Site Assessment for Solar Hot Water Heating Systems Without a proper site assessment, you may be putting your solar thermal system at risk for poor performance… This piece originally appeared in Home Power Magazine | Vaughan Woodruff, 2/2014 It is a fairly common occurrence for a solar professional to hear… Continue reading “Site Assessment for Solar Hot Water Heating Systems”
3 Ground Source Heat Pump (GSHP) System Design Questions Expert Instructor Ryan Carda discusses vertical boring systems, horizontal ground loops and Energy Recovery Ventilator ducting on the IGSHPA Certified GeoExchange Designer (CGD Plus) Training discussion board… Student 1: Would you say that the addition costs associated with vertical boring are greater than the cost… Continue reading “3 Ground Source Heat Pump (GSHP) System Design Questions”
HVAC Engineering: Chilled Floors + Humidity On the Integrated HVAC Engineering discussion board, expert Robert Bean answers questions about chilled floors and humidity considerations and air mixing… Student 1: Chilled floors seems like a great idea, and if you’re going to do a radiant system,… Continue reading “HVAC Engineering: Chilled Floors + Humidity”
1 Simple Trick to Get the Most Of Your Condensing Boiler Want to get the most from your condensing boiler? Lower the temperature. by Roy Collver One of the most effective energy saving technologies we have available to us right now, is the condensing boiler. Coupled with a well-designed low temperature… Continue reading “1 Simple Trick to Get the Most Of Your Condensing Boiler”
Six Drainback Questions for Radiant Heating Pros to Consider Vaughan Woodruff answers student questions regarding drainback systems on the Solar Approaches to Radiant Heating discussion board… Student 1: I have several questions on drainback systems for you… Question #1 When the solar storage tank has satisfied and the system goes… Continue reading “Six Drainback Questions for Radiant Heating Pros to Consider”
The Emerging Importance of Carbon Dioxide for Healthy IAQ Twenty years ago a colleague gave me a portable carbon dioxide (CO2) monitor to use during my training sessions. These sessions were often in small, inadequately ventilated rooms loaded with too many breathing trainees. Tony suggested that I try to… Continue reading “The Emerging Importance of Carbon Dioxide for Healthy IAQ”
NYC Sets Precedent for Requiring Geothermal Certifications The New York City Council recently passed local law 0609-A-2015 stating that all new city buildings or city-owned buildings undergoing a HVAC retrofit must use geothermal if the ‘geothermal system has the lowest net present value of all alternatives considered.’ This legislation is… Continue reading “NYC Sets Precedent for Requiring Geothermal Certifications”
10 Reasons to Use LoopLink PRO 10 Reasons to Use LoopLink PRO by Doug Carruthers Looplink PRO is simple, powerful, web-based ground loop design software you can use for just $50/month. Specifically engineered for commercial geothermal designers, LoopLink PRO can handle projects from simple single building… Continue reading “10 Reasons to Use LoopLink PRO”
Commercial Geothermal Heat Pump System Design Enroll in HeatSpring’s free Commercial Geothermal Heat Pump System Design course today! In this free course, Dr. Charles Remund, author of the International Ground Source Heat Pump Association (IGSHPA) Design Manual, explains how to design a ground heat exchanger for a commercial… Continue reading “Commercial Geothermal Heat Pump System Design”
Improving Accuracy with Ground Loop Design Flow Improving Accuracy with Ground Loop Design Flow Proper geothermal heat exchanger design is not a simple matter. The following piece was written by Doug Carruthers of Geo-Connections, Inc. Systems, especially big commercial systems, have a lot of moving parts and… Continue reading “Improving Accuracy with Ground Loop Design Flow”
Sizing a Pellet-Fueled Boiler Sizing a Pellet-Fueled Boiler Bigger is NOT better There are several types of boilers that can burn wood-based fuels. They include 2- stage wood-gasification boilers, wood chip boilers, and pellet-fueled boilers. Of these, pellet-fuel boilers come closest to mimicking the… Continue reading “Sizing a Pellet-Fueled Boiler”
Hydronic Heating with Renewable Energy Heat Sources Hydronic Heating with Renewable Energy Heat Sources Designing for low water temperatures is critical to good performance This article focuses on using water-based hydronic distribution systems to distribute heat produced by renewable energy heat sources. It’s based on the premise… Continue reading “Hydronic Heating with Renewable Energy Heat Sources”
Download the Free Solar Heating Basics Guide Download the Free Solar Heating Basics Guide Used in Vaughan Woodruff’s Solar Approaches to Radiant Heating course. Solar Approaches to Radiant Heating is for serious professionals with relevant experience. You’ll learn the latest, most advanced concepts for integrating solar with radiant heating systems.… Continue reading “Download the Free Solar Heating Basics Guide”
GeoPro Product Training on HeatSpring Learning about geothermal? Interested in GeoPro product training? Join HeatSpring and GeoPro University in four new totally free lectures. 1. GP101: Introduction to GeoPro Products The first step to a successful grouting project is choosing the right grout. Take this short… Continue reading “GeoPro Product Training on HeatSpring”
Roy Collver on Materials & Manufacturers of Condensing Boilers On the Condensing Boilers in Hydronic Systems Discussion Board… Expert instructor Roy Collver discusses construction materials and manufacturers of condensing boiler machines. Student 1: Roy, great videos and a ton of great information! Thanks a million! I have a couple of comments… Continue reading “Roy Collver on Materials & Manufacturers of Condensing Boilers”
Wood Gasification Boilers: Circulation, Power Interruption & Pump Acceleration On the Hydronic-Based Biomass Heating Systems Discussion Board… Why we don’t use the UPS to drive the main circulator to continue operations in case of power interruption? What determines when wood gasification boilers begin to circulate? Do variable speed pumps allow… Continue reading “Wood Gasification Boilers: Circulation, Power Interruption & Pump Acceleration”
Free Lectures: The Greenest Urban Building in the U.S. & The Largest HVAC Experiment Enroll in Two New FREE Sustainable Building Advisor Lectures “The Greenest Urban Building in the United States” & “The World’s Largest Side-by-Side HVAC Experiment” The Greenest Urban Building in the United States Remi Tan of KMD Stevens describes the San… Continue reading “Free Lectures: The Greenest Urban Building in the U.S. & The Largest HVAC Experiment”
Robert Bean on Fluid-Based System Concerns in HVAC Engineering On the Integrated HVAC Engineering Discussion Board… Robert Bean discusses losing boiler efficiency, vs. losing radiator efficiency, cycling a boiler to maintain average temperature in a system, using 3 way mixing valve (instead of a circulator) to control the temperature of the on the load… Continue reading “Robert Bean on Fluid-Based System Concerns in HVAC Engineering”
Floor Joist Heating Issues: Siegenthaler Suggests… On the Hydronic Based Biomass Heating Systems Discussion Board, John Siegenthaler answers student questions… How do you deal with cold floors over unheated or outdoor spaces? If radiant heat (typically used for walls/ceilings) for joisted floors is properly designed and installed,… Continue reading “Floor Joist Heating Issues: Siegenthaler Suggests…”
Health & Well-Being through Architecture, Building Science & HVAC Design Playing with Fire: Homeostasis and Alliesthesia Considerations in Architecture, Building Science and HVAC Design Copyright © Robert Bean, R.E.T., P.L.(Eng.) for HeatSpring Most people employed in the world of architecture, building science and HVAC understand the need for spaces which are… Continue reading “Health & Well-Being through Architecture, Building Science & HVAC Design”