If you’re my age, you’ll remember Chubby Checker singing the Limbo song. If you’re wondering who and what that is, check out the link. I found myself thinking of that song and how low can you go when reviewing some flat panel radiator pictures.
During my many trips to ISH, the huge hydronic tradeshow held in Frankfurt, Germany, every two years, I encountered a different mindset regarding hydronic system supply water temperatures. Our counterparts across the pond were designing their hydronic systems to massage water temperatures as low as they could go. I was repeatedly told, by manufacturers and tradesfolk, that this saves energy and, therefore, money. Getting the same resulting comfort, but doing so more economically than we were, for the most part, here in the States. I adopted that mindset and forged ahead with designing my systems for the lowest LWT (leaving water temperature) possible and not just for new from-scratch installations. It turned out, there were numerous opportunities for retrofit applications and our customers reduced their previous energy consumption by a minimum of 30% to maximum of 70%.