the circulator.

• The supply temperature sensor providing input to the temperature controller operating the heat source should always be located downstream of the hydraulic separation point - in this case, the closely spaced tees. This allows control of the heat source based on the true supply temperature to the zone circuits.

• The expansion tank connected to the supply header as shown in the glitch drawing forces the distribution circulator to "suck," rather than push, water through the zone circuits. Again, this sets the stage for cavitation and air removal problems in the distribution system.

• I also recommend an expansion tank on the earth loop circuit to minimize pressure variations over the range of temperatures the earth loop will experience in a typical year. These omissions/details have been corrected in the drawing below.    

Visit www.hydronicpros.com

Radiant Precision Manual, $91.65

by John Siegenthaler

This book is not for the faint at heart. It is designed for the serious student or consummate expert of radiant heating and cooling. It is filled with the formulas, graphics and excellent schematics that John has become known for. Within its pages can be found everything from simple tube layout to intense calculations for flow restrictors in manifold assemblies. System design and wiring schematics for the latest in controls are explained in detail. Zoning, hydraulic separation, flow and pressure balancing, buffer tanks, mixing controls, mini-tube systems, proportional- integral-derivative (PID) controls and multi-load systems are just a few of the topics covered. Follow this link to purchase this item. Call Stephanie at 248-244-1275 to order by phone!

Visit AECStore.com to view all of our products for the Radiant & Hydronics Pro.