PM Engineer articles from April 2003

PM Engineer archives from April 2003

Letters.(Letter to the Editor)
April 1, 2003... Failing Backflow Devices Regarding a letter in the Feb. issue from Ralph Hudson titled "CPK on Backflow Devices," if Mr. Hudson's backflow devices are failing regularly, perhaps he should check for the source of the silt or other...

The new boiler revolution--have your cake and eat it too! An educator examines the controversy surrounding the sizing of boilers for optimum heat performance. (Sound Off).(Column)
April 1, 2003... Editor's Note: We offer "Sound Off" as an open forum for industry professionals to express their opinions about industry issues, as well as to offer advice to our readers on how to manage their businesses. To submit material for this column,...

ISH NA seminar speakers announced. (News).
April 1, 2003... ISH North America show organizers have announced a new multi-level structure for its seminar program unveiled last year at ISH North America in Toronto, ON. Show attendees at this year's event at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino's new...

New publisher, associate publisher announced at Supply House Times. (News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Scott Franz, a 20-year veteran of the magazine business who has worked with PME's sister publication, Supply House Times, for 14 years, has been named its publisher. Franz began his career in 1983 working for United Color Press, SHTs...

Wetheads gather to talk hydronic heating in Illinois. (News).
April 1, 2003... Dan Holohan, hydronic heating guru and monthly columnist for PM Engineer, Supply House Times, and Plumbing & Mechanical, hosted "A Gathering of Wetheads" on March 15, 2003, in Rosemont, IL, an event otherwise known as "Wetstock II." Over...

In memoriam.
April 1, 2003... John Engelberger, P.E., president of Enerjee, Inc. died on Friday; Feb. 28, after a long bout with cancer. Engelberger was born in Trenton, NJ. He received his BSME from Drexel University and served in the U.S. Coast Guard as a lieutenant...

Nominations sought for Engineering Firm of the year. (News).
April 1, 2003... PM Engineer is now accepting nominations for its Engineering Firm of the Year award. The award was established to identify and honor an outstanding plumbing or mechanical engineering company. Six criteria will be used to select what best...

Slant/Fin Corp. (Appointments).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Adam Dubin has been elected president of Slant/Fin Corp., the Greenvale; NY; manufacturer of hydronic heating products. Dubin has served in a variety of marketing and executive management roles, most recently as executive vice president. The...

Crane Valves North America (CVNA). (Appointments).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Crane Valves North America (CVNA) has appointed Leonard Fruci to the position of president. He comes to Crane from Flowserve Corp.'s Flow Control Division in Irving, TX, where he was the vice president of sales and product development. Crane...

USFlow Corp. (Appointments).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... USFlow Corp. has named Rick Waters executive vp and COO. Jay Troger will no longer be serving as president and COO of the company. Mark Kirk will continue as chairman and CEO, and John Bertsch, former CEO, will be serving as a special advisor...

ASTM Board of Directors. (Appointments).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Akira Aoki has been named to the ASTM Board of Directors. The executive advisor on International Affairs at the Japanese Standards Association (JSA), Aoki is a board member of the Japanese Industrial Standards Committee (JISC) and chairman of...

The nightclub disasters: the codes have taken a big hit from the media after two recent nightclub fires, but is the criticism deserved? (Codes).
April 1, 2003... As someone who works in the code arena, it would be remiss of me not to write about the terrible nightclub disasters in the month of February. First, at the E2 nightclub in Chicago, 23 people were crushed to death when panic struck after pepper...

Sprinklers provide 2-for-1 special. (Fire Protection in the News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Murfreesboro, TN -- A single residential fire sprinkler extinguished a stovetop fire in a Tennessee apartment complex on December 2, 2002. Flames from the fire reportedly climbed up the wall of the kitchen. Fire Marshal Ken Honeycutt commented...

In-place system success. (Fire Protection in the News).
April 1, 2003... Colorado -- A single-story restaurant equipped with a wet-pipe fire sprinkler system experienced an overnight fire late last year. The central station alarm company notified the fire department at 2:17 a.m. about what turned out to be a natural...

The shakedown. (Fire Protection in the News).
April 1, 2003... Chicago, IL -- On the heels of our January 2003 column, a reader reminded me of an age-old problem involving the hidden agenda of a rare breed of fire inspectors. His take on outlandish requests by inspectors is that some are probably "intended...

Creating an emergency. (Fire Protection in the News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Cleveland, OH -- On January 28, an 11-year-old student in an elementary school gymnasium discharged a fire extinguisher on his classmates, sending 25 kids to Lake-wood and Fairview hospitals. The students were taken for medical attention aboard...

Family of five perish in blaze. (Fire Protection in the News).
April 1, 2003... Newport, TN -- A fire started by smoldering fireplace embers that ignited hay on the front porch of a residence claimed the lives of all five members of the McGaha family on January 25. The oldest victim of the children, Cheyenne McGaha, was...

Trouble brewing. (Fire Protection in the News).(union meeting hall built by nonunion labor)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Houston, TX -- A new union (Local 988) meeting hall was unveiled, meeting with bad reviews and loud complaints from representatives of various trades. As reported by the Houston Chronicle, Teamsters had the hall built with nonunion labor...

Uncontrollable burn. (Fire Protection in the News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Barberville, FL -- A "controlled burn" set by Florida's Division of Forestry grew out of control on January 27, aided by strong winds in Volusia County: The 10-acre firestorm continued to grow because forestry officials ran out of water while...

People susceptible to mad cow disease. (Fire Protection in the News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Oakland, CA -- Crowds "celebrating" an AFC championship title in Oakland vandalized areas of the city, most notably along International Blvd. Bonfires were set by the out of control mob, and an auto repair shop was burned. Twenty arrests were...

In the hotseat. (Fire Protection in the News).
April 1, 2003... Washington, DC -- The irrational behavior of an unruly airline passenger caught the attention of a federal air marshal on board United Flight 383 last January. The 64-year-old Russian man shoved other passengers while boarding, and proceeded to...

Untimely leaps. (Fire Protection in the News).
April 1, 2003... New York City and Philadelphia -- An upper-story apartment building fire on January 25 was brought under control by 60 FDNY firefighters in less than 30 minutes. In the midst of the inferno, a 28-year-old woman jumped from the roof of the...

Arsonists sentenced. (Fire Protection in the News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Juneau, AK -- A June 2, 2002, crime spree undertaken by two men ended with a fire at the Juneau Self-Storage facility that caused $1 million in property damage. Although the self-storage building was the third break-in theft of the day for the...

It's a strange beast. (Fire Protection in the News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Washington, DC -- A study has been released by the United States Fire Administration examining the complex phenomenon of arson committed by firefighters. The report highlights topics such as profiling, community impact, and steps undertaken by...

Arsonist at large. (Fire Protection in the News).
April 1, 2003... New Mexico and Florida -- A 42-year-old former fireman named Robert William Fisher who killed three of his own family members in Scottsdale, AZ, has been named to the FBI's Most Wanted Fugitive List, for arson of an occupied structure. He is a...

Medical gas piping: are your specs up to date?
April 1, 2003... Engineers need to keep track of recent developments to make sure their specifications will meet the requirements for designing and installing medical gas systems. Lately, it seems as if the codes and standards related to the design and...

Look, ma, no handles! When and how to choose an electronic plumbing product; electronic fixtures can provide the clean solution for buildings in which hygiene is a major concern.
April 1, 2003... It wasn't long ago that electronics in the restroom had people feeling like they were caught on "Candid Camera," quizzically approaching faucets with no handles and trying to push the infrared eyes. The long delay before activation of those...

Back to basics: a study of heat transfer, pipe to pipe; to understand heat transfer in a radiant floor heating system, the floor surface temperature, coverings and tubing must be examined.
April 1, 2003... Editor's Note: "Back to Basics" is a column that will run periodically in PME reviewing the basic principles of plumbing engineering. I recall a high school science teacher of mine asking the class a question about heat. The question was...

Radiant floor system. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... The Ultra Fin system by MacDuffco Inc., uses aluminum fins to heat wood-frame houses. It was designed to simplify existing models of radiant heating. It uses 5/8-inch O.D. composite tubing installed 3 inches below the floor, through joists....

NEOPERL redesigns Web site at www.neoperl.com. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... Discover new solutions to control flow rate, flow direction and stream quality at www.neoperl.com. The redesigned site (launched September 2002) provides additional technical information and search criteria, such as size, flow rate and stream...

New bolt clips for couplings. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... The MG Coupling has a new feature--factory pre-assembled bolt clips have been added on all size couplings, preventing bolts from dropping out and simplifying alignment during field installation. For additional information and sales, visit us...

Charlotte Pipe and Foundry cast iron technical manual. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... Learn more about Charlotte Pipe and Foundry's cast iron product offering in the recently updated Cast Iron Technical Manual. As the leading manufacturer of cast iron soil pipe and fittings, Charlotte Pipe and Foundry can be your one-stop source...

On-grade commercial drains. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... Sioux Chief Manufacturing Co. offers a full line of on-grade floor drains for light commercial applications. The 842 Series drains are available with polished nickel/brass, PVC or cast iron grates to meet your spec's load requirements. Standard...

Engineer Report for Water Hammer Arresters. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... Sioux Chief Manufacturing Co. announces the latest version of its "Engineer Report for Water Hammer Arresters." Designed specifically with the plumbing engineer in mind, the Sioux Chief "Engineer Report" is a comprehensive guide to water hammer...

The ULTRACEPT[R] from Jay R. Smith Mfg. Co. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... Jay R. Smith Mfg. Co.'s Ultracept Oil-Water Separator separates oil, grease and other hydrocarbons from wastewater in situations where these contaminants will come into suspension. The modular unit is fabricated in stainless or mild steel with...

Bryan Indirect Water Heaters in larger sizes. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... Bryan Indirect Water Heaters are now available in sizes to 8,000,000 Btu/hr, with water heating capacities to 16,000 gallons per hour (at 60[degrees] temperature rise). A single unit can be used for domestic or commercial hot water and space...

Suspended pipe support system. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... HOLDRITE[R] HANGOVER[TM] concrete insert brackets are installed on wood forms in conjunction with cast-in-place concrete slabs. When the wood forms are stripped away, the HOLDRITE HANGOVER bracket is ready to support up to 1" CTS for horizontal...

New high output slant/fin baseboard. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... The output, size and strength of new Slant/Fin Baseline 70 baseboard make it ideal for multifamily housing, light commercial and high-output residential heating applications. Its economy price makes Baseline 70 particularly suited for highly...

Caravan modular boilers. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... Heat commercial, industrial and institutional buildings with greater efficiency than single input boilers. Step-fired Caravan cast-iron boiler modules provide just the right amount of heat to meet varying demands. Capacities from 278,000 to...

Radiant ceiling panels. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... Sterling radiant panel ceiling systems are an energy- and cost-saving method of heating and cooling. They are available in three basic types: linear for wall-to-wall installation, modular for installation in standard t-bar ceiling grids, and...

The first name in Kickspace heaters. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... Beacon/Morris Kickspace heaters are the space-saving alternative to hot water baseboard. Designed to fit inconspicuously under a cabinet, in the floor, on or in the wall, kickspace heaters are ideal for hard-to-heat areas such as foyers,...

Beacon/Morris horizontal serpentine hot water unit heaters. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... Beacon/Morris is pleased to offer hot water horizontal unit heaters for residential, commercial and industrial use. With pipe connections from the side, these units are ideal for installation in areas where ceiling space is limited such as...

More cast iron means better performance. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... The Series 8, with its rugged cast-iron construction, offers commercial quality in a residential boiler. With cast-iron sections, thicker and deeper than in other leading boilers, the Series 8 offers a multitude of performance advantages,...

RBI Dominator Series boilers and water heaters. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... RBI Dominator Series boilers and water heaters offer Btu sizes from 300 to 2,100 mbh, with thermal efficiencies up to 85 percent. Proportional firing up to four stages provides built-in redundancy and high turndown for system efficiency....

Futera II.
April 1, 2003... The Futera II, the next generation of innovative, advanced hot-water-supply boilers, provides 85 percent efficiency, noncondensing with industry-leading NOx levels of less than 10 ppm. The Futera II operates a step-by-step cycle of operation in...

Hydrotherm Sabre Boiler. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... Introducing the HYDROTHERM SABRE BOILER, with its brushed stainless-steel jacket and its all on-top connections. A boiler that is sure to be well-received by contractors and homeowners alike. The brushed stainless-steel jacket gives an...

SpacePak central air conditioning. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... SpacePak is the ideal compliment for homes using today's modern radiant heating systems. It is a central air-conditioning system for homes unable to accommodate conventional systems. Ideal for older "ductless" homes, SpacePak uses flexible...

Airtherm HVAC. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... Airtherm fan coils are the smart solution for institutional, commercial and multiresidential heating and cooling applications, Airtherm units are extremely durable with 18-gauge casing standard and the industry's only 14gauge option. With its...

Elkay WaterSentry[R] guards water purity. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... Answering the demand for clean, clear drinking water, ELKAY WATERSENTRY VII Cyst and Lead Reduction filters are the hallmark of its WaterSentry line of water coolers (formerly Design 2000). The line includes coolers for any application-from...

Armstrong Pumps dry motor circulators. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... Armstrong Pumps Inc. has announced the introduction of two new close-coupled dry motor circulators. The ARMflo E8 and E9 are designed for applications such as radiant heating, snow melting and geothermal heat pump installations. The new ARMflo...

ITW buildex introduces Sammy X-Press. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... The addition of the Sammy X-Press to the Sammy Super Screw product line allows the pipe hanging trades to hang 3/8" threaded rod with direct vertical attachment in metal deck or thin gauge purlin where access to the back of the installed...

Point-of-use water heaters feature advanced control. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... Stiebel Eltron, the manufacturer of the very dependable DHC series instantaneous point-of-use water heaters, is expanding its range by adding two new models with electronic temperature control. Set the knob on the front cover to any temperature...

ABS - high head effluent pump. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... ABS has introduced a new line of effluent and sewage pumps. The EF10W-1H has the highest head performance than any pump in its class. This 1-horsepower pump shuts off at a remarkable 108 feet. This product also features the ABS exclusive triple...

Plumb-Pex Plumbing System. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... The Plumb-Pex System is an engineered complete flexible piping system that provides a proven reliable solution to all plumbing needs. Utilizing the patented Plumb-Pex "Clamp", one tool provides assembly of all connections on all sizes of...

Vandal-resistant p-trap. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... The Vandal Trap[R] is a serviceable and maintainable p-trap that discourages vandalism. Easy to install, Vandal Trap[R] is appropriate for schools, public buildings, sports stadiums and light- to medium-correctional institutions. McGuire...

Cash Acme thermostatic mixing valve. (Information Showcase).
April 1, 2003... The Cash Acme HeatGuard[R] 100 thermostatic mixing valve is an ASSE 1017-approved device that can improve safety and increase the effective amount of hot water. When installed at the water heater, the HeatGuard 100 acts as a master thermostatic...

tekmar Control Systems' Boiler Control 265. (Product of the Month).
April 1, 2003... tekmar Control Systems' Boiler Control 265 is designed to operate up to three modulating boilers to provide Outdoor Reset and Setpoint operation, or two modulating boilers to provide Outdoor Reset and domestic hot water operation. The...

Steam fired water heater. (Products).
April 1, 2003... AERCO's WaterWizard steam-to-water heater offers tight temperature control, longevity, reliability and low maintenance. AERCO's unique feed-forward monitoring system and high rangeability steam control valve maintain [+ or -]4[degrees]F...

Boiler sealing system. (Products).
April 1, 2003... AMTROL has introduced its Dual "O" Ring Sealing System for the WH-7 and WH-9 Series BoilerMate[TM] Classic water heaters. The Dual "O" Ring system provides a second seal that acts as a backup for the protection of the interior section of the...

Indirect water heaters. (Products).
April 1, 2003... Bryan Indirect Water Heaters are now available in sizes to 8,000,000 Btu/hr with water heating capacities to 16,000 gallons per hour (at 60[degrees] temperature rise). A single unit can be used for domestic or commercial hot water and space...

Addressable control panel. (Products).
April 1, 2003... Fire-Lite Alarms, Inc., part of Honeywell's Fire Systems Group, has introduced the newest member of its intelligent addressable family, the MS-9200UD. Built upon a platform common to the MS-9200 and MS-9600, the new panel features advanced...

Fire stop. (Products).
April 1, 2003... The MetraSeal 120 Firewalker from Metraflex is a fire stop for pipes in motion. Creating a snug, fire-tight, watertight seal, the unique design permits unlimited axial pipe movement, while at the same time keeping the fire stop properly...

Portable pipe bursting system. (Products).
April 1, 2003... The new HammerHead PB30 portable pipe bursting system from Earth Tool Co. LLC is a compact, small footprint, versatile system designed for the replacement of 4" and 6" pipe. The PB30 can be used to replace a variety of pipe, including clay...

Self-cleaning toilet seat. (Products).
April 1, 2003... The SCS Self-Cleaning Toilet Seat is a plastic toilet seat that cleans and sanitizes itself in 15 seconds by rotating through a hygiene sluice that dispenses a citrus-scented, germ-killing solution on the seat's surface. The seat fits on...

Take a break.
April 1, 2003... Chaos Theory A physician, a civil engineer and a computer scientist were arguing about what was the oldest profession in the world. The physician remarked, "Well, in the Bible, it says that God created Eve from a rib taken out of Adam....