This fall, John Siegenthaler will speak about Solar Thermal and Geothermal technologies at his local community colleges.

PM Hydronics Editor John Siegenthaler will be a featured speaker at New York’s Mohawk Valley Community College and Morrisville State College this fall, where he’ll discuss renewable energy technology during the following seminars:

Fundamentals of Solar Thermal Systems
7 PDHs for Engineers
Friday, Sept. 25, 2009
8 am – 4:30 pm At Morrisville State College Renewable Energy Training Center
Cost: $299

This full-day seminar begins with the basics of how solar energy is collected and used to heat domestic hot water. It covers solar geometry, flat plate and evacuated tube collectors, antifreeze-based systems and drainback system configurations, control concepts, and performance estimating. If you are interested in design or installation of solar thermal systems for domestic water heating, this course is for you.

Day 2 (Optional): Fundamentals of Solar Thermal Systems (Laboratory/Hands-On)
6 PDHs
Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009
9 am – 3:30 pm At Morrisville State College Renewable Energy Training Center
Cost: $149

This optional second-day workshop will provide hands-on experience with installation of a commercially available solar hot water system.

Advanced Solar Thermal System Design
7 PDHs for Engineers
Friday, Oct. 23, 2009
8 am – 4:30 pm At Mohawk Valley Community College
Cost: $299

This full-day seminar is for those are already familiar with the basic concepts used in solar thermal systems. It expands systems from domestic water heating only to “combi-systems” that supply both domestic hot water and some of a building’s space heating load. Essential quantitative concepts such as circulator sizing, expansion tank sizing, drainback system operation, and system sensitivity to variations in design parameters are discussed, as are software packages to assist with system design.

Geothermal Heat Pump System Design
7 PDHs for Engineers
Friday, Nov. 13, 2009
At Morrisville State College Renewable Energy Training Center
Cost: $299

All summer the sun’s warmth is absorbed by the soil surrounding buildings. Geothermal heat pump systems can harvest this energy during the following winter to provide comfort in both residential and commercial buildings. They can also provide cooling during summer. This full-day seminar covers the fundamentals of geothermal heat pump technology. It discusses water-to-air, water-to-water, and direct expansion heat pumps, and shows several ways to apply them in both forced air and hydronic applications. It also covers design of both horizontal and vertical geothermal loop systems. State-of-the-art technology for minimizing parasitic operating cost in geothermal systems also is presented.

Seating is limited, and the early-bird rate of $800 for all three seminars expires Sept. 10. Scholarships will be available through a grant awarded under the President’s Community-Based Job Training Grants, as implemented by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration.

Register for these seminars by contacting Donna Skibitski, Coordinator, Workforce Development The Center for Corporate and Community Education Mohawk Valley Community College; 1101 Sherman Drive, Utica, NY 13501; Ph: 315/792.5305; Cell: 315/271.5721; Fax: 315/792-5682.