The Glitch & The Fix

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A project requires both medium and low temperature radiant floor panels. The installer proposes the following system design. 

As the price of fuel oil skyrockets, there is increasing interest in geothermal heat pumps as a heat source for hydronic radiant floor heating.

Some choose to jump into designing or installing solar thermal systems with no additional training.

Can you identify at least four errors in this design?

Given all the recent interest in solar domestic water heating, Joe Wrenchturner decides to have a go at it.

A manually set three-way mixing valve was installed to regulate the supply temperature to the concrete-slab radiant floor system.

A heating contractor, who’s tired of coaxing 500-pound cast-iron boilers into homes, decides to try out a wall-mounted mod/con boiler because of its light weight and side wall venting.

The installer feels that a mix of primary/secondary piping along with some “alternative techniques” is appropriate.

As part of an extensive renovation and insulation upgrade, the owner decides to upgrade the heat and convert the 2-pipe steam system to hot water.

An installer is advised to use a buffer tank to prevent short cycling of a low mass boiler serving several independently controlled space heating zones ...