Across commercial applications and in different climate zones, the combination of ambient air temperature, humidity and pipes’ surface temperature can have a big influence on the efficiency and economics of chilled water piping systems.

As with most things hydronic, there are multiple approaches, and the “best” approach for each installation has to consider cost, aesthetics, access to the existing piping, available wall space and the goal of how the overall system will operate based on existing or newly created zones.

Most plumbing professionals in residential construction know PEX. They have either used it themselves or know other designers or installers that are using it. That’s because PEX is the piping product used in more new-home construction than copper and CPVC combined.

 If you’re anything like me, the first thing that comes to mind when you think about variable speed circulators is 1970s rock band Supertramp.

What characteristic do solar thermal collectors, hydronic heat pumps and thermal storage tanks supplied by biomass boilers have in common?

Gary Hayden is a man of many talents. A licensed Professional Engineer in Virginia and eight other states, the 63-year-old’s career has taken him from product development to design and finally, the implementation of radiant and hydronic systems.

One of the best things about hydronic heating systems is that it’s easy to integrate some method of domestic water heating. This combination has been used for decades in systems where a boiler was the sole heat source. It’s also possible when a heat pump serves as the heat source.

There’s a saying in the environmental health and safety (EHS) industry: “There are no accidents.”

Ask a professional engineer about the energy used by the heating systems they design. Their response is almost guaranteed to apply to the “fuel” energy (e.g., natural, gas, propane, oil, pellets, etc.) used by the system’s heat source(s).

I’ve covered pellet-fueled boiler applications in several past issues of PME. All of them have involved hydronic distribution systems. While such applications are certainly the prevailing way pellet boilers are used, they are not the only option. It’s possible to couple a pellet boiler to a forced air distribution system.