PM Engineer articles from March 2003

PM Engineer archives from March 2003

Letters.(Letter to the Editor)
March 1, 2003... Recovering Heat from Drain Water Joseph Becker's article about heat exchangers in the August 2002 issue describes how the GFX drain water heat exchanger can reduce the amount of energy used to heat water. The energy used to heat and cool...

Correction.(Correction Notice)
March 1, 2003... In the 2003 Spec Guide (Dec. '02), the president of Danfoss Inc. was incorrectly identified as Joergen Houridsen. The listing should've read Joergen Mouridsen. We apologize for the error.

Rheem shows off FVIR water heaters. (News).
March 1, 2003... Rheem Water Heaters hosted the industry's trade press in a series of visits to its Montgomery, AL, facility in early Feb. to unveil the Rheem Guardian System[TM], a new line of residential gas-fired, atmospheric water heaters specially designed...

Gerber announces sale to Globe Union. (News).
March 1, 2003... Gerber Plumbing Fixtures Corp., a leading manufacturer of faucets and vitreous china plumbing products, announced that it has completed a transaction in which most of the assets of Gerber have been sold to a new entity, Gerber Plumbing Fixtures...

In memoriam. (News).(Obituary)
March 1, 2003... Raymond F. Kennedy, president and COO of Masco Corp., died suddenly at his home February 4 of an apparent heart attack. Since 1996, Kennedy had been president and COO of Masco Corp., a $10 billion manufacturer and installer of home improvement...

The verdict is in: The dimensions of a water closet are an important factor for the forensic engineer to consider in evaluating the possibility of a crime. (Codes).
March 1, 2003... You may recall that last month I provided the basic information in a murder trial. Did the husband drown his wife in the water closet, or did she commit suicide by taking a drug overdose? The dimensions of a water closet became an important...

Some restrictions apply, void where prohibited: more sensible questions from rational readers. (Fire Protection).
March 1, 2003... Q. I often run into this problem when designing residential systems. Sometimes a room on the upper level of a home will be too wide to be covered by any listed extended-coverage sidewall sprinkler. To make matters worse, the ceiling sometimes...

Tom Konen--some memories from a quarter century of change: the academic research community has been severely diminished by the death of Tom Konen, who for so many years led the research effort at Stevens Institute. (Thoughts from Abroad).
March 1, 2003... The academic research community has been severely diminished by the death of tom konen, who for so many years led the research effort at stevens institute. One of the issues that this column has addressed many times has been the need for...

Sizing water heaters for hotels/motels.
March 1, 2003... Sizing water heaters for any type of hotel or motel can be a bit of a challenge. Sizing hot water systems for a roadside hotel or "sleep cheap" hotel can be especially challenging. Proper sizing requires an understanding of the type of hotel,...

Is smoke control really: Here's an in-depth look at what works and what doesn't in fire protection systems for high-rise buildings.
March 1, 2003... High-rise office buildings--buildings over 75 feet in height--have required life safety designs for many years. The previous life safety provisions required stairwell pressurization and smoke evacuation (either mechanical or through knockout...

Contractors and fire protection equipment: PME's latest reader survey reveals what contractors look for in fire protection equipment.
March 1, 2003... What follows is the statistical outcome of our most recent PME reader survey, conducted in November 2002, which polled 1,500 fire protection contracting/installation firms nationwide. We were very interested in the replies and reactions from...

Wilkins backflow preventers and pressure regulators. (Fire Protection Information Showcase).
March 1, 2003... Wilkins, a Zurn Company, manufactures an extensive line of water control products, specializing in approved backflow preventers and water pressure regulators for the fire protection market. The line of 300/400 Backflow Preventers are smaller...

Charlotte Pipe and Foundry industrial products. (Fire Protection Information Showcase).
March 1, 2003... Charlotte Pipe and Foundry's full line of pipe and fittings for the industrial market is featured in this informative brochure. Engineered to work together as a system for easy installation and optimum performance, Charlotte Pipe's industrial...

Cash Acme thermostatic mixing valve. (Fire Protection Information Showcase).
March 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...

Elkay's EZ cooler breaks all barriers. (Fire Protection Information Showcase).
March 1, 2003... Elkay's "EZ" line of barrier-free water coolers offers greater accessibility for disabled individuals, unique contemporary styling, and easy service and installation. The most significant feature of Elkay's EZ coolers is that they can be...

Edwards water mist pumping systems. (Fire Protection Information Showcase).
March 1, 2003... Water Mist & Foam Concentrate pumping systems. Nobody knows them better. Edwards Mfg. can help you design and specify your special hazard mist or foam system. Our pump sets are UL listed and FM approved. Your choice of pump drivers, such as...

Selecting a primary loop circulator--the myths and the facts: Selecting the primary loop circulator in a primary/secondary system can be confusing if you don't know these facts.
March 1, 2003... Primary/secondary (P/S) piping has established itself as the default piping technique for multi-load hydronic systems. It's ability to "keep the peace" among several simultaneously operating circulators is what makes it the preferred choice...

What's new in the ADA accessibility guidelines: The ADA accessibility guidelines for drinking fountains are in the process of being updated, and here is a preview of the proposed revisions.
March 1, 2003... The ADA Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG) have not been updated since they were initially published by the U.S. Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (Access Board) in 1990. The technical provisions of the current ADAAG are...

Top 10 products of 2002.
March 1, 2003... Here are the top products run in PME throughout the year 2002. These products got the most attention from ourreaders, according to the number of reader inquiries we received after they appeared. In case you missed the opportunity the first time...

Thermostats. (ASHRAE/AHR Product Overview).
March 1, 2003... Danfoss has released the 8000 Series Commercial Thermostat. The 8000 Series features separate "heat and cool" settings and range limitation of maximum and minimum heat and cool set points, and the thermostat can be used with remote sensors for...

Power gas burners. (ASHRAE/AHR Product Overview).
March 1, 2003... Midco International has announced an addition to its Economite Power Gas Burner line. The standard Economite EC Series Power Gas Burners are engineered to match a variety of applications. Sheet metal construction affords high volume production...

Hydronic system and design software. (ASHRAE/AHR Product Overview).
March 1, 2003... Taco has introduced two new products, the LoadMatch single-pipe hydronic system and HS2 Hydronic System Design Software. LoadMatch is a single-pipe system for both heating and cooling system applications that eliminates the need for most...

Boiler. (ASHRAE/AHR Product Overview).
March 1, 2003... Weil-McLain has introduced the Ultra Boiler with PhD Technology. Two models are available: the Ultra 155, with a 93% AFUE, and the Ultra 230, with a 92.8% AFUE. The Ultra boiler's PhD Technology (Precision Hydronic Data) is an intelligent...

Gas-fired boilers. (ASHRAE/AHR Product Overview).
March 1, 2003... Camus Hydronics Ltd. has released the DynaFlame Series gas-fired commercial copper tube boilers. The DynaFlame Series features 85% thermal efficiency, a ModuFlame 780020 digital control panel, all bronze and copper water surfaces, a range of...

Valved Manifold. (ASHRAE/AHR Product Overview).
March 1, 2003... Uponor Wirsbo has introduced the AQUACENTER Valved Manifold. Made from advanced engineered plastic (EP), the manifold complements Wirsbo's EP fittings and AQUAPEX tubing. The all-plastic system eliminates corrosion, pitting, scaling and other...

Boiler Energy Saver. (ASHRAE/AHR Product Overview).
March 1, 2003... Watts Regulator Co. offers the new Boiler Energy Saver (BES), reducing energy costs by lowering the boiler water temperature during periods of warm weather and reducing standby heat loss. The BES also increases comfort levels by circulating hot...

Gas water heater/boiler. (ASHRAE/AHR Product Overview).
March 1, 2003... Lochinvar Corp. has introduced its next generation Copper-Fin II commercial gas water heater/boiler. With independent dual ignition systems, as well as multiple gas valves, fans and burners, the Copper-Fin II is two units in one, greatly...

Pipe hangers & seismic bracing. (ASHRAE/AHR Product Overview).
March 1, 2003... Tolco offers a complete line of pipe hangers, pipe supports, seismic bracing, channels and fittings for the fire protection, commercial construction, and industrial process markets. Tolco. Circle 9.

Pipe insulation. (ASHRAE/AHR Product Overview).
March 1, 2003... Dow Building Materials, a business unit of The Dow Chemical Co., has announced the Trymer 2000 polyisocyanurate pipe insulation, a closed-cell, high-performance insulation for pipe, vessel, equipment and duct applications. With a low K-factor...

Dry motor circulator. (ASHRAE/AHR Product Overview).
March 1, 2003... Armstrong Pumps has launched the ARMflo E10 and E11 close-coupled, dry motor circulators for commercial and large residential high head applications. The E Series features advanced motor technology and an efficient hydraulic design, as well as...