Guest bio
Jae Chon, Director of Strategic Markets for Chesapeake Systems, has more than 30 years of experience in the commercial HVAC industry. Starting in building automation systems, he transitioned into mechanical system designs, planning commercial office spaces, laboratories and clean rooms, and specialized industrial processing facilities. For the past 15 years, Chon has worked in hydronic system sales at Chesapeake Systems, focused on government buildings, schools, and hospitals.
Episode summary
John speaks with Jae Chon about hydronic systems. They discuss the basics of hydronics and the importance of proper maintenance and system balancing. Jae makes particular note of how vital balancing is for system performance and longevity. They also touch briefly on industry regulations regarding emissions.
Main points
- Hydronic systems use water or a water solution as a heat-transfer medium.
- Synchronized Hydronic Loop systems employ variable-speed pumps and compressors to maintain efficiency, even in part load conditions.
- All components in a system affect each other and the system as a whole. If the system is not properly balanced, a system failure can be expected within five years.
- Replacing one component, such as a boiler, without considering the other components present in the system, often leads to system failure.
- Additionally, if systems are not balanced, when they eventually fail, the causes are often misdiagnosed as a single component, rather than the whole systems.
- Including dynamic balancing valves or pressure independent control valves (PICVs) can help mitigate balancing issues, especially compared to manual balancing valves.
- Too many owners wait until problems manifest in their system, rather than perform regular preventative maintenance. If the contractor who services the system is less experienced with system balancing, they may struggle with properly correcting the root cause.
- The industry is currently set up with regional standards, which makes it difficult for widespread companies to develop an encompassing national standard.
- The Washington, DC area is expected to soon pass new financial penalties for exceeding the regional emissions standard.
- Some energy services companies (ESCOs) make performance promises without properly understanding system balancing and ultimately cannot fulfill their promises.
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Links
Learn more about Chesapeake Systems
Learn more about hydronic balancing and control valves
Learn more about the Danfoss AB-QM valve
Listen to the full podcast on Soundcloud here
Listen on YouTube
For more information and additional episodes of the Envisioneering Exchange podcast, visit https://www.danfoss.com/en-us/about-danfoss/insights-for-tomorrow/envisioneering-exchange/