Hydronic Balancing Part 11: Variable Flow Pumping

Hydronic Balancing Part 11: Variable Flow Pumping

Throughout our Hydronic Balancing Series, we’ve been slowly and meticulously making our way to the more complex control systems that we see today.  We walked you through the steps of proportionate balancing a simple 3-zone system and taught you how to trim an impeller in accordance with ASHRAE 90.1.  Today, we’re going to see what happens when we add variable speed drives to the system. 

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Hydronic Balancing Part 10: Proportionate Balancing with Flow Limiter

Hydronic Balancing Part 10: Proportionate Balancing with Flow Limiter

If you’ve read Parts 1 thru 9 in this Hydronic Balancing Series then you should have a solid understanding of the fundamentals of balancing.  If not – go back and review the previous blogs.  You need these fundamentals to understand what we will discuss here in Part 10, which is...

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Hydronic Balancing Part 8: Read & Set Proportional Balance Method

Hydronic Balancing Part 8:  Read & Set Proportional Balance Method

The task of proportional balancing is the first step to achieving an energy efficient pumping system.  It involves adjusting the system balancing valves to make certain that all zones get proportionate flow under design conditions.  Once this task is complete, it gives us the opportunity to trim the fat out of the system for greater efficiency... 

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Hydronic Balancing Part 7: When to Trim the Pump Impeller

Hydronic Balancing Part 7: When to Trim the Pump Impeller

Balancing isn’t just about adjusting valves. Sometimes (very often in fact) it is about evaluating the performance of the pump(s) under real world operating conditions. Remember what ASHRAE 90.1 has to say about Hydronic System Balancing: “Hydronic systems shall be proportionately balanced in a manner to first minimizethrottling losses; then the pump impeller shall be trimmed or pump speed shall be adjusted to meet...

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