Thermostatic Radiator Valves
Although it was just past three o’clock in the afternoon, it was almost dark when we checked into our hotel in Stockholm
Temperature Scales
Most of the scientific concepts we take for granted nowadays started as an idea that some guy in a room came up with one day
The Dreaded Bear Report
I tried to explain to her what life had taught me about the Algebra Regents. It really hadn’t mattered one bit in the long run
The dopey kid who used to wear your clothes
Never gloat over someone else’s stupid mistake. Make it better if you can, but don’t laugh. Just let it slide and do your best to make like you never saw a thing
The challenge of adding motorized valves to a steam-heating systems
A gravity-return steam system uses a combination of two forces to put the returning condensate back into the boiler. First, there’s the steam pressure that’s leftover at the end of the mains
Radiator Enclosures Part 1
To use this chart, assume the uncovered radiator is 100% capacity. To get that same capacity with these style covers, you would
What REALLY Motivates Your Customer?
Stop for a moment and consider what’s really on the average person’s mind when they’re deciding whether to replace their old boiler, or to just ignore the old beast for yet another year
Somewhere In America
Somewhere in America today an old friend of mine is hanging a low-NOX gas/oil burner on the side of this steam boiler. This burner weighs 3,600 pounds and is the size of a Buick
The World According to Missy
Missy was watching The Weather Channel when the woman in front of the map mentioned that it was going to snow in Denver. Missy’s eyes waggled furiously and she shouted, “I’m going in!”
Energy Usage
The Energy Information Administration is a fascinating website where you can find a huge amount of detailed information about energy usage in the United States
Some tips on teaching
A friend told me that he was thinking of putting a training session together for his apprentices. He was also hoping he could work with the local trade association to see if…
You may be wondering how we arrived at the price on your job
Good morning! And thanks for giving us the opportunity to make a proposal on your new heating system
A Different Way To Pipe
I was raised by a Bell & Gossett rep and gobbled up the writings of the late, great Gil Carlson for a lot of years. I learned about
Hot water recirculation magic
WE NEED HELP with a number of problems left over from a new addition,” the homeowner told me over the phone. “It’s a slab on grade radiantly heated room that overheats, and it takes forever for us to get hot water in the master bathroom.”
An old radiator Q&A
Questions regarding the often elegant, cast-iron behemoths we love so much are as perennial as water hammer and squirting air vents. So, I thought I’d put some straight answers together for you in one convenient place. Here goes
A Steam Heating Primer
If you ask a dozen people what the proper operating pressure for a steam system is, you’ll probably get a dozen different answers. Most folks just follow “what they were taught” without giving much thought to the results. You see most steam systems run at ridiculously high pressures
Low-water Cutoffs Belong On All Boilers
Contractors use low-water cutoffs on every steam boiler they install, as well as every hot water boiler over a certain size. That’s good because the most common cause of boiler loss in this country is low water and the incidences of loss would boggle you mind (just ask Hartford Insurance).
It’s Not What The Market Will Bear
When business owners make up selling prices, they trot out this silly phrase as their reasoning: I charge what the market will bear – the going rate. Sadly, virtually all business literature, and most accountants and bankers will back up
The Enormous Scope Of European Hydronics
This time last year, I was just returning from ISH, the world’s largest plumbing & heating show. They hold it every other year in Frankfurt, Germany. Before I left, I was invited to a press conference in New York City to hear Andreas
Know How To Solve Problems?
I’m working on a 90-psig-steam system. It provides heat to a 30’30’ 10′ foot curing room with a chamber temperature of 100-degrees Fahrenheit. There are coils on both end walls of the room. They’re piped in parallel and fed from a solenoid valve. The condensate goes through a
