An installer sets up a zoned distribution system as shown below. To keep it simple, he uses the same size piping for the headers and all the distribution circuits. The heat source is a low-mass, copper-tube boiler with high-flow resistance.

In last month’s Hydronics Workshop column I described five devices that would, in my opinion, improve and expand the North American hydronics industry.  Here’s my “wish list” from that column:

The schematic in Figure 1 represents a drawing I recently reviewed for a proposed system that was to supply three zones of finned-tube based, two zones of low-temperature radiant panel heating, and an indirect domestic water heater.

All companies that supply hydronic heating hardware to the North American market strive to offer products that are currently in demand. Some even look farther down the road, anticipating where the market is headed.

An installer is asked to install heating in the slab floor of a farm workshop. The owner has already purchased a used cast iron boiler that will run on propane.

All boilers that burn hydrocarbon fuels (natural gas, propane, oil, wood) produce water vapor as a byproduct of combustion.

The second of five eBooks for the hydronics market is here! Brought to you by Plumbing & Mechanical, PM Engineer and Supply House Times, this eBook is a collection of columns and articles from John Siegenthaler, P.E., a well-respected hydronics expert and longtime columnist for PM, pme and Supply House Times.

The Glitch: Eager to keep up with this new technology, an installer decides to install a hydraulic separator between a boiler and distribution system as shown below.

Water-to-water heat pumps supplied from closed earth loops are ideal heat sources for low-temperature hydronic floor-heating systems.

An installer needs to provide heat from a conventional gas-fired boiler to a large buffer tank. The tank is necessary because of a highly zoned distribution system.