Author: Dan Holohan

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Dan Holohan

Snowmelting, Turfwarming and the Snows of December

It was Thursday, and the groundskeepers were getting the place ready for a game that was, in the minds of most of the locals, bigger than Bunker Hill. Pats vs. Dolphins, and a savage December Nor’easter was churning its way up the coast, which was

Heating in Russia

My buddy, Fred, was over for a visit and the talk turned to steam. Fred works for Consolidated Edison in New York City. Con Ed provides the electricity and steam for about

Washington Steam

I was visiting Washington D. C. with the family. We stayed right near the Smithsonian Institute and spent our days walking through museums and breathing in the history and having a fine time. The sight of the homeless people

What’s the Right Temperature?

My sister-in-law Missy has lived with us for the past seven years. She’ll turn 40 next September and she has Down Syndrome. She often does things that make perfect sense to her, but it takes us a while to recognize

Air Filters

If your house has a warm air heating system there’s a lot you can learn from your hair dryer. It sounds funny, but every now and then we’ll solve a “no-heat” call by telling someone to rearrange

Boiler Sizing

When steam heating was new, back at the turn of the 19th century, coal was the fuel of choice. It burned hot, and it burned long. A good coal-fired boiler would stay lit for eight to 10 hours on a load of coal. Those early boilers contained cast iron grates that were similar to what you

Boiler Failure After Two Years

The boilers (and there were 20 of them) were laying out there in the parking lot, not far from the boiler room door. I could see them as Joe and I drove

Compression Tanks

It all started when a friend called to tell me about this old gravity hot-water system that had him

Conductive Concrete

Concrete has been used for many years as a composite material that has excellent mechanical properties and durability for construction. However, concrete is a poor electrical conductor, especially under dry conditions. Concrete that

Banging Zone Valves

It sounded like someone was coming through the front door with a fire axe. We were sound asleep and then

The Air We Breathe

I have an old book on my shelf that came to me by way of my friend Paul Yunnie. Paul lives in England and is Chairman of the ASHRAE Historical Committee. I time-travel with him.

Oil Heat Knowledge

There are websites that are home to the best and the brightest (and most helpful!) people in the oil heat business. Here, you will find

Some Advice for Engineers

I was reading an interesting book titled The Monster Under the Bed (How Business Is Mastering the Opportunity for Knowledge for Profit) by Stan Davis and Jim Botkin (Simon & Schuster, 1994) when I came across something that made me sit up straight and stare out the window for a while.

I know you can’t see this, but . . .

I just got back from an industry symposium where I watched a bunch of engineers give lectures on various topics. Each was an expert who had knowledge to share, and I was hanging on as best I could, not being an

We’re probably not the low bidders

If you’re a contractor, and if you’re not the low bidder on every job, you might want to use this letter as a part of your presentation. It will help you tell your story

Notes From Wetstock I

Here are the notes that participants from the first Gathering of Wetheads (November 23, 2002) handed in during the day. From Aaron Ourada RADIANT COOLING EXPLORATION. Why not? (tubing’s already there!):

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