Today at HeatSpring Magazine

5 Tips on Designing Vertical or Slinky Geothermal Loop Fields

Posted on February 22, 2012 by Chris Williams
     

We’ve found it useful to focus on both articles that will help companies with their sales and marketing AND design and installation. A few weeks ago, I shared a piece – thanks to Ryan Carda – on geothermal flow path analysis for ground loop design that came from a discussion forum from our advanced geothermal design course.  My plan is to share more technical discussions that are happening within the course. If you are installing or designing geothermal projects, these articles will be useful to you if you never take the training. This is my goal.

Here are a few tips on on vertical and slinky bore design.

Vertical Bore Design

1)      The target (optimum) flow rate versus pipe size is:

  • 2.8 – 3.2 gpm per loop for ¾” loops
  • 4 – 6 gpm per loop for 1” loops
  • 5 – 9 gpm per loop for 1.25” loops

Staying within those flow ranges per loop will keep you well below the maximum recommended flow rate for head loss (4 ft per 100’ of pipe length, Figure 5.4) and above the minimum flow rate required for turbulent flow.  For the vertically-bored design, I recommend using two loops for 6 gpm per loop with 1.25” pipe.

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Solar Water Heaters Explained for Heating and Plumbing Contractors

Posted on February 20, 2012 by Chris Williams
     

We recently held an IGSHPA Training at Fluid Industrial Associates (FIA) Inc and met George Carey. In his “Ask George” section, George Carey writes amazing technical content for plumbing and heating technicians. He agreed to let us share some of his work to our readers. The below article was re-printed with George Carey’s permission. To see more of his articles, go to FIA.

In the past 6 months, we’ve published numerous articles on the solar hot water industry. If you’re a beginner to the industry, these posts will bring you up to speed on industry developments, policy, system sizing and design, installation and sales, EXTREMELY FAST.

George’s article is a nice addition to this list. I enjoy his technical focus and that George writes to existing tradespeople. If you’re a plumber or heating contractor interested in solar thermal, this article is for you.

Here are my highlights:

  • How do you calculate BTUs needed to heat hot water that a household will need based on the number of occupant and average inlet water temperature.
  • Based on BTUs needed, how do you select modules
  • Piping Sizing rules of thumb
  • How do you size a solar pump

Enter George Carey from FIA Inc.

One of the more effective designs for incorporating a solar energy collecting system is for domestic hot water. Relative to the installed costs, including the necessary equipment and labor, providing/supplementing domestic hot water for a home or building offers the best return on investment. This article will cover some of the basic design procedures necessary to size an appropriate system, pipe them according to suggested installation techniques and controlling options. When sizing a solar collecting system for a domestic hot water application, you have to first establish the approximate load or usage for the application and secondly, it is strongly recommended (almost absolutely) to provide a  supplemental or back-up heat source to ensure adequate domestic hot water is available whenever it is needed. The following is a quick example:

Family of 5 has an expected hot water usage of 20 gallons per person per day. (20 gallons is an accepted multiplier for establishing hot water needs) 5 X 20 = 100 gallons a day. How many BTU/h’s are required to heat the water? To determine this, you have to multiply the gallons by weight of a gallon of water (8.33 lbs per gallon) by the Delta T of water. (What temperature rise, or Delta T, do you want to achieve? 80°F is a desirable temperature rise. The water comes in from the street at 40°F and it is to be elevated to 120°F in the tank.)Calculating, 100 gallons per day X 8.33 X 80°F = 66,640 BTU/day.

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The Solar Pioneer Who Loved Hands-On Teaching

Posted on February 16, 2012 by Brian Hayden
     

Richard Gottlieb taught the first HeatSpring solar PV class.  He and his wife Carol drove a truck full of solar panels and equipment from Brattleboro, Vermont to Cambridge, Massachusetts and shared decades of experience with aspiring solar installers for three full days.  Watching Richard provide hands-on training to newbies was like watching a fish in water – it came naturally to him and you could see that he enjoyed it.

I didn’t spend a lot of time with Richard, but I could tell that he was a great man.  Richard passed away this week at the age of 76.  He was a legend in the New England Solar Industry and deeply loved by many.  We would like to pass along our deepest sympathies to Richard’s wife Carol, his family, and the community that he touched.  The world will be a less magical and interesting place without Richard.

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How Do you Handle Your Customers’ Tough Questions About Solar Leases?

Posted on February 15, 2012 by Chris Williams
     

This is the third video in a five part series that HeatSpring created with BrightGrid Renewable Energy Finance to help residential solar contractors learn more about solar financing and leases. The goal is simple, we want to help installers to determine if their business will be helped with a solar lease and if it will be, the basics that they need to understand to offer a lease profitably.

In the third part in the series I spoke with Jeanne Rice, Marketing Director at BrightGrid, to learn the most common objections their installation partners are seeing in the field and the tips they use to get around those objections.

You can watch the two previous articles here:

Here are the two highlights that stuck out most to me. 

  • If a customer wants to purchase cash, do not stop them. Selling a lease is all about qualifying and profiling the right customers. You need to be VERY SPECIFIC about who your lease customers are. By qualifying correctly, you will avoid most objections.
  • Keep the conversion super simple! Do not bring up extremely complicated technical or financial jargon. Lease customers tend to be mainstream customers. This can be hard for many installers because THEY LOVE the technology and want to speak about it. Just remember, talk about what your CUSTOMERS CARE ABOUT, not what you, the installer, cares about.
Posted in Financing, Solar photovoltaics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

[Free Tool] Solar Hot Water Site Visit Checklist for Better Designs, Sales and Profit

Posted on February 13, 2012 by Chris Williams
     

Last week, I published a site visit checklist for geothermal contractors. It’s been downloaded a lot and I can only assume it’s been useful and needed. So, I decided to create the same checklist for solar hot water contractors.  The purpose and layout of each site visit checklist is similar, but the checklist is changed based on technology. Both of these checklists are for RESIDENTIAL INSTALLATIONS ONLY. You can download the Geothermal Site Visit Checklist here.

I outlined the site visit checklist based on my experience and got feedback from Bob Ramlow the instructor for our Solar Thermal Training about what he felt would be most useful in a checklist.

Also, this is the first version of this checklist and we will be updating and improving the checklist as time passes. If you download the checklist now you will be updated every time a new version is published.

Download the Solar Hot Water Site Visit Checklist

Enter your information below and download the solar hot water site visit checklist. Free free to change it as you wish, ad your company logo and remove the introduction. It's mean as a guide and template that your company can use. This check list is for RESIDENTIAL SITES ONLY.

For those of you who didn’t see the geothermal site visit checklist, here is a refresher of why I created the solar thermal site visit checklist.

Why create a checklist to help with Solar Hot Water System Site Visits and Designs?

The site visit is place that can be a SHW companies greatest asset or greatest liability. It will be an asset if it can be done efficiently, if it collects standardized and if the proper information is gathered that can be used for accurately quoting jobs and creating compelling sales proposals that meet each clients specific needs.

Site visits will be a company’s greatest liability if it creates incorrect designs that do not work, if it leads projects that can not be installed profitability, or if it doesn’t a poor job at selling a client.

Continue reading →

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HS TV Ep 9: How to Attract Top Talent or Find a Job in the Renewable Energy Industry

Posted on February 10, 2012 by Chris Williams
     

Here is something I did not know. It has been as difficult for renewable energy companies to find amazing talent, as it has been for professionals to find a job in the renewable energy industry.

Last week, I had an enlightening conversation with Karen Biscoe of Green Search Partner about her experience recruiting in the renewable energy industry in New England. Karen is the first recruiter I’ve ever spoken with and she has an amazing perspective on the industry because she has an inside view of companies that are growing rapidly and looking for talent. She knows what companies are struggling with, why they’re hiring, what skills they are looking for, what mistakes rapidly growing companies tend to make and what they’re good at. The insights she has on a company’s hiring process also puts her in the perfect position to advise professionals looking to get into the industry. She knows what technologies are hot, skills are required and what makes candidates stand out.

If you’re a company that would like to speak with Karen about recruiting, or a professional looking for a new challenge, you can reach her at 781 523 1906 or karen@greensearchpartner.com.

Here are the highlights from our conversation

  •  When you meet someone you really like, act quickly. The job market is picking up and talent doesn’t wait.
  • Just because companies are not posting jobs, doesn’t mean they’re not hiring. Some don’t want to deal with hundreds of resumes.
  • The balance of technology knowledge and job specific skills mix will largely depend on the company in question and what stage they are in. There is not rule.
Posted in HS TV, Solar photovoltaics | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

HS TV Ep 8: 1/2 the Drilling Depth, 1/3 the Footprint, SCW vs. Closed Loop Geothermal Systems

Posted on February 7, 2012 by Chris Williams
     

Standing column well geothermal projects have significant advantages over closed geothermal projects in certain circumstances. Standing column wells typically need half the amount of drilling then traditional closed systems, because they can transfer heat so much faster. Also, they be installed in places with extremely limited space, in cities for example. Lastly, they can be used in rural areas in conjunction with potable water wells.

The problem is that because even closed loop geothermal systems are foreign to many HVAC and drilling contractors, standing column well systems seem like they’re on another planet. We’d like to change this.

We’ve been writing heavily about standing well systems, how they’re designed, their difference between closed system systems. See below for some review articles if you’re brand new.

I also wanted to speak with Dr. Albert Koenig, a standing column well expert, to get his opinion on the technology, if he feels it get be relegated from a niche technology and what he is doing to demystifying the design and installation process so more contractors will feel comfortable designing and installing the technology.

Here are the highlights. 

  • SCW systems typically need 1/2 the drilling length of comparable closed loop systems, because the thermal conductivity is extremely high in SCW systems.
  • SCW typically take 1/3 the foot print of closed systems, if you’re space constrain this will be extremely attractive.
  • SCW systems can typically 12 to 15 tons of heating and cooling capacity for each well, compared with 2 tons be average for closed system systems.
  • Most well drillers know 80% of what they need to drill and installed SCW wells.
  • You can retrofit existing water wells for a SCW project, but you may need to increase the depth of the well.
Posted in Design and Installation, Geothermal Heat Pumps | Leave a comment

[Free Tool] Geothermal Site Visit Checklist for Better Designs, Sales and Profit

Posted on February 6, 2012 by Chris Williams
     

site visit checklist

Why create a Geothermal Site Visit Checklist?

The site visit can be a geothermal company’s greatest asset or greatest liability. It will be an asset if it can be done efficiently, if it collects standardized information that can be used for accurately quoting jobs and creating compelling sales proposals that meet the client’s needs. Site visits will be a company’s greatest liability if they are a waste of time, or worse, lead to bad designs and installations that don’t work.

The goal of the checklist is to be extremely simple and low tech.  It will ensures that enough information is collected so that work is performed efficiently and profitably. Geothermal site visits can be more complex then other types of renewable energy systems so it’s key to have a standard process so the sales team doesn’t forget anything the design team needs, and the design team has what they need to make great projects happen.

The site checklist will focuses on 3 areas

1 – Customer Sentiment. In order to properly qualify a client and create a sales proposal that addresses client needs, you must understand their sentiment. Generic sales proposals will close less frequently then those tailored to the desires and needs of each client.

2 – Site Characteristics. In order to properly size, design and quote a geothermal system, proper site characteristics must be gathered. Small differences between sites can impact installed costs, so having a standard process to collect all key site information is key to designing and quoting properly.

3 – Financial information. A geothermal system is a financial investment. You will need to collect some specific, but standard, financial information to communicate the benefits of investing in geothermal to the client.

Download the Geothermal Site Visit Checklist

Enter your information below and download the geothermal site visit checklist. Free free to change it as you wish, ad your company logo and remove the introduction. It's mean as a guide and template that your company can use.
Posted in Design and Installation, Free Tools, Geothermal Heat Pumps | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

[Video Lesson] How to Select Solar Hot Water Components and System Types

Posted on February 5, 2012 by Brian Hayden
     

In this video, author and ISPQ Certified Master Trainer Bob Ramlow provides a detailed outline of common components found in solar thermal systems, and the four most common types of systems.

Posted in Design and Installation, Inside the Classroom, Solar Thermal | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

[Video Lesson] What Does it Take to Run Your Own Manual J Heating Load Calculations?

Posted on February 1, 2012 by Brian Hayden
     

HVAC contractors that don’t do full heating and cooling load calculations when sizing HVAC equipment are finding it harder to get access to utility rebates and renewable energy incentives.  So what does it take to do it right?  This video gives you a quick look at one piece of the process – gathering inputs for the software program.  This is just a quick preview to get you thinking about what it takes and determine whether you want to add this to your business.

Posted in Design and Installation, Free Tools | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment