Plumbing Magazine

PSDMAGAZINE.ORG

The magazine for plumbing engineers, designers, specifiers, code officials, contractors, manufacturers, master plumbers, and plumbing professionals

OC

T 2

010

PSDMAGAZINE.ORG

The magazine for plumbing engineers, designers, specifiers, code officials, contractors, manufacturers, master plumbers, and plumbing professionals

P l u m b i n g S y S t e m S a n d d e S i g n

P l u S

The Official Publication of the American Society of Plumbing Engineers

LAB VACHow to Achieve the Perfect Vacuum for Research Needs

What is fluid comfort, and why should plumbing engineers take charge?learn how to design a water-efficient irrigation systemHow sustainable are your designs?

Armstrong Hot Water Group, Three Rivers, Mich. 49093 (269) 279-3602. © 2008 Armstrong International

Simplicity 101The Brain®, the world’s fi rst digital recirculating valve, will simplify your hot-water system.Mechanical thermostatic mixing valves were not designed to mix hot water with hot water. Yet in a pumped recirculated hot-water system under zero fi xture demand, that’s exactly what they’re asked to do. And it can get complicated. To get it right, you have to add an assortment of compensating system components. Simplify your hot-water system with the new Brain® DRV80 digital recirculating valve, engineered exclusively for recirculating hot-water systems. The DRV80 delivers stability, accuracy and safety, with the convenience of digital technology.

Digital stability means temperature control within 2° F, with fl ow capacities from 0 to 150 gpm. Digital connectivity allows The Brain to talk to you and the building through an onboard status display, or remotely via integral BAS (BACnet, ™ LonWorks,™ Modbus), LAN or Web browser. The DRV80 even offers programmable temperature alerts and a thermal disinfection program to promote compliance with OSHA, CDC and NYDOH Legionella guidelines.

You get all this and more in one self-contained digital mixing valve – for about the price of a thermostatic hi-lo with the same fl ow capacity. To learn how you can simplify your hot-water system, visit www.armstronginternational.com/brain.

Because digital technology is dependable, Armstrong supports the DRV80 with a complete fi ve-year warranty on all component parts.

TH

IS F

LA

G I

S F

OR I

DE

NT

IFIC

AT

ION O

NLY

.IT

IS N

OT P

AR

T O

F T

HE A

D.

Arm

stro

ng In

tern

atio

nal –

“Si

mpl

icity

”Pl

umbi

ng S

yste

ms

and

Des

ign

– 4C

olor

3000

-200

8011

8.

5” X

10.

875”

Visit us at ASPE’s EPE Show in Philadelphia - Booth #301

GREEN HAS NEVER LOOKED THIS GOOD.

H2Okinetic Technology® enables the Delta Water-Efficient

Showerhead to delight users, with a warmer, luxurious

shower experience. It also improves water efficiency by 40%,

flowing at 1.5 gpm while providing the feel of 2.5 gpm.*

And now, more than half of Delta’s bath collections—

seven of which feature an H2Okinetic Technology shower

option—meet WaterSense® specification. A number that

will increase to 80% by summer 2010. Another way that

Delta is more than just a faucet.

Visit deltafaucet.com/watersense

© 2

010

Mas

co C

orpo

rati

on o

f In

dian

a

* Computation based on comparison of showerheads that have a flow rate of 2.5 gpm under ASME A112.18.1.

Contemporary Water-Efficient Showerhead (1.5 gpm)

DFM10094_H2Okin10-10PlmSys.indd 1 9/3/10 2:40 PM



lab VaCLaboratory vacuum has become a necessity for virtually all laboratory research buildings, but ever-advancing research technologies and methodologies have rendered many existing laboratories inefficient. To design an effective lab vac system, the plumbing engineer first must know how much vacuum is required and then must select the appropriate pump and size the system. This article discusses the types of pumps available and their applications, explains how to size the system accurately, and includes several helpful calculations and tables to help achieve the required amount of vacuum.

Richard Ryan III, CPD

20

32

Plumbing engineers and Space ComfortPart 1: Why Plumbing engineers Should take Charge!The unfortunate division of piping systems and space heating and cooling systems into two separate disciplines in the United States has had a profound impact on the resulting energy use of U.S. buildings and the failure to adopt more efficient technologies. This article is the first of a series re-introducing the idea of fluid comfort and serves as an open call for plumbing engineers to take a leadership role in engineering energy-efficient space comfort systems based on hydronics and associated technologies.

Steve Clark, PE, CEM

Special Supplement! 2010 aSPe engineered Plumbing exposition Show guideWith every October 2010 issue of Plumbing Systems & Design sent through the mail comes a copy of the 2010 ASPE EPE Show Guide, a vital tool for attendees to the 2010 ASPE Convention. Included are lists of the exhibitors broken down by name, booth number, and product category, as well as a map of the show floor to help attendees navigate the show. Also included are the contact information and website for each exhibitor, so attendees can research their products and services before and after the show.

20

FEATURES

GETTING TECHNICAL6 designer’s notebook What a Plumbing Designer Needs to Know About Designing Irrigation Systems

12 the green ColumnHow to Make Existing Buildings More Efficient

16 lessons learned What Are You Doing About Sustainability?

18 Hydronics for Plumbing engineers Why Hydronics?

P l u m B i n g S y S T E m S A n d d E S i g nVOLUME 9, NUMBER 8 • OCTOBER 2010

PERSPECTIVES4 From the Publisher Welcome to the Show!

CONTINUING EDUCATIONacoustics in Plumbing Systems42 Continuing Education Questions43 Continuing Education Answer Sheet

and Application Form

ASPE REPORT44 From the President’s Pen45 Society news46 From the executive’s desk47 new members

READER SERVICES48 Classifieds48 advertisers index

The Official PublicaTiOn Of The american SOcieTy

Of Plumbing engineerS

CONTENTS

Plumbing Systems & Design™ is published by the American Society of Plumbing Engineers, Inc., 2980 S. River Road, Des Plaines, Illinois 60018, 847-296-0002, fax 847-296-2963, e-mail: [email protected], www.aspe.org. No charge for subscriptions to qualified individuals. Annual rate for subscriptions to nonqualifying individuals outside North America: $175.00 USD. POSTMASTER: Change of address should be sent to Plumbing Systems & Design, 2980 S. River Road, Des Plaines, Illinois 60018. Plumbing Systems & Design is an official publication of the American Society of Plumbing Engineers. Statements of fact, material, and opinion contained in contributed articles are the responsibility of the authors alone and do not imply an opinion or official position by the officers, staff, or members of the American Society of Plumbing Engineers. ©2010, American Society of Plumbing Engineers. All data and other information are provided with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, consulting, engineering, or other professional services. All rights reserved; material may not be reproduced without written permission. ISSN 1548-5897

ADVERTISING SALES REPRESENTATIVENew England, Mid-Atlantic, & Virginia RegionsM.J. Mrvica Associates, Inc.(856) [email protected]

PUBLISHER/EDITOR IN CHIEFStanley Wolfson | [email protected]

TECHNICAL EDITORSKarl Atteberry, PE, LEED APThomas J. Breu, PE, CPD, LEED APEsteban Cabello, PE, CPD, FASPEDale J. Cagwin, PE, CFEIJohn DeLeo, CPDPaul DiGiovanni, PERichard Ellis, CPD, CET

EXECUTIVE PUBLISHERDavid R. Jern | [email protected]

MANAGING EDITORGretchen Pienta | [email protected]

GRAPHIC DESIGNERRachel Boger | [email protected]

Daniel Fagan, PE, CPDDoug Page, PE, LEED APJeffrey Ruthstrom, CPDMark Tanner, CPDPatrick Whitworth, CPD, FASPEJames Zebrowski, PE, CPDStephen Ziga, CPD, SET

www.psdmagazine.orgE-mail: [email protected]

32

Convention & Expo Supplement

Cover image courtesy Patton’s Medical

SUSTAINABLE COMMERCIAL PLUMBING SOLUTIONS

Eco-plumbing isn’t limited to water conservation alone. Sustainable materials, energy efficiency and lead-free

standards are all equally important when specifying construc-tion that is both environmentally and socially responsible.

Whatever the vision for design, function, or environmen-tal impact, Acorn Engineering manufactures products that add up to economical and environmental benefits throughout the entire building.

Visit www.acorneng.com to view our Green Brochure online.

AWHOLE BUILDINGAPPROACH

TOILETS

0.5 gpfwhen used withAcornVac system

1.28 gpfHigh Efficiency Flush

1.2 gpfIn-Wall Cistern Style Flush System

1.6 gpfULF Flush

URINALS

0 gpfWaterless

0.125 gpfPint flow option

0.5 gpfwhen used withAcornVac system

1.6 gpfULF Flush

TOILETS AND URINALS AVAILABLECHRONOMITE TANKLESSELECTRIC WATER HEATERS

99% Energy Efficient

Water and Energy-Saving

Lower Maintenance and Operational Costs

Compact Design

•

•

•

•

ACORNVACVACUUM PLUMBING SYSTEMS

0.5-Gallon Flush Reduces WaterUse by 68%

No Digging/Trenching Required

Planning and Design Flexibility

No Mainline Clogs

Toilets and Urinals Available

•

•

•

•

•

800-488-8999 626-336-4561

www.acorneng.com/PSD

Waterless UrinalNo need for messydisposable catridges

Acorn Engineeringprovides one source for

multiple plumbing solutions


4 Plumbing Systems & Design OCTOBER 2010 WWW.PSDMAGAZINE.ORG

By STAnlEy m. WOlfSOnFROMTHEPUBLISHER

Welcome to the Show!

Even with the economic malaise that has hit commercial construction in particular, the early registration numbers for the 2010 ASPE Convention are keeping pace with those for 2008. However, since we are holding the event in the middle of ASPE member country, when we originally planned the Convention, we had expected to increase attendance over 2008 by 30 percent or more.

Can that happen? From what we are hearing, we should expect a significant increase in the number of attendees from the Northeast coming to the Exposition. However, the Conven-tion will not experience a large jump in attendance. Members are saying that they cannot afford to pay the registration fee as well as travel and hotel costs. Many employers, who are also in an economic bind, are not providing any of the costs to attend the Convention. In fact, some employees are lucky that their employers still pay ASPE membership dues.

So, look for an attendance number close to the 2008 Con-vention, which, by the way, missed making a record by just a teeny-tiny bit. You also can expect a very nicely crowded Exposition floor. Remember, almost 40 laptop computers will be given away over the two days of the EPE, along with up to eight grand prizes of the approximate value of a 60-inch television awarded as a Best Buy gift certificate.

bring your Coin!Everyone who registered for the Convention has received a confirmation letter, which contains a Convention com-memorative coin. Each coin has its own serial number. Remember to bring that coin to the Convention registra-tion desk in Philadelphia. If your coin has the right serial number, you will immediately win a $50 registration dis-count rebate and extra tickets to both the laptop and grand prize drawings. Don’t miss out! The winning coins are only in the hands of those who pre-registered for the Conven-tion. Extra coins will be available at registration; however, those coins are not eligible to win.

tHe exPoSition SHoW guide, tHe SPonSorS, tHe PatronS, and youWith this issue of PS&D comes the EPE Show Guide. In this guide is a map of the Exposition floor showing the locations and numbers of all of the booths, along with listings of all of the exhibitors, by booth number, alphabetically, and by prod-uct category. These listings note which exhibitors were kind enough to provide a sponsorship or become a patron this year.

Please be sure to stop by every sponsor and patron booth and thank them for their extra support of the EPE. Without them, we would not be able to give away prizes or provide lunch, drinks, and snacks on the Exposition floor. Without them, we could not put on the excellent Sunday Welcome

Party. Without them, the Convention and EPE would be a shadow of what we have come to expect.

aSPe Poker You should stop by every sponsor and patron booth for a few other reasons, starting with ASPE Poker. Every sponsor and patron will have complimentary poker cards that you can add to your stash. The cards have a scratch-off surface, and until you are ready to play the game, don’t scratch off the coating. If you do, the card is immediately voided. You can scratch off the coatings only at the redemption desks located throughout the Exposition floor. Here you will choose your best six cards by mental telepathy, scratch off the cards, and make the best poker hand possible.

Winning poker hands will be valued from $5 to $1,000, but everyone will win something. Instant-winner cards will be mixed with the playing cards. If you have one of those, you can choose whether you want the instant winnings or, if you have a great poker hand, the higher amount.

tHe aSPe almanaC This year, we also are offering an ASPE Almanac, which is filled with the logos of the sponsors and patrons. As you visit their booths, they will give you a logo sticker to put in the proper place in the book. Fill up your book and take it to the redemption desk, and you will receive extra tickets to the laptop and grand prize drawings. Your odds to win keep increasing!

You can play ASPE Poker and fill in an Almanac on both Monday and Tuesday. However, you may play each game only once each day.

WHat tHe ConVention and ePe are all aboutAs much as the Society tries to make your experience at the Convention and EPE as enjoyable as possible with games, free food on the Exposition floor, and a fantastic Sunday night party at the National Constitution Center, those extras are not what the Convention and EPE are all about.

The Convention is held every two years and is the largest offering of technical program sessions to help plumbing engineers, designers, and contractors keep up with the latest technologies, learn about product usage, and maintain a professional edge. This year, more than 50 program sessions will be offered.

The EPE also is held only every two years. It is the world’s largest gathering of products and services for plumbing engi-neers, designers, and contractors. Yes, our exhibitors take part in other shows, but it is at the ASPE EPE where they count on meeting the all-important engineers, designers, specifiers,

OCTOBER 2010 Plumbing Systems & Design 5

and users of their products. Unlike at other shows, where a salesperson greets you as soon as you enter the booth, ASPE doesn’t allow selling on the show floor. In fact, we ask each manufacturer to bring at least one of their research and tech-nical product engineers so our attendees can talk the talk with someone who walks the walk.

a SPeCial WelComeThis year, the Society has partnered with the International Code Council and the World Toilet Organization to provide a unique and expanded experience in both the technical programming and the diversity of attendees. I’d like to offer a special welcome to the 2010 ASPE Convention and EPE to the ICC and their members and to the WTO and those who help provide sanitation to those difficult-to-reach underde-veloped areas of the world. Be sure to stop our ICC and WTO guests and welcome them to the show as well.


ASPE thanks the following sponsors of the 2010 Convention and EPE. Their support helps make the Convention an exciting and innovative event for all attendees.

diamondViega

PlatinumBradford WhiteCopper Development

AssociationMoen Commercial

goldCharlotte Pipe Zurn

BronzeBeaconMedaesMcGuire

Manufacturing Co.Mueller IndustriesSloanSyncroFloT&S Brass and Bronze

Works

PatronsAB&I Foundry Advanced Mechanical

TechnologiesAquatherm Inc. ARCOM-MasterSpec

SpecificationsBradley Corporation Chicago Faucets The Cope Company

Salt

Copper Development Association

Crane Pumps and Systems

Dekker Vacuum Technologies Inc.

Delany Products Delta Faucet CompanyEemax Inc. Elkhart Brass Mfg.Froet Industries GF Piping Systems Grand Hall USA Green Turtle Americas

Ltd. HOLDRITE Hubbell Electric Heater

Co. International Code

CouncilIntersan Isimet ITT Jay R. Smith

Manufacturing Judo Water TreatmentKohler Co. Kusel Equipment Co. MAPA Products Masco Bath/Delta

Branded

McGuire Manufacturing Co. Inc.

Metcraft Industries Inc.Metraflex CompanyMIFAB Inc. Moen Inc. OmegaFlex Inc. Park Environmental

Equipment Ltd. Patterson Pump

Company Patton’s Medical PF Waterworks Precision Plumbing

ProductsPrier Products Inc. QuantumFlo See Water Inc. Sioux Chief

ManufacturingSloan Valve Company Stern-Williams Co. SyncroFlo Town and Country

Plastics Inc. Tramco Pump

Company Weil Pump Co. Inc. Woodford Mfg. Co.

By JOSEPH V. mESSinA, CPd

The U.S. Department of Agriculture esti-mates that lawns, shrubbery, and flower beds are the largest users of irrigation. The water used to irrigate this type of landscap-ing typically comes from the municipality’s potable water supply, so it can be the most expensive water available. Since designing and installing commercial landscaping can be costly, it is very important to be able to keep the grass and plants alive and green, which entails knowing how much water is required for adequate irrigation.

Unfortunately, plumbing designers often do not design the irrigation systems for the buildings for which they are designing the plumbing systems. It can be a performance specification given to an irrigation contrac-tor, or a landscape architect does the design. In my experience, a landscape architect does the performance specification, and a land-scape contractor produces the submittal and shop drawings showing the sprinkler types and layout. Not to insult landscape archi-tects, but this type of specifying can cause problems, such as the system not connected to a water line with the required pressure or the specs not showing a water line to con-nect to, leaving it up to the landscape con-tractor to find a line and possibly connect to the wrong supply. This is usually when the plumbing designer gets involved because he knows the building and the building site. Therefore, plumbing designers should know how to design and lay out irrigation systems, and this article will give you some insight on how to do this type of design.

What a Plumbing Designer Needs to Know About Designing Irrigation Systems

dESignER’S nOTEBOOK


SyStem ComPonentSA complete irrigation system is made up of a series of piping located in a trench with valves, sprinkler heads, electrical controls, timers, wiring, a water meter, and a backflow preventer. Since water conservation is important, you should include an automatic shutoff that stops the system when it detects rainfall. Nothing is more aggravating than seeing an irrigation system running when it is raining. What a waste of water!

It is very important to separate the irriga-tion water meter from the building water meter because the building owner is charged for any water going down the building sew-erage drain. When the irrigation system has a separate meter, the building owner will not be charged for the water used for irrigation on the sewerage bill because it does not go down the building drain.

Sprinkler HeadsSprinkler heads are considered the most important part of an irrigation system. Many different sprinkler heads currently are manufactured for a variety of irrigation system applications. It is very important to become very familiar with all of these types because each has different characteristics, and the application rate and operating pres-sure must be similar to each system circuit.

Following are a few of the different types of sprinkler heads.

Surface-type spray and pop-up spray •sprinkler heads (see Figure 1) produce a

single stream of water that covers a small area, approximately a 10- to 20-foot radius. These heads can operate at a low pressure range of 15 to 35 pounds per square inch (psi), and they can deliver a high application rate of 1 to 2 inches per hour. They are perfect for small grassy areas or shrubbery, as well as oddly shaped areas.Impact heads (see Figure 2) usually are •installed in a permanent manner or in a movable installation with a quick-disconnect adapter (see Figure 3). These are common in athletic fields and even golf courses because the actual quick-disconnect valve is installed below grade to prevent injury to athletes. The number of heads required can be limited to just a few, which is a cost savings and a maintenance issue. These types of sprinkler heads have an adjustable, revolving water stream, and they can operate at a high pressure (25 to 100 psi) and cover a large area (40 to 100 feet) with a low water rate of 0.2 to 0.5 inch per hour. Pop-up rotary heads (see Figure 4) also are considered impact heads and are very suitable for use where free-standing heads are not desired because these nozzles rise above grade only when water is delivered to the devices.Shrub heads include bubblers (see Figure •5), flat-spray heads, and stream heads. These types of heads can be mounted on risers to put them in a position to spray over shrubs. They also can be placed on short risers so the spray can be directed

√√√√√√√√√√

Easy to Install...

For more information on the Progressing Cavity Grinder Retro�t,please visit www.zoeller.com

Model 6932

ANNIVERSARY

SINCE 1939

C

M

CM




under the plant. Flat-spray heads are best for applications underneath plants.Trickle irrigation heads commonly are •used in vineyards and orchards, routed through tubing with a special emitter-type head installed at each plant location. These emitters often are provided with flexible orifices, which may allow for adding fertilizer. These types of systems have a low-volume usage and are not installed in conjunction with conventional irrigation systems.

ValvesAnother component to an irrigation system is the valves. Three types of valves are used: electric, hydraulic, and thermal hydraulic.

Electrically operated valves receive a signal •from the controller, which then opens a solenoid valve.Hydraulic control valves are operated by •water pressure. Water is delivered to the valve though tubing from the controller.Thermal-hydraulic valves receive an elec-•trical signal from the controller, which heats components of the valve so they can open and allow water to flow.All of these valves should be installed in a

valve box for maintenance. Where manual control valves are used for each zone, they usually are installed in vaults or pits to be operated with a T-handle wrench.

Some consider the installation of a pressure-reducing valve where the street pressure is very high. However, systems do not need a device to reduce the pressure as long as the street pressure does not exceed the working pressure of the sprinkler heads, piping, and valves.

Backflow PreventionAn atmospheric vacuum breaker should be installed after the connection to the city main or building main to protect these systems from contamination. You should consult the local plumbing code official to verify the type of vacuum breaker required.

trenCHingTrenches are dug to install all of the piping and sometimes the wiring from the zone valves to the controller. Trenching often is not given much thought, but if an irrigation system is being installed in an established lawn, the owner usually does not want the lawn completely torn up and would like

the installer to either save the grass that has been removed or plant more grass. However, machines are available that can lay the piping and wiring in the ground without completely destroying the lawn. They split the ground open and lay the piping in the crevice, allowing the grass to be pushed back down into place. The only indication that an irrigation system was installed in the lawn is where the sprinkler heads are located, but these holes are just large enough to install the head.

SyStem deSignTo reduce the time spent designing an irrigation system, a progression should be followed.

Determine the source, location, pressure, 1. and quality of the water that is supplying the irrigation system.Review the local code and permit require-2. ments such as water meters and back-flow preventers.Verify the requirements for the type of 3. piping used.Determine the location of the controller 4. and valves boxes for control of the differ-ent piping zones.Divide the site into zones as necessary to 5. adequately cover the landscaped areas.Calculate the water flow rates for the 6. total system, including all zones, and size the piping.A good method of calculating the water

pressure is to use the building flow test after you have selected the water source. Deter-mine the residual pressure at that source. (An acceptable method is to reduce the static pressure by about 15 psi if the residual pressure is not known.) List the components connected to the system such as meters and backflow preventers and find the prelimi-nary pressure losses through these devices. Add other pressure losses through the piping from the main to the connection point of the irrigation system. Then subtract these losses from the residual pressure. The result is the pressure in the main line at the connection point for the system.

Even though this is a standard method, in some cases the city main pressure may be very high (110 psi or more), and this pres-sure is used to supply the irrigation system. If this is the case, I would not worry about a pressure loss calculation. Just verify that the pressure is not too high for the working

Figure 1 Pop-up spray heads

Figure 2 Impact sprinkler head

Figure 3 Quick-coupling valve

Pipe ranging from 1 1/2" through

6"

Full assortment of fittin

gs

No-hub mechanical joint couplin

gs

TubingSCHOTT North America, Inc.

555 Taxter RoadElmsford, NY 10523

Phone: +1 (914) 831-2215Fax: +1 (914) 831-2368

[email protected]

www.us.schott.com/drainline

Sustainable Laboratory Design

The future of sustainable laboratory design starts with KIMAX® Glass Drain and Vent Systems today.

• Low Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)

• Will not burn or emit toxic fumes

• Maximum corrosion resistance

• Flexibility, adaptability, modularity

• Safe and simple installation

• Lowest life-cycle costs

Sustainable Laboratory DesignSustainable Laboratory Design

The future of sustainable laboratory design starts The future of sustainable laboratory design starts with KIMAXwith KIMAX

• Low Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)• Low Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)

• Will not burn or emit toxic fumes• Will not burn or emit toxic fumes

• Maximum corrosion resistance• Maximum corrosion resistance


pressure of the piping and fittings. In such a case, you may want to provide a pressure-reducing valve at the point of connection.

ConSiderationSBefore you start your design, review the local codes for any restrictions on the use of potable water. Many cities have restric-tions regarding what day and time of day an irrigation system can be operated. This is where a timer comes in handy.

A determination of the location, pressure, and availability of the water must be made. If the pressure is not adequate, a pump must be provided and located in an appropriate place on the site so it will not be too obvious.

Determining the water source is important because if the water source is from a private well, river, or other nonpotable source, the water should be tested and the results discussed with the landscape architect. Reclaimed rainwater has proven to be a great source for an irrigation system. Several state and city agencies have created standards for reclaimed water to be used for irrigation.

Figure 4 Pop-up rotary heads

Figure 5 Shrub heads

Joseph V. Messina, CPD, is the discipline director of plumbing engineering for CUH2A Inc., Architecture, Engineering, Planning in Atlanta. He has more than 30 years experience specializing in plumbing and fire protection design of instructional, research, and medical facilities. For more information or to comment on this article, e-mail [email protected].

Do not start your design unless you have an up-to-date site plan. The site plan must be accurate and include the proposed location and designation of various types of plants, as well as topographical elevations to develop the slope of the site.

reFerenCeSPlumbing Engineering Design Hand-1.book, Volume 3: Special Plumbing Systems, Chapter 4: Irrigation Systems, American Society of Plumbing Engi-neers.Frankel, Michael, 2. Facility Piping Systems Handbook, Second Edition, Chapter 7: Turf Irrigation Systems.

The beauty of porcelain.The strength of steel.

Deeper. Roomier. Soakier.Introducing the Maui - 60" x 30" x 16 5/8"At last ... a 15" deep tub with the practical elegance of porcelain enamel steel. The Maui is a generous 2" deeper than a standard recess bath, just perfect for soaking. The advanced thermal and sound insulation mean a quieter, more serene bathing experience than ever before. Made exclusively by Bootz in the U.S.A. Complies with ASME A112.19.1-2008/CSA B45.2-2008

Call us today at 812-423-5401

Also available in Mauicast 8/1/10.

MAUI DEEP SOAKER

Bootz IndustriesP.O. Box 18010

Evansville, IN 47719-1010(812) 423-5401 (812) 429-2254http://www.bootz.com E-mail: [email protected]




ChemDrain.

Used by some of the top research labs in the country. And you can bet they did their research.

Our ChemDrain® CPVC chemical waste drain pipe and �ttings system has quickly earned an outstanding reputation in the industry for its high performance and reliability. That’s why it’s trusted by our country’s best and brightest. Specify ChemDrain

for your next job and you’ll discover what top universities, manufacturers and researchers already know. charlottepipe.com

47877 CPF PS&D.indd 1 12/12/08 1:30:32 PM


By WinSTOn Huff, CPd, lEEd AP

Many people think that LEED and other sustainable rating systems apply only to new construction or major building renovations, but what about existing buildings? Can they also operate efficiently to save water and energy? Luckily, homeowners, operators, building owners, contractors, plumbing engineers, and architects can take steps in exist-ing structures to help them operate more efficiently.

emergenCy PraCtiCeSYou can save water and energy without purchasing new products. You just need to look at the way you do everyday things and determine if they are the most efficient way to operate a home or building. Sometimes, people find themselves in situations that force them to conserve or do without.

For instance, I live in Nashville, and we still are recovering from massive flooding last summer. At the time, our home was a virtual island, with all roads impassable, no landline phone, no power, and reduced water supplies. The floods had damaged waste and water treatment facilities, and all residents were encouraged to reduce water usage. For a city that averages 160 gallons of water per person, how could we cut our water consumption in half?

Following are some ways to reduce water usage in an emergency situation.

How to Make Existing Buildings More Efficient

THE gREEn COlumn


in the BathroomShut off the water faucet while brushing your teeth or •washing your hands and face. Use a cup of water to rinse your toothbrush and mouth •instead of running water. Use the first cold water from the faucet and don’t wait •for it to get warm. Shower only every two or three days and make them •short showers. Take a military shower: Turn the water on to pre-rinse, •turn the water off while soaping and shampooing, and then turn the water back on to rinse. Use environmentally friendly soaps and shampoos and •place buckets or open containers in the shower to collect runoff water, which can be used for irrigation or other outdoor uses. Place a ½-gallon jug of water or a brick in the toilet tank •to reduce the water used per flush. (Be careful to not block the flush valve and make sure the brick is not crum-bling.) Allow two uses of the toilet for liquid waste before flush-•ing.

in the Kitchen Switch to biodegradable paper plates, bowls, and glasses •to decrease the need for washing dishes. Use the dishwasher rarely and only with completely full •loads.If hand-washing dishes, use a pail of water for rinsing •instead of running water. Rinse fresh foods in a bowl of water instead of running •water. Postpone all nonessential cleaning.•

in the laundry RoomPostpone all nonessential clothes washing.•If you must wash clothes, wash only full loads with the •lowest water setting. Use environmentally friendly detergents and collect the •rinse water for use in irrigation and outdoor cleaning.

in the yardTurn off all irrigation systems.•Postpone all watering of plants.•Do not wash cars at home or in commercial car washes. •Do not use water to wash sidewalks or driveways. •Use the water from a dehumidifier or air-conditioner con-•densate to water plants.


eVeryday PraCtiCeS While many of the items listed above can be incorporated into your regular routines, others may not be practical. For example, many parents do not want to discourage their teenagers from taking showers. Here are some ideas for making small changes to everyday practices.

diy graywaterKeep buckets or other containers in bathrooms, kitchens, and laundry areas to collect:

Water discharged when you are waiting for the water to •warm in the shower or sinkRinse water from washing, cleaning fruits and vegetables, •brushing teeth, or shaving (use environmentally friendly products)Laundry machine discharge•This water can be used for irrigation and outdoor washing.

Be Energy Smart You can lower your energy bill and help your community use less clean energy by how you schedule your peak energy usage. How? The local electric utility has peak times of energy demand during the day, month, and year. During these peak demand times, the utility may buy electrical power from less environmentally friendly and more expen-sive providers, such as coal-fired and natural gas-powered generation facilities. Sometimes electrical power is trans-mitted over long distances. Such power can be 30 cents or more per kilowatt-hour. Here are some things you can do to reduce this demand charge.

Wash clothes at off-peak times, usually at night or early in •the morning. Wash dishes or run the dishwasher at off-peak times.•Shower at off peak-times. •

rePlaCementOperating a home or building is not free of cost or effort. Maintenance costs are necessary and can be frustrating, and it always seems that something breaks at the time you can least afford to fix it. Unfortunately, this is part of the cost of maintaining a building.

If an appliance must be replaced, you can purchase a more energy-efficient model, and sometimes rebates are available for these pieces of equipment. To find out more about equip-ment that qualifies for rebates, go to energysavers.gov.

You must be aware of the available options when plumb-ing equipment must be fixed or replaced. Here are some things you can do when you replace items in a facility.

In some facilities, up to 10 percent of the water usage •is from leaks. Replace all valves with high-quality valves made of quality material that will not leak or stick open a short time after installation. Install dual-flush valves on toilets. These valves allow the •user to choose a reduced amount of water to flush liquids or a full flush for solids. Some very good quality dual-flush valves are now on the market.



THE gREEn COlumn


When rebuilding or replacing leaking faucets and shower •valves, install low-flow aerators to reduce the flow of water through the fixture. When replacing a tank-type electric water heater with •another tank type, Energy Star recommends one with an Energy Factor greater than 0.82. Many water heaters with Energy Factors of 0.95 are on the market. When replacing a tank-type gas water heater with another •tank-type heater, look for an Energy Star-listed heater. (Visit energysavers.gov for a list of such water heaters.)Replace a tank-type water heater with an instantaneous •heater. However, these require gas piping and flue piping upgrades, which can add costs. They may not be right for every building.Replace a water heater with one with an efficiency rating •of 90 percent or more. These also can add gas and flue piping front-end cost increases. Solar water heaters are becoming more common, and •they may qualify for energy rebate programs. When replacing clothes washers and dishwashers, look for •those that have a Consortium for Energy Efficiency (CEE) rating of Tier 3. (Visit cee1.org for more information.) As you can see, many repairs or replacements can be

done with little extra investment, and they save water and energy costs. These changes can make a big difference in the amount of water and energy you and your community use.

For example, a large food service company discovered that its icemakers’ peak load occurred during the peak operation time in the kitchen. This added an energy load when the icemakers were making ice, and the heat from the icemakers added to the air-conditioning space load. The owner needed to replace the icemakers anyway, and he realized that he could buy icemakers with a larger storage capacity, so the ice could be made at night during off-peak energy load and off-peak operation times.

ligHt renoVationSMany interior upgrades and small renovation projects are not essential or required. For example, most of the profit for a small town paint store is not from people painting because they need to paint to protect a structure. Most of the profit is generated from people wanting to change the color or look of a space.

Real-world operations budgets need to include funds for light renovations of spaces. Sometimes these renovations are driven by efficiency, so here are some things that can be done to reduce water and energy usage in light renovations.

Upgrade to a low-flow showerhead or shower system. 1.5 •gallons per minute is usually the least amount of water you need to use.Replace the flush valves in water closets with dual-flush •valves.



Winston Huff, CPD, LEED AP, is a project manager, plumbing fire protection designer, and sustainable coordinator with Smith Seckman Reid Consulting Engineers in Nashville, Tenn. He is on the U.S. Green Building Council’s Water Efficiency (WE) Technical Advisory Group (TAG). He was the founding editor of Life Support and Biosphere Science and has served as its editor-in-chief. He is editor of Me Green You Green (megreenyougreen.com), a LEED credit data bank. For more information or to comment on this article, e-mail [email protected].

Install a rain barrel or other •type of rainwater harvesting system. Enlist a Water Sense-certified •contractor to upgrade the irrigation system. Install a graywater system to •collect water from showers and washing machines.Install a continuous energy •and water monitor that records and displays energy and water use in real time. Studies have shown that having such a device helps reduce energy consumption.

Smart meterSSmart meters can help reduce energy and water use in exist-ing buildings and homes. Two types of energy meters are available. One type records the amount of energy used for a particular amount of time, usually a month. Another type is a demand meter, which monitors the amount of energy used during a peak time, usually within a 15-minute window. It can report the time of day when demand is the highest.

Let’s look at how that saves energy and water. As stated earlier, peak demands on the power grid may force utilities to buy power from other systems or use a less environmentally friendly generation method such as coal. Smart meters can monitor the power grid to determine when the grid is at peak-load operations. These meters then communicate with the major appliances in a building and delay when they turn on to reduce the load on the power grid.

As a plumbing engineer, business owner, or homeowner, you need to learn about these systems and find ways to reduce energy consumption in your house or facility. Develop plans, and know what equipment you will purchase when the time comes for replacement. Better yet, know the life expectancy of your equipment and set up a replace-ment plan and budget before a failure on a holiday weekend causes a major disaster.

Energy-efficiency Resources Energy Savers: energysavers.gov

WaterSense: epa.gov/WaterSense

Energy Star: energystar.gov

Consortium for Energy Efficiency:

cee1.org

Low Impact Development Strategies

and Practices: epa.gov/owow/

nps/lid/costs07

Me Green you Green:

megreenyougreen.com

Visit Us at ASPE’s EPE Show in Philadelphia – Booth #1133


By J. JOE SCOTT ii, CPd, fASPE

What have you done lately to learn more about sustainability? This question seems to be on the mind of everyone in our indus-try. The rapid development of sustainable products that has occurred during the last five years is affecting the way we think about designing our projects. I remember way back in junior high school when we talked about ecology and the environment and why we need to be more environmentally con-science, but it seemed that while we talked a good story, we didn’t actually do much about it. However, the changes that are occurring today are causing us to rethink how we design buildings to lessen their effect on the environment.

At my company, I cannot think of one project for which we are not implementing sustainable concepts in some portion of the design. One of the more interesting com-ponents that is getting attention is solar hot water heating. A number of new technologies are making solar hot water heating a viable alternative to the conventional systems used to heat water. The selection of a solar technol-ogy depends on a project’s location, as you can utilize the sun’s energy in several different ways. The interesting aspect of solar hot water heating is how widely this technology is used across the world and how little it is used in the United States. Some areas of the world utilize solar water-heating systems as their primary source of hot water and do not use a second-ary energy source of any significance.

As we begin all of our projects, we review the potential for alternative energy sources for several of our building systems, with the intention of reducing energy consump-tion from nonrenewable sources. Often this requires close collaboration with the entire design team to provide a coordinated approach to the design of the building, so all of the components work together to provide an economical, yet sophisticated, design solu-tion. The amount of effort we put into review-ing the various options can be substantial, but the amount of energy that we can save also can be substantial.

What Are You Doing About Sustainability?

lESSOnS lEARnEd


THE 2030 CHAllEngEArchitecture 2030, a nonprofit, nonpartisan, and independent organization, was estab-lished in response to the global-warming crisis with the mission to rapidly transform the u.S. and global building sector from a significant contributor of greenhouse gas emissions to a central part of the solution to the global-warming crisis.

To accomplish this, Architecture 2030 has issued The 2030 Challenge, asking the archi-tecture and building community to adopt the following targets:

All new buildings, developments, and »major renovations shall be designed to meet a fossil fuel, greenhouse gas-emitting, energy consumption perfor-mance standard of 50 percent of the regional (or country) average for that building type.

At a minimum, an equal amount of »existing building area shall be reno-vated annually to meet a fossil fuel, greenhouse gas-emitting, energy consumption performance standard of 50 percent of the regional (or country) average for that building type.

The fossil fuel reduction standard for »all new buildings and major renova-tions shall be increased to 70 percent in 2015, 80 percent in 2020, 90 percent in 2025, and carbon-neutral in 2030 (using no fossil fuel greenhouse gas-emitting energy to operate).

for more information, visit architecture2030.org.

The 2030 Challenge (see sidebar) has caused building designers to completely rethink strategies in building performance issues. The architects in my firm are taking many more options into account and are exploring new ways to design spaces and building skins to take advantage of these new strategies.

The real question is: What are you doing? The use of solar energy and the reuse of water can go a long way toward making us more sustainable and move us farther along the path to carbon neutrality, but we often have to wait for products to be developed that we can use to make our projects more sustainable. However, sustainability goes beyond prod-ucts. It starts with how we look at and design buildings and the methods we utilize to document those designs. What would happen if we actually went paperless? Can you imag-ine a time when we ceased to use paper? It probably won’t happen in my lifetime, but I can foresee a time when we document our designs in an electronic medium and the con-tractors build from that electronic medium. We are starting to see the use of building information modeling in the system coor-dination process. This is a dramatic change from the conventional development of coor-dination drawings by the contractor and is a much more interactive process. While BIM is just starting to be used, it has great potential. I have participated in projects using BIM, and I am convinced that it is the way build-ings need to be coordinated. It starts with designers using the software to design their systems and then incorporates the contrac-tor’s detailed modeling of the systems so that our drawings become true three-dimensional representations of what is actually built.

So how sustainable are you? I am very pleased that my firm is advancing sustainabil-ity and developing not only system designs, but also potentially other methods that will be used in the performance of our building systems to save resources and make our carbon footprints smaller. Are you up to that challenge?

Joe Scott is senior plumbing designer for Cannon Design in St. Louis. To comment on this article or for more information, e-mail [email protected].

Don’t rede�ne the engineer assessment. Remember, they’re called speci�cations for a reason.When an engineer speci�es cast iron pipe for a speci�c job, it’s because they believe it’s the right material needed to get the job done correctly and e�ciently. Engineers know that using cast iron instead of plastic for speci�c jobs eliminates costly extra steps for things like �re-stopping, noise reduction and thermal expansion. And they know that even after the extra steps are taken to make plastic comparable to cast iron, plastic is still outperformed because it’s just the wrong material for the job. Simply put, there’s a time for plastic and a time for cast iron. The time for cast iron being when the engineer speci�es it. Because if you think about it, they don’t call them speci�cations for nothing.

Suggestifications [suh g-jest-uh-fi-kay-shuns]: n. vague descriptions or loose assessments of what a job may or may not need. The engineer suggestifications stated cast ironpipe so they chose plastic.

1.800.438.6091 / www.charlottepipe.com

59291 CPF Plumbing Systems & Design.indd 1 2/2/10 9:58 AM



By ROy C.E. AHlgREn

You might ask why the official magazine of the American Society of Plumbing Engineers [my emphasis] includes a column on hydronic HVAC systems.

Some answers to that include:ASPE members are curious about and interested in build-•ing systems in general.Plumbing engineers sometimes are responsible for •designing both plumbing and HVAC systems.Engineers who deal only with plumbing systems often •work in companies that also have an HVAC division, and they work on the same projects.Hydronic and plumbing systems have many similar com-•ponents and design objectives.In the next couple of columns I’ll discuss some of the simi-

larities and the important differences between plumbing and hydronic systems.

tHe Fundamental deSign diFFerenCeChapter 6 of Plumbing Engineering Design Handbook, Volume 2 lists five design objectives for hot water distribu-tion systems. They must:

Provide adequate amounts of water at the prescribed 1. temperature to all fixtures.Perform safely.2. Use an economical heat source.3. Be cost-effective and durable.4. Be economical, with reasonable maintenance.5.

The design objectives in hydronic heating systems are virtually identical, with one very important difference. In a plumbing system, the “adequate amount” is determined by the number and nature of all of the plumbing fixtures, as well as the type of building and the expected variations in usage. In hydronic systems, the “adequate amount” is based on the amount of heat the water can carry to provide a comfortable environment for the occupants. A hydronic system is a heat transfer system, not a water delivery system.

The fundamental question then becomes: “How much heat does the system have to transfer to provide comfort?” The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) has developed tools to help define “comfort” and calculate the heat-transfer rate required to achieve it. These standards and computations are used in a load calculation at the beginning of the build-ing design process to answer that question.

Why Hydronics?HydROniCS for PlumBing EnginEERS

oPen VerSuS CloSed SyStemSBoth plumbing and hydronic systems might use the same source of heat—often a boiler. The name might be a little misleading since neither system requires the water to actually boil. The boiler simply provides an economical and safe way to transfer heat to the water. The temperature required in a hot water distribution system is often limited or tempered to prevent injury at the plumbing fixture. The temperature in a hydronic system might be considerably higher because the water never leaves the system. It simply cools as it delivers heat and then returns to the boiler.

Higher water supply temperatures at a heating device can significantly increase its heat output. For example, the upper temperature limit for low-temperature heating systems is 250°F. Therefore, a hydronic system operating above 212°F must be pressurized to keep the water from boiling. This leads to another important difference between the systems: A hot water distribution system is an open system in normal operation, while a hydronic system operating under pressure must be a closed system.

Pumps are applied differently in open and closed systems. A plumbing system may not need a pump. Water coming from the city’s supply system may have enough pressure to overcome elevation differences from the bottom to the top-most fixture, as well as overcome friction losses in the heater, piping, and fittings, and still have enough residual pressure to allow the plumbing fixture to operate properly. If the city supply pressure isn’t adequate, then a pressure booster pump must be used to deliver water in that open system. On the other hand, modern hydronic systems always use a pump, but the pump in a closed system only has to overcome friction loss. Elevation differences in a closed system are irrelevant in determining the amount of work the pump must apply to the water.

Water QualityA last, very important difference between plumbing and hydronic systems is the nature of the water. Domestic hot and cold water plumbing systems must deliver high-quality water. The health and safety of each building occupant depend on good-quality water. On the other hand, the water in a hydronic system often contains suspended par-ticles of rust or dirt. It even may contain antifreeze agents that would be completely unacceptable in a domestic plumbing system.

We have a long way to go before we finish this discussion of similarities and differences. I welcome any comments or questions you might have on the topic.

The design objectives in hydronic heating systems are virtually identical to those of plumbing systems, with one very important difference.

Roy Ahlgren is a consultant to the hydronics industry. He served as chair of the ASHRAE Technical Committee on Hydronic and Steam Systems and was the director of the Bell & Gossett Little Red Schoolhouse. For more information or to comment on this article, e-mail [email protected].

www.bradfordwhite.com | Built to be the Best™ | To Find A Wholesaler Call 800.523.2931*Ranking is based on the 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009 CLEAReports by Clear Seas Research. Please visit www.clearseasresearch.com for additional information. © 2010, Bradford White Corporation. All rights reserved.

“Solid, long lasting and easy

to repair”

“Fit and finish of their product

is first class”

And the number oneresponse…“Quality”

“The largest portion of ourtanks installed are Bradford

White natural draft, we like the FVIR system”

“(They) have a great engineering

department”

“Support of PHCC”

“We serviceBradford White andhave thousands ofdollars (worth) oftheir parts and

never use them”

“Bradford is just all around

(a) better heater and company”

“Water Heater with the best gas control valve

on the market”

“American Made”“Not sold retail”

“My dealer and Bradford

White couldnot be anybetter than they are”

For the Fourth Consecutive Year, Bradford White remains the tank water heater brand most purchased

by Plumbing and Heating Contractors. We are also, again, the most recommended brand.

The comments above are just a few taken from the 2009 CLEAReport* by Clear Seas Research.

We wanted to let your industry colleagues speak for us. They prove that our commitment to the trade

and our pledge to provide a premium product at the best possible price is the way to do business.

Thank you for your continued support. We’ll keep striving, innovating, and working hard every day

to be the water heater brand of choice for all plumbing and heating professionals. Remember, if your

wholesaler doesn’t carry Bradford White, ask why!

We’re the Talk of the Industry. Here’s a Sampling of Contractor Reviews…

“Solid, long lasting and easy

to repair”

“Fit and finish of their product

is first class”

And the number oneresponse…“Quality”

“The largest portion of ourtanks installed are Bradford

White natural draft, we like the FVIR system”

“(They) have a great engineering

department”

“Support of PHCC”

“We serviceBradford White andhave thousands ofdollars (worth) oftheir parts and

never use them”

“Bradford is just all around

(a) better heater and company”

“Water Heater with the best gas control valve

on the market”

“American Made”“Not sold retail”

“My dealer and Bradford

White couldnot be anybetter than they are”


By STEVE ClARK, PE, CEm

In North America, we do not heat or cool buildings; we heat or air-condition them. Is the temperature too cold? Crank up the heat. Is it too hot? Crank up the air-conditioning. This method of temperature control is ingrained in our language and in the names of our systems, our companies, and our organizations. It is ingrained in our thought process. Few in the United States can even conceive of ways to make interior spaces comfortable other than blasting them with refrigerated air. When a client asks us to engineer a comfortable space, we automatically give him a forced-air air-conditioning system.


Heating in the United States is treated as an afterthought—for instance, variable air volume with perimeter heat and packaged terminal air-conditioning with electric heat. Similarly, ventilation is always lumped with heating and cooling. This seems strange, since ventilation is a health issue, while heating and cooling are primarily comfort issues. The flow of fresh air into a space really shouldn’t depend on the space’s thermal requirements, but again, this is how things historically have been done.

Thus, we call engineered building systems related to space comfort HVAC engineering instead of heating, cooling, and ventilation.

The remaining mechanical design tasks concerning piping systems are lumped under the title of plumbing engineering. This has led us to divide the engineering tasks of designing mechanical systems into separate disciplines: HVAC engineering and plumb-ing engineering. This unfortunate division has had a profound impact on the resulting energy use of U.S. buildings and our failure to adopt more efficient technologies.

This article is the first of a series re-introducing the idea of fluid comfort, or hydronics, and serves as an open call for plumbing engineers to take a leadership role in engineering energy-efficient space

Plumbing Engineers

and

Space ComfortPart 1: Why Plumbing Engineers Should Take Charge!


comfort systems based on hydronics and associated technologies. I also invite HVAC engineers to join this movement and expand their expertise to become comfort engineers. (About one-half of the comfort level in a space is determined by the radiant effects around you, and the other half is from the temperature, humidity, and motion of the air, so why shouldn’t we all learn to be comfort engineers and not just plumbing or HVAC engineers?)

tHe blank StareWhen told statistics such as 60 percent of new construction in Germany uses radi-ant cooling, North Americans tend to stare blankly, sort of how the Grinch looked when he discovered that Christmas was still being celebrated despite his efforts to destroy it. Radiant cooling has been dismissed as impractical in the United States because of high humidity levels in many parts of the country. Also, Americans are accustomed to using cold blasts of air to cool interior spaces. The blank stare also results when we learn that European ventilation systems operate independently of the heating and cooling systems and that they use water to distribute comfort instead of air.

One could assume that the Europeans just don’t get it, except that in our industry, most of the latest innovations come from Europe.

glOSSARyActive solar The use of a mechanical system

to actively capture and convert solar energy into a usable form of energy

ASHRAE An association of professionals working in the fields of heating, ventila-tion, air-conditioning, and refrigeration, including indoor air quality, building design and operation, and environmental control for food processing and industry (ashrae.org)

ASPE The international organization for pro-fessionals skilled in the design, specifica-tion, and inspection of plumbing systems (aspe.org)

Biomass energy The energy embodied in organic matter that is released when chemical bonds are broken by microbial digestion, combustion, or decomposition

British thermal unit A unit of heat equal to the amount of heat required to raise 1 pound of water 1 degree fahrenheit at sea level

Chiller A piece of equipment that utilizes a refrigeration cycle to produce cold (chilled) water

Cogeneration The simultaneous generation of both electric power and heat

Dedicated outside air system (DOAS) A fresh-air delivery system (ventilation) that is engineered and operated indepen-dently of the space heating and cooling system, often incorporating heat recov-ery from the exhaust air system

Fan coil An indoor component of a hydronic system used in place of a furnace/air-conditioning unit to provide heating and cooling at a room level

Geothermal energy Power extracted from the heat stored in the Earth

Ground coil An array of pipes that transfers geothermal energy to a fluid

Heat pump A device that transfers heat from one medium (often cooler) to another medium (often warmer) for heating or conversely for cooling

Air-source heat pump A device that transfer thermal energy between out-door air and a hydronic loop

Air-to-air heat pump A device that directs thermal transfer between outdoor and indoor air

Ground-source heat pump A special type of water-source heat pump that is connected to a ground coil

Consider condensing boilers, dual-flush toilets, PEX and PP-R piping systems, and in-floor radiant heating. Clearly they get it, and they are good engineers.

Why are Americans so slow on the uptake? In the human brain, certain chemicals must be present to feed the transfer of informa-tion. Without these chemicals, there is no communication. For engineered systems, this function is performed by engineering societies, such as the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers for HVAC system design.

tHiS iS a Plumbing engineering iSSueWhat society represents hydronics or radiant cooling? It is unreasonable to expect an HVAC society to promote these technologies, so years ago, manufactur-ers teamed up to form the Radiant Panel Association. While useful and successful, this is not an engineering society. These functions should and do fall under plumb-ing engineering.

How much difference is there between heating water and piping it to a faucet and heating water and piping it to a radiant panel? We have to shake off the false notion that if something has to do with making people comfortable, then plumbing engineers can’t touch it. On the contrary, there are many

A fluid comfort system at work in a Montana residence.


important reasons why plumbing engineers (and their engineering society) need to address space comfort head on. Let’s look at these reasons on many different levels.

global Reason #1: Energy Savings It takes more than 10 times the amount of energy to move 1 British thermal unit of heat 1 foot using air versus using water.

global Reason #2: Energy Options Hydronics can easily tie into thermal sources such as geothermal, solar thermal, cogeneration, trigeneration, thermal stor-age, waste heat recovery, district heating and cooling, and other efficient options.

national Reason #1: Energy Efficiency The United States consumes more than 40 percent of the world’s energy, U.S. build-ings consume more than 40 percent of the nation’s total energy, and HVAC systems consume more than 40 percent of U.S. building energy. This makes U.S. building HVAC systems the prime candidate for energy efficiency for environmental, eco-nomic, and national security issues.

national Reason #2: Jobs Hydronic systems mean local engineering and contracting jobs, while packaged air-conditioning units can potentially send jobs abroad.

Company Reason #1: Being a leader Your firm needs to position itself in the new era as a leader in sustainable design.

Company Reason #2: more Work Your firm is more flexible when its engi-neers have more capabilities.

Personal Reason #1: more Exposure You become a key player in introducing energy-efficient technology.

Personal Reason #2: Better Opportunities You expand your worth and career options.

SkillS needed to engineer Fluid ComFort SyStemSAs a plumbing engineer, you already have half of the practical knowledge needed. You are already the expert on pipes, pumps,

Water-source heat pump A device that transfers thermal energy between a hydronic loop and indoor air, with the hydronic loop often supplemented by a boiler and/or cooling towerWater-to-water heat pump A device that transfers thermal energy between two hydronic loops

Hydronics (fluid comfort) The use of water as the heat-transfer medium in heat-ing and cooling systemsInternational Ground Source Heat Pump

Association A member-driven organiza-tion established to advance geothermal heat pump technology on local, state, national, and international levels (igshpa.okstate.edu)

John Siegenthaler, PE Author of Modern Hydronic Heating, Radiant Architecture, and Radiant Basics

Radiant cooling Removing sensible heat from a space by absorbing the heat into lower-temperature surfaces, primarily by radiant heat transfer

Radiant heating Adding sensible heat to a space by radiating heat from warmer surfaces primarily by radiant heat trans-fer, trending toward large-area, low-temperature radiant surfaces (like in floor heat) versus the historic systems, which had high temperatures and small surface areas (like cast iron steam radiators)

Radiant Panel Association An association of manufacturers, distributors, designers, dealers, and installers of radiant panel heating and cooling systems and compo-nents (radiantpanelassociation.org)

Sensible cooling A process in which only the sensible heat of a space is removed to reduce its temperature without changing the air’s moisture content

Solar thermal A system that captures solar energy to heat a fluid to generate electric power for space heating or for domestic hot water

Thermal storage A technology that stores heat, usually from active solar collectors or waste heat recovery, in an insulated repository for later use in space heating, domestic or process hot water, or to gen-erate electricity

Trigeneration The simultaneous production of mechanical power, heat, and cooling from a single heat source such as fuel or solar energy

Ventilation The intentional movement of fresh air from outside a building to the

insideWaste heat recovery Recover-ing heat discharged as a by-product of one process to provide heat needed by a second process

@www.neoperl.com

Covering a range of sizes from OD 5/16” to 15/16”, NEOPERL® pressure compensating flow regulators are easy to insert into your application device and maintain a constant flow (flow rates from 0.1 to 30 gpm).

Plumbing Engineers and Space Comfort


AcornVac, Inc.13818 Oaks Avenue, Chino, CA 91710

Email: [email protected]

VACUUM PLUMBING SYSTEMS

Overhead piping provides more flexibilityand saves on installation costs

Vacuum toilet requires only ½ gallon per flush

We can assist you through the entire construction process

The Versatile Plumbing Solutionfor Renovation and NewConstruction Challenges

Product SolutionsThe versatility of the AcornVac System makes it the first choice in renovation and new construction projections.With our system there are installation cost savings,material cost savings, water use savings, andsewage discharge savings.

Service SolutionsAcornVac can assist you through the entire construction process. We offer direct assistance with system engineering, code approval, plan review, installation training, site visits, system start up and commissioning.

Green Solutions½ gallon vacuum flush reduces water consumptionby as much as 68%. The water and sewage savings canbe thousands of dollars and millions of gallons peryear for larger applications.

For more information visit our website atwww.acornvac.com

Visit us at ASPE-EPE - Booth number 1501


fluid flow, water heating, distribution, and storage systems. You may need to learn how to calculate heating and cooling loads in British thermal units and convert that to gallons per minute. You may need more background in selecting fan coils, heat pumps, and chillers and sizing radiant panels, solar panels, and geothermal ground coils. Studying John Siegenthaler’s books on hydronics and radiant heating and cooling will get you a long way. Radiant cooling literature in North America is still in its infancy, but it is growing. These are areas where plumbing engineers and a society such as the American Society of Plumbing Engineers could deliver a much-needed service.

One area in which I think plumbing engineers should develop an expertise is dedicated outside air systems (DOAS). These relatively simple systems go hand in hand with fluid comfort systems and make tremendous sense from both an energy and indoor air quality standpoint. (I will address the simple design steps for DOAS in a future article.) While ven-tilation is not considered an aspect of plumbing engineering, it has always been part of heating and cooling. Addressing ventilation properly is an integral part of any successful radi-ant or hydronic system since it provides both fresh air and humidity control. It should not take any engineer out of his or her comfort zone.

HoW Can Plumbing engineerS get inVolVed?Adding focus on hydronic, radiant, and DOAS systems is also not a large leap for plumbing engineering as a whole.


Visit us at EPE Booth #234

Plumbing lines (green pipes) and fluid comfort piping (blue pipes) typically run side by side and often are installed by the same contractor.

ZURN INDUSTRIES, LLC1801 Pittsburgh Avenue, Erie, PA 16502814-455-0921, Fax 814-454-7929www.zurn.com

The HydroVantage™ Flush Valve is the latest edition to Zurn’s EcoVantage®

breakthrough product offering designed for new and retrofit installations. A patented hydro generator turbine creates energy during each flush, eliminating external power consumption or battery replacement for up to ten years. Environmental Trending Technology™ and 4.0 Sensor Technology™ make it a truly unique, innovative self-sustainable product.

Zurn HydroVantage™

Introducing the ZGEN6200EV Series Flush Valve

www.zurn.com

NEW CONSTRUCTION | LABOR SAVING PRODUCTS | LOCAL INVENTORY | RETROFIT

HIGH PERFORMANCE SOLUTIONS | WATER CONSERVATION | LEED ACCREDITED

Zurn has a 100-year tradition of developing

quality engineered products to meet the growing needs of

water conservation, water safety, water control and water comfort.

Our product offering combines both value and performance to

deliver significant savings for the building owner. Zurn paired

performance fixture systems provide a complete

commercial plumbing product solution.

Zurn Wave-HydroVantage-PS&D:Layout 1 9/13/10 10:42 AM Page 1



R

Another manufacturer’smodulating boiler that approaches 99% at its lowest firing rate is not equivalent to TURBOPOWER 99.Settling for that could cost thousands ofdollars every year in fuel.

Many of the lines that traditionally sepa-rated disciplines are fading, and we are moving to more holistic building systems. For example, the move in the fire sprinkler industry to residential systems includes a shift toward combined domestic cold water and fire sprinkler systems.

We also have seen an increase in the popularity of combination domestic hot water and space heating systems. The need for wiser use of resources has forced us to take a broader view of what it means to serve our customers. The core group of manufacturing companies that traditionally supports plumbing, such as pipe, pump, water heating, flow, and control companies,

will see more demand for their expertise. The industry also will be able to expand to include providers of many of today’s newer technologies, such as active solar, cogenera-tion and trigeneration, geothermal energy, biomass energy, thermal storage, and air-source chillers and heat pumps.

In the United States, designing a geother-mal heat exchanger currently falls under the expertise of the International Ground Source Heat Pump Association, while tying this energy source to a radiant panel would be guided by the Radiant Panel Associa-tion. Wouldn’t it be great if one industry could bring these systems together under one tent? If a project’s best energy options

are to be served by a combination of solar and geothermal energy, using hydronics to transport this energy to radiant panels, high-efficiency fan coils, and domestic hot water, one national engineering society could be the definitive information source.

I am not a believer in change just for the sake of change. I do believe in recognizing when something is broken and devising a plan to fix it. I believe in learning from others in terms of what works and what does not work, and I believe that by working together we can create buildings that are healthy, comfortable, and energy efficient. I believe that plumbing engineers can be instrumen-tal in making this happen.

I think we need to stop relying on history and shift to what the future should look like. Some might argue that two engineer-ing societies claiming expertise in comfort and energy will cause confusion. I say that having two strong voices in this critical arena can only improve matters. Lastly, I am saying we need to act now!

Coming uPIn my next article, I will go into more design detail regarding fluid comfort systems, including heating, cooling, and ventilation requirements; how to design a space comfort system using fluids; and how hydronics can help us on the road to net zero.

Steve Clark has worked as a Professional Engineer in the United States, Canada, and the UK. He has worked as a development and applications engineer for the Trane Company and as an HVAC and energy engineer for consulting engineering companies, including his own firms,

with an emphasis on building energy efficiency. His building system designs have won energy-efficiency awards, including First Place for Commercial Buildings from ASHRAE. He holds several international patents on HVAC and piping systems. Steve’s 30 years of experience in building energy optimization have led him to believe that hydronic systems are a key component to efficient building design and that selecting the right pipes is key to an efficient and reliable piping system design. To help fill this need in North America, he now serves as President for North America for the German-made plastic piping manufacturer Aquatherm. For more information or to comment on this article, e-mail [email protected].




H H H H H H H H

2010 ASPE ConvEntion And EnginEErEd Plumbing ExPoSitionoCtobEr 30–novEmbEr 3, 2010 | PhilAdElPhiA, PEnnSylvAniA

E d u C At i o n • P r o f E S S i o n A l d E v E l o P m E n t nEtworking • ExPoSition • Fun • Food • bEvErAgES m u S i C • r E C E P t i o n S • b A n q u E t • t o u r S

w w w . A S P E . o r g / 2 0 1 0 C o n v E n t i o n A n d E P E

It Only Happens Once Every Two Years!

This year it’s in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,

October 30–November 3, 2010. Put it on your calendar.

Register NOW!

discover • challenge • Build


ASPE’s Engineered Plumbing ExpositionThe Largest Plumbing Industry Exposition Under One Roof

The 2010 ASPE Convention and

Engineered Plumbing Exposition is the

world’s largest gathering of plumbing

industry products, equipment, and

services for plumbing engineers,

designers, and contractors under one

roof. More than 300 manufacturers,

suppliers, and consultants will have

technical exhibits featuring everything

from pipes to pumps to fixtures,

from compressors to computers to

consulting services. This year look for

the international exhibitors.

Exclusive Access to the National Constitution CenterOn Sunday night, October 31, 2010, ASPE has reserved the entire National Constitution

Center exclusively for attendees to the ASPE Convention and Engineered Plumbing

Exposition. Attendees will be able to walk the Center and see all the exhibitions at their

leisure. Enjoy an evening of fun, food, dancing, and music while you mingle with the

country’s founding fathers. There also will be special additional shows of the 17-minute

multimedia and live action presentation called “Freedom Rising,” combining film, a live

actor, and video projection on a 360-degree screen. REMINDER: Sponsors and Patrons of

the 2010 ASPE Convention and EPE receive complimentary tickets to this event based on

the level of their sponsorship. Extra tickets will be available for an additional cost.

firSt timE in thE unitEd StAtES!2010 World Toilet SummitPhiladelphia, october 30–november 3, 2010in partnership with the 2010 ASPE Convention

Ever wonder why 2.6 billion people around the world still live without proper drinking

water and sanitation? ASPE is proud to partner with the ICC and the World Toilet Orga-

nization to bring the World Toilet Summit to the United States, to educate Americans

on global plumbing practices and problems. The WTS offers tremendous opportunities

to meet with and learn from your international peers, as well as the chance to attend a

special international track of educational sessions (see the education item for details).

PLUS: WTO founder Jack Sim will be making a special keynote speech on

Monday, Nov. 1, to further educate attendees about potable water and sanita-

tion needs around the world.

Ring in the Future of ASPEThe theme of this year’s Convention is “Ring in the Future of ASPE.” Why? 2010 is indeed

ringing in ASPE’s future, with the election and induction of a new board of directors,

including a brand-new president of ASPE, as well as the introduction of ASPE’s next execu-

tive director, who will build on the current executive director’s success to bring ASPE into

the forefront of the international plumbing engineering industry.

To assist in that effort, this year the Society is partnering with the International Code

Council and the World Toilet Organization to combine the ASPE Convention, the Mechani-

cal, Plumbing, and Fuel Gas Code meeting, and the World Toilet Summit into one event.

The ability to meet and mingle with so many professionals from so many different aspect

of the international plumbing community make this year’s Convention second to none. You

can’t miss it!

ASPE thanks the following sponsors of the 2010 Convention and EPE. Their support helps make the Convention an exciting and innovative event for all at-

tendees.

diAmond

ViegaPlAtinum

Bradford WhiteCopper Development AssociationMoen Commercial

gold

Charlotte Pipe Zurn

bronzE

BeaconMedaesMcGuire Manufacturing Co.Mueller IndustriesSloanSyncroFloT&S Brass and Bronze Works

For more information on sponsorship op-portunities, call 703.683.8500, ext. 207.

www.ASPE.org/2010ConvEntionAndEPE


Enhance Your Career with Education

ASPE has put together a spectacular educational program for the 2010

Convention, including sessions for anyone involved in the plumbing

industry—from engineers and designers to code officials and inspectors

to master plumbers. Six time blocks offer attendees almost 50 technical

programs from which to chose, including numerous sessions on

international and green topics. Special tracks presented by the ICC and

the WTO will broaden your career horizons as you learn about plumbing

practices around the world.

Every technical program offers continuing education units (CEUs) or

professional development hours (PDHs). If you take full advantage of the

educational program, you can earn more than seven hours of continuing

education for recertification purposes.

Special Keynote Speaker: Vince PapaleWalk-on Philadelphia Eagles Special Teams Member and Subject of the Movie Invincible

Going from being called a loser with no pedigree and no college football experience to captain of an NFL team is the stuff from which dreams and movies are made. Using video clips from Invincible, Disney, and ESPN, Vince, a tremendous storyteller, shares his tips on seizing

opportunities, overcoming odds, fulfilling potential, and taking it to the highest level. His energy, passion, and humor will keep you on the edge of your seat. He made second effort a part of his personality and got the ultimate last laugh on those who doubted him. He will bring you from tears of sadness to tears of joy and bring you to your feet as you feel his journey is your trip as well.

Come hear Vince Papale’s keynote address at the 2010 ASPE Convention, Monday, November 1, 2010, at 10:00 a.m.

PArty with thE EPE ExhibitorS

Monday night, November 1, 2010, is Exhibitor Hospitality night. As you

make the rounds of the exhibits at the EPE, ask the exhibitor’s booth

personnel the time and location of their private party, reception, or

dinner. There are literally dozens and dozens of hospitality suites and

special parties and receptions, so don’t be shy!

dinE And dAnCE At thE ASPE bAnquEt

On Tuesday night, November 2, 2010, is the closing banquet. Be sure to

attend, enjoy the food, drink, and festivities, and help honor your peers

as the highest honors and awards the Society can bestow are announced,

and members are welcomed into the Kenneth Wentink College of Fellows.

This is a fun and relaxing opportunity to see old friends and continue to

network. At the banquet, the ASPE 2010–2012 board of directors will be

introduced and sworn in, followed by an evening of relaxation, entertain-

ment, music, and dancing.

Practical Engineering Track

Booster Pump Sizing

Philadelphia Single Stack

FOG Harvest: How, When, and Why

NSF 61 and Booster Systems

Variable-speed Fire Pumps

Fire Sprinkler Shop Drawing Review

High-performance Hot Water Systems

Fire Protection 101

Foam Extinguishing Systems

Green Systems Track

Solar Engineering by the Numbers

Green Opportunities in Medal Gases

Federal Leadership in

High-performance and

Sustainable Buildings

ICC Green Construction Code and the

IAPMO Green Supplement

Rainwater Harvesting

Graywater System Design

Advanced and Emerging

Technologies Track

Globalization in Construction

Designing Plumbing Systems for

High-rise Buildings

Roof Drain Technologies

Life Cycle Assessment

Radiant Cooling

Water Quality’s Effects on Energy-

and Water-efficient Devices

Fluid Comfort: Back to the Future

Social and Legal Track

Social Networking: Is It for You?

Potty Parity: What’s the Issue?

How Do You Known if You Have an

Enforceable Contract?

The Plumbing Engineer Goes to

Arbitration

WTO International Track

Practical Toilet Design on

a Global Level

2.6 Billion People Want Your Products

Toilet Design for Many Uses

Bottom of the Pyramid—Potential in

the Billions Toilet Economics and

Marketing to

Toilet Economic and Marketing to

the Poor

Sanitation and Creative Capitalism

Channels that Advocate Sanitation

Professional Janitorial Services 101

Advocacy and Potty Parity

Cleaning and Personal Care Services

ICC Technical Track

Innovative Green Provisions of the

2009 IPC and IGCC

Protecting the Water Supply

Irrigation: A Sustainable Approach

Residential Fire Sprinklers

Optimizing Plumbing Plan Review

Prizes, Prizes, and More Prizes!All Convention and EPE Attendees receive prize-draw-

ing tickets for both the grand prizes and the floor prizes.

Grand prizes: Eight 65-in LCD HD TVs

Floor prizes: Laptops every 15 minutes

ASPE PokErPlay ASPE Poker on the show floor for the chance to win

up to $1,000 cash instantly!

thE ASPE AlmAnACWant to earn more prize-drawing tickets? Fill the ASPE

Almanac with stickers from the Sponsors and Patrons

and turn the completed book in for extra grand-prize

and floor-prize tickets!


the 2010 ASPE Convention and Engineered Plumbing Exposition will be held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, october 30 through november 3. Philadelphia offers spectacular historical sites at every turn, entertainment options that will boggle the mind, eatery choices that will boggle the stomach, thousands of shopping opportunities, museums, galleries, and artisans for every palate, and educational institutions that rival the world’s best.

Discover Philadelphia with Our Special ToursASPE has arranged numerous adventurous and exciting tours throughout the convention that will allow you to enjoy and share the widest possible charm and magic of the city and its vistas. There is also a special post-convention to the Big Apple. Tours include:

Colonial Philadelphia Experience H

The Philadelphia Experience H

The Simple Life: Pennsylvania’s Amish Country H

Philadelphia Unique Mural Arts Tour H

Brandywine Valley, Longwood Gardens, and Winterthur H

Big Apple Tour (after the Convention) H

Drinks, Schmoozing, and Car Racing: The Perfect Saturday EveningAfter the delegates meeting on Saturday, Oct. 30, a wine and cheese reception will be held so you can get up close and personal with the candidates running for the 2010–2012 ASPE board of directors. Then, get ready to cheer on your Chapter at the “How Fast Can It Go?” chap-ter-to-chapter grand prix, where ASPE chapters compete to design and build a plumbing-related vehicle and then to see what it can do on the race track. Be sure to make time to cheer on your fellow chapter members as they compete, while savoring some drinks and snacks before hitting the town for dinner.

Travel Discounts!flying to PhilAdElPhiA?American Airlines is providing those attending the ASPE 2010 Convention and Engineered Plumbing Exposition with a special additional 5% discount off their airline reservation. After making your reservation through the American Airlines online reservation site (aa.com), just before or when you get to payment, there will be a place for a discount code. For ASPE, use the code 79H0AT.

driving to PhilAdElPhiA or nEEd A CAr whEn you ArE in town?Avis Rental Cars has provided a discount code for ASPE attendees to the 2010 Convention and Engi-neered Plumbing Exposition. For ASPE attendees, the AVIS code is G027999. Depending on when you make your reservation and the type of car you decide to rent, the discount will range from a low of 5% all the way up to a high of 25%.

CArPool And SAvE!For all full paid registrants to the 2010 Convention who are also registered at the Marriott Downtown headquarters hotel for a minimum three nights (if individuals are staying at one of the other Convention hotels, a special percentage reduction of the total will be applied), the Society is offering the following travel stipend offsets:

$1501. per vehicle toward gas for those driving their own vehicle carrying no less than 4 people from their area.$2002. per vehicle toward gas for those driving their own vehicle carrying no less than 6 people from their area.$3003. per vehicle toward gas for those driving their own vehicle carrying 10 or more people from their area.Up to $5004. toward a vehicle rental that must be able to hold 6 persons or more, plus $300 per vehicle toward gas for those who carry a minimum of 6 people from their area.Up to $1,0005. toward a vehicle rental that must be able to hold 10 persons or more, plus $300 per vehicle toward gas for those who carry 10 people or more from their area.Up to $1.00 per mile6. (one-way) for a chartered bus that must be able to hold 20 persons or more, plus $500 per vehicle toward gas for those who carry 15 or more from their area.

www. ASPE.org/2010ConvEntionAndEPE


EPE Reg




Lab Vacby Richard Ryan III, CPD

Learn how to select and size systems to achieve the desired vacuum for laboratory applications.


Laboratory vacuum, commonly known as lab vac, has become a necessity for virtually all research buildings. The

vacuum system provides a primary tool for the lab technician and is used frequently throughout many research procedures. However, ever-advancing research technolo-gies and methodologies have rendered many existing laboratories inefficient, and labora-tories must be prepared to adapt to changing market trends and technologies while over-coming the limitations imposed by financial constraints. Incorporating new technologies can substantially alter the demands placed on the laboratory environment, and altering the physical aspects of any laboratory often means modifying utilities to accommodate these new technologies.

Whether you are designing a new biologi-cal or pharmaceutical research building or retrofitting a small vacuum system for a university laboratory, the design cri-teria remain the same. Today’s research laboratories are being designed with an eye toward flexibility, future room expansion, and utility-rich environments. As research laboratories continue to change to meet all future demands of their inherent processes, the basic utilities (water, purified water, compressed air, lab vac, special gases, and high-purity gases) remain the fundamental building blocks.

What Is a Laboratory Vacuum System?Laboratory vacuum is associated with several types of laboratory equipment and processes that generally operate at less-than-atmospheric pressure. These include:

General use at benches, fume hoods, and •biosafety cabinetsSolvent degassing•Filtration•Freeze dryers•Vacuum concentrators•Rotary evaporators•

No codes are directly applicable to labora-tory vacuum system design. National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standards applying to healthcare facilities typically are adopted as the standard. The National Institutes of Health Design Requirements Manual for Biomedical Laboratories and Animal Research Facilities guidelines also

are acceptable and are a good baseline for the design of laboratory vacuum systems.

In practical terms, vacuum is merely space that is essentially empty of matter. Achieving the desired vacuum for an appli-cation can be done with the correct vacu-um-producing equipment, which typically is comprised of the following components (see Figure 1):

Vacuum pump skid package with a •built-in vacuum receiver and control panelPump exhaust system with silencer (muf-•fler) and exhaust filtrationVapor liquid separator (knockout pot)•System pump operation controls and •alarmsSystem maintenance valves and safety •pressure-relief devices

Why Create a Vacuum? Creating a vacuum in a laboratory experi-ment or process is necessary to remove a certain quantity of molecules from a con-tainer or chamber, and lab vac has become a common laboratory utility and a requisite part of carrying out laboratory processes. The physical properties of the gases used within a process may either aid or inhibit the process, and lab vac is used to neutral-ize their effect on the experiment.

Laboratory building standard operating procedures generally require, as part of the laboratory process, the laboratory techni-cian to utilize appropriate vacuum traps or aspiration systems to remove highly toxic or volatile materials before connecting directly to the vacuum outlet. However, this procedure is not always effective, and hazardous materials do make their way into the vacuum system. Foreign materials such as solvent vapors, corrosive waste, and water-based liquids can lead to rusting and oxidizing of the pumping chamber, resulting in premature pump failure. To prevent pump failure due to corrosive materials, it’s important to choose the cor-rect type of pumping package incorporat-ing materials that meet the specific criteria for the application.

Choosing the Right Pump The need to operate under vacuum is evi-dent throughout the biopharmaceutical

industry. In many process applications, the prime consideration is the amount of vacuum required, and choosing a vacuum pump that best meets the design require-ments depends on the application.

The available varieties of pumps are both confusing and overwhelming. Following are the pumps commonly used when designing central laboratory vacuum systems. How-ever, many other types of vacuum pumps can be considered. Of the three types listed here, aside from their vacuum-producing ability, each has its own set of attributes, limitations, and application requirements.

The three general types of pumps used to produce central laboratory vacuum are:

Water-sealed, liquid-ring pump1. Oil-lubricated, rotary-vane pump2. Dry-running, non-contacting operation 3. pumpPumps can be broadly categorized

according to three pumping techniques: Positive displacement1. Momentum transfer2. Entrapment3. When choosing a pump, you first need to

decide the following: application vacuum requirement (gas vapors, water, solvents, etc.), system flow capacity, and pump diversity. Before picking the style of pump that best meets the system criteria, you should proceed with caution and research the vacuum system’s usage intent with the client. The following description of each of the three pump types will help you deter-mine each pump’s attributes.

Water-sealed, Liquid-ring Pump The water-sealed, liquid-ring pump is an example of a positive-displacement pump best used when the material or gas being transferred back to the pump contains liq-uids, soft solids, or gas vapors. The pump’s internal construction makes the device ideal for pumping saturated materials without concern of damaging the integrity of the pump. Saturated materials under vacuum will allow this style of pump to handle heavy loads when needed. Liquid-ring vacuum pumps rely on the physical properties in the sealant to help determine the maximum vacuum level. This is one of the pump’s finer qualities.

The water-sealed, liquid-ring vacuum pump is best used in laboratories and hos-pitals; however, it is not recommended in a


biological laboratory due to the pump’s recir-culation water providing a potential environ-ment for biological growth. This could pose a significant safety hazard to maintenance personnel.

Oil-lubricated, Rotary-vane Pump The oil-lubricated, rotary-vane vacuum pump, a positive-displacement style of pump, can be installed as a single- or dual-stage pump incorporating an integrated oil recirculation system. This style of pump can be either air cooled or water cooled. The pump design is based on an air- or water-cooled cylinder that houses an off-center carbon steel rotor with vane slots. A thin film of oil is fed to the rotor and vanes to provide lubrication, cooling, and corrosion protection. The oil is exhausted with the gas and passes through a filter (coalescing, centrifugal, combination, or other) that removes most to all of the oil from the gas stream. The oil then is returned to the oil reservoir where it passes through a filter, and the process repeats itself. The oil in the pump must be maintained and changed regularly to keep the pump in operation.

This style of pump is manufactured to handle large capacities for applications demanding heavy volumes. The oil-lubricated, rotary-vane pump is best suited for laborato-ries, biotechnology, and hospital applications.

Dry-running, Non-contact PumpThe dry-running, non-contact vacuum pump is also a positive-displacement pump and may be designed as a rotary screw or rotary

Figure 1 Typical vacuum pump equipment schematic layout

figure 2 Conversion from scfm to acfmStandard cubic feet per minute (scfm) is measured at standard conditions (68°f, 29.92 inches mercury/14.7 pounds per square inch absolute), while actual cubic feet per minute (acfm) is measured at actual inlet conditions. Conversion from scfm to acfm and vice versa is derived from the gas laws, specifically Boyle’s law. Boyle’s law states that the volume and pres-sure of gas will change in inverse propor-tion to one another, i.e., if the pressure in a system decreases (higher vacuum), then the volume the gas occupies will increase proportionally according to the following formula:

P1V1 = P2V2

note: When using this formula, the values must be in absolute terms (e.g., inches of mercury absolute or torr).

Example Convert 20 scfm of air to acfm at a vacuum level of 25 inches of mercury at sea level. first convert 25 inches of mercury gauge to inches of mercury absolute:

P2 = 29.92 – 25 = 4.92 inches of mercury absolute or 125 torr

use the above formula and fill in the num-bers:

29.92 x 20 scfm = 4.92 x V2 acfm V2 = (29.92 ÷ 4.92) x 20 = 121.6 acfm

Self-Washing Model

High pressure programmable water feature removes debris. Great in kettle lines!

SANI-FLOOR®, LLC.phone 866.895.7264

e-mail [email protected]

www.sanifloor.com

Stops leaks from above grade floor trough installations! Unique seepage flange clampsdown on a waterproof membrane, creating awatertight seal. Weep holes allow liquids toflow into your building drain line.

Fits Sani-Floor®

Trough Systems.

Virtually eliminates building drain clogs.

Significantly decreases the amount of sediment entering grease traps

Lab Vac |


vane. The rotary-screw pump operation is based on two internal screws that are non-contacting. The screws are assembled in an oil-free chamber where there is no risk of contact with the process vapors. The rotary-screw vacuum pump has a broad range of industry applications, and the pump can produce vacuum levels at a maximum vacuum pressure of 29.3 inches of mer-cury at the pump inlet. This type of pump eliminates the need for oil changes and most importantly the chance of oil vapor contam-inating the building work environment.

This pump also is manufactured for large capacities for applications demanding large volumes. It is ideal for biotechnology and pharmaceutical applications; however, caution should be used if the process gases contain moisture, droplets, or solids.

An example of momentum-transfer pumps as categorized by two main types are diffusion pumps and turbo-molecular pumps. Both types of pumps blow out gas molecules that diffuse into the pump by imparting momentum to the gas mol-ecules. (Objects in motion are said to have a momentum.) Momentum-transfer pumps are used in conjunction with one or two positive-displacement pumps to achieve high vacuum (10-3 to 10-7 torr).

Entrapment pumps capture gases in a solid or absorbed state. A style of entrap-ment pump known as a cryo-pump uses cold temperatures to condense gases to a solid or absorbed state. Other styles of entrapment pumps include chemical pumps and ioniza-tion pumps. Entrapment pumps are used when ultra-high vacuum is required (more than 10-7 torr).

Sizing Vacuum PumpsManufacturers generally size vacuum pumps based on actual cubic feet per minute (acfm). The vacuum system flow rate is calculated in standard cubic feet per minute (scfm), which needs to be converted to acfm for pump selection. See Figure 2 for the conversion calculation.

How Much Vacuum Is Required?Before you determine how much vacuum pressure is required in a laboratory vacuum system, you first must understand

Source: International Vacuum

vacuum pressure and how it relates and measures up to positive pressure and atmospheric pressure.

The Earth’s atmosphere surrounds us constantly with a pressure, known as atmo-spheric or barometric pressure. Barometric pressure is expressed in a few different ways. At sea level, absolute barometric pressure is usually 14.7 pounds per square inch absolute (psia) or 29.92 inches of mercury (760 mil-limeters of mercury) absolute. Barometric pressure can vary, so the sea level baromet-ric pressure of 14.7 psia usually is used as a reference point. Pressures measured above barometric pressure are considered posi-tive and are expressed as gauge pressure. Pressures below barometric are considered negative and are expressed as absolute pressure. Absolute pressure is zero when referenced against a perfect vacuum, and it can be defined as the sum of the gauge pres-sure plus the atmosphere pressure. Absolute pressure is expressed as a pressure from 0 millimeters of mercury absolute, 0 psia, or 0 inches of mercury.

The American Vacuum Society’s Dictionary of Terms for Vacuum Science and Technology defines a vacuum as the condition of a gas-eous environment in which the gas pressure is below atmospheric pressure. Thus, if the pres-sure in a process system is less than the ambi-ent barometric pressure, that process would operate under vacuum, and vacuum would exist in the system. Vacuum is the opposite of gauge, or positive, pressure, and so is vacuum terminology. High vacuum is referred to as low pressure, a pressure that is close to absolute zero. Low vacuum is referred to as high pressure, which is close to barometric, or atmospheric, pressure.

Utilizing the principles mentioned above will help you understand the vacuum pres-sure used in a lab vac system. As an industry standard and generally accepted by the client, the laboratory vacuum system serving a bio-logical or pharmaceutical research building typically would be expected to incorporate a vacuum working pressure of 24 to 28 inches of mercury at the pump inlet. The building distribution inlet’s pressure typically would have an end-user pressure of 19 inches of mercury. In cases where a reduced pressure (higher vacuum) is required, a separate lab vac system would be installed to operate at a standard vacuum working pressure of 15 to

20 inches of mercury. At this vacuum pres-sure, the end-user inlet pressure would be expected to be approximately 10 to 15 inches of mercury. Refer to Table 1 for a comparison of pressure and vacuum equivalent values.

How Many Pumps Are Needed?Installing multiple vacuum pumps affords the building’s central system a level of redundancy, thereby decreasing the prob-ability of a complete system shutdown. Providing two or more vacuum pumps in a central system effectively increases the reli-ability of the system through backup or fail-safe measures. Installing multiple pumps not only increases reliability, but it also reduces operating costs, provides flexibility, and in some cases uses less energy.

Before determining the number of pumps in a system, you first need to consult with the client and discuss the pump system redun-dancy, also known as pump diversity. The client should be consulted on overall system capacity and the diversity of each pump. Once this information is in place, the client should understand how much diversity can be taken on each pump and the capacity

Table 1 Pressure and vacuum equivalenTs

Torr Millibar psia in. Hg A in. Hg V

760 1013 14.696 29.92 0.00

700 933 13.536 27.55 2.36

600 800 11.602 23.62 6.29

506 675 9.786 19.84 10.00

400 533 7.735 15.75 14.17

380 507 7.348 14.95 14.96

200 267 3.867 7.87 22.04

150 200 2.901 5.90 24.01

125 166 2.406 4.90 25.01

100 133 1.934 3.97 25.98

70 93 1.354 2.76 27.16

50 67 0.967 1.97 27.95

40 53 0.773 1.57 28.35

30 40 0.580 1.18 28.64

25.4 34 0.491 1.00 28.92

10 13 0.193 0.394 29.53

1 1.33 0.019 0.039 29.88

0.50 0.66 0.009 0.019 29.90

| Lab Vac


required to be handled by the remaining pump or pumps while the lead or primary pump is out of service. You also could design the vacuum system without excess capacity built into it or to include 100 percent redun-dancy. These options also must be presented to and discussed with the client.

Once the client understands overall system capacity, pump diversity, and the accepted capacity handled by one pump during an emergency or maintenance shutdown, you now can determine how many pumps will be included in the central system. A typical starting point is a duplex pump package, with each pump sized for 67 percent of the overall system capacity. It’s also common to see systems with 50 percent diversity, but 50 percent diversity does not provide any excess in the system and meets only minimal opera-tional capacities with one pump in operation. Clients often specify a need for excess capac-ity built into the vacuum system, which not only offers a pump package that will meet the overall building load demand, but also means that with one pump down, the remaining pump(s) will be sized to handle a large por-tion of the building capacity.

As an alternative to a duplex vacuum pump package, three pumps (triplex pump set) or four pumps (quadraplex pump set) can be installed. The diversity for each pump or percentage of capacity handled by each pump can be expressed in several different combinations. For example, a triplex pump set can include three pumps each rated for 33 percent of the overall system capacity, which provides no excess built into the overall building operational load. Other combinations offered in a triplex pump set include each pump sized at 50, 60, or even as high as 75 percent. Quadraplex pump sets can be sized for each pump to handle 25 or 33 percent of the system capacity.

It is recommended that the manufacturer be consulted when designing a triplex or quadraplex pump set. The manufacturer and client both should agree to the capac-ity percentage of each pump and how the pumps will be set up to run, including the rated capacity handled by each pump. The sequence of operation and controls also should be conveyed to the client. Typically the manufacturer sets up the specification for the sequence of operation and the vacuum control set points for all pump operation.

Table 2 laboraTory vacuum inleT simulTaneous use facTors (diversiTy facTors), 1 scfm Per inleT

Number of Inlets Use Factor, % (diversity) Minimum scfm

1 – 4 100 3

6 – 12 80 5

13 – 33 60 10

34 – 80 50 21

81 – 150 40 40

151 – 315 35 61

316 – 565 30 111

566 – 1,000 25 171

1,001 – 2,175 20 251

2,176 – 4,670 15 436

4,671 and above 10 701

Table 3 effecT of PiPe fiTTings and valvesfeeT added To The measured run of sTraighT PiPe

Pipe Size90-degree

ElbowTee (branch) Tee (run)

Gate Valve (full open)

Globe Valve (full open)

½ 1¾ 3¼ 1 ¾ 18

¾ 2¼ 4¼ 1½ 1 24

1 2¾ 5¼ 1¾ 1¼ 30

1½ 4¼ 8¼ 2¾ 1¾ 46

2 5¼ 10½ 3½ 2¼ 59

2½ 6¼ 12½ 4¼ 2¾ 70

3 7¾ 15½ 5¼ 3½ 87

4 10¼ 20¼ 6¾ 4½ 114

5 12¾ 25¼ 8½ 5½ 143

6 15¼ 30½ 10¼ 7 172

8 20 40 13½ 9 226

Source: Gardner Denver Nash Products Inc.

Source: Gardner Denver Nash Products Inc.

figure 3 vacuum flow charT

Lab Vac |


Table 4 Pressure loss daTa for sizing vacuum PiPe, low Pressure vacuum sysTemStandard Air

Flow, cfm (L/min)

Pressure Drop per 100 ft (30 m) of Pipe, in. Hg (kPa)Nominal Pipe Size, in. (DN)

¾ (20) 1 (25) 1¼ (32) 1½ (40) 2 (50) 2½ (65) 3 (80) 4 (100)1 (28.3) 0.15 (0.5)2 (56.6) 0.39 (1.3) 0.10 (0.3)3 (85.0) 0.77 (2.6) 0.19 (0.6)

4 (113.3) 1.24 (4.2) 0.31 (1.1) 0.10 (0.3)5 (141.6) 1.78 (6.0) 0.44 (1.5) 0.14 (0.5)6 (169.9) 2.40 (8.1) 0.60 (2.0) 0.19 (0.6)7 (198.2) 0.77 (2.6) 0.24 (0.8) 0.12 (0.4)8 (226.6) 0.95 (3.2) 0.31 (1.1) 0.15 (0.5)9 (254.9) 1.17 (4.0) 0.38 (1.3) 0.18 (0.6)

10 (283.2) 1.38 (4.7) 0.45 (1.5) 0.22 (0.7)15 (424.8) 2.80 (9.5) 0.88 (3.0) 0.44 (1.5) 0.12 (0.4)20 (566.4) 1.46 (4.9) 0.72 (2.4) 0.19 (0.6)25 (708.0) 2.20 (7.4) 1.09 (3.7) 0.29 (1.0)30 (849.6) 1.52 (5.1) 0.41 (1.4) 0.14 (0.5)35 (991.2) 2.00 (6.8) 0.54 (1.8) 0.18 (0.6)

40 (1132.8) 2.50 (8.4) 0.67 (2.3) 0.22 (0.7) 0.10 (0.3)45 (1274.4) 0.81 (2.7) 0.27 (0.9) 0.12 (0.4)50 (1416.0) 0.99 (3.3) 0.33 (1.1) 0.14 (0.5)60 (1699.2) 1.34 (4.5) 0.45 (1.5) 0.19 (0.6)70 (1982.4) 1.79 (6.1) 0.60 (2.0) 0.26 (0.9) 0.07 (0.2)80 (2265.6) 2.30 (7.8) 0.77 (2.6) 0.32 (1.1) 0.09 (0.3)90 (2548.8) 0.96 (3.2) 0.41 (1.4) 0.11 (0.4)

100 (2832.0) 1.17 (4.0) 0.50 (1.7) 0.14 (0.5)125 (3540.0) 1.71 (5.8) 0.74 (2.5) 0.20 (0.7)150 (4248.0) 2.30 (7.8) 0.99 (3.3) 0.27 (0.9)175 (4956.0) 1.28 (4.3) 0.35 (1.2)200 (5664.0) 1.61 (5.4) 0.44 (1.5)

Source: Courtesy of Ohmeda.

Note: Based on copper pipe type L, ASTM B88.

| Lab Vac



Sizing the SystemSystem capacity does not need to be calculated based on simultaneous use of all outlets in all rooms or special areas utilizing vacuum service. It’s important to understand that vacuum will not be required everywhere at one time and that diversities exist and are applied from room to room and across the entire system. Loca-tions and the number of vacuum outlets are determined by room programming criteria and any equipment used in each room. When these considerations have been satisfied, the engineering aspects of the system can be pieced together.

When determining nominal flow capaci-ties for general laboratory outlets, typically 1 scfm per outlet is calculated. In some cases, 0.5 scfm per outlet can be used, but this should be confirmed with the owner’s building standards. The flow rate of 1 scfm is based on an industry standard used by both vacuum pump manufacturer sizing criteria and successful historical data. However, using 1 scfm per lab outlet is acceptable only when actual equipment usage or consump-tion data is not available. When calculating

the diversified system capacity, you must add all of the building lab vac outlets and multiply the total by the corresponding diversity factor shown in Table 2.

For example, say a system has 125 outlets, and the corresponding diversity factor is 40 percent. Therefore, 125 outlets x 0.4 (40%) = 50 outlets (diversified load).

To determine the system flow capacity (scfm) based on the simultaneous use factor or diversity, the diversified system load shall be multiplied by 1 scfm. Thus, 50 outlets x 1 scfm = 50 scfm. This is the diversified system capacity, which is the value used to size the pumps, vacuum pipe mains, and main distri-bution branches.

The applied diversities in Table 2 are based on the probability that the sum of the building vacuum outlets will be utilized at one time during the peak load, known as the adjusted simultaneous use factor or diversified system capacity. The data con-tained in Table 2 may differ from the values shown in the manufacturer’s sizing criteria, but in my experience, using one over the other has proven to be insignificant with respect to pipe and pump size. However, the

Lab Vac |

applied diversities in Table 2 should be used with some caution, since these values must be adjusted when special conditions must be satisfied.

Acceptable System Piping Pressure LossBefore you can determine the total system pressure drop, the equivalent length of run must be calculated. The equivalent length of run is simply the system’s longest length of pipe run from the pump inlet to the furthest inlet in the vacuum system plus an addi-tional number of feet to allow for valves and fittings. Once you have established and laid out the vacuum system piping, the longest length of pipe or longest system run can be determined.

To determine the actual equivalent feet for valves and fittings, refer to Table 3. Count the fittings (tees and elbows) and valves in the run and calculate their pressure drop expressed as added feet.

For example, a 2-inch 90-degree elbow is expressed as 5.25 equivalent length of feet. If the system incorporates ten (10) 2-inch 90-degree elbows, then the following will apply: 10 elbows x 5.25 feet = 52.50 equivalent length of feet.

Add all of the equivalent length of feet from the fittings and valves to the calculated longest length of pipe in the system. This value will be known as the vacuum system’s equivalent length of run.

When determining the acceptable vacuum system pressure drop, two governing factors must be in place: total equivalent pipe length and diversified system flow rate (scfm). The maximum allowable pressure drop in the entire pipe system should not exceed 5 inches of mercury. However it’s common to use a system pressure drop ranging from a low of 3 inches of mercury up to a maximum of 5 inches of mercury depending on the sys-tem’s size. It’s recommended that you keep pressure drops below 1 inch of mercury per 100 feet of equivalent length. The maximum velocity in the system should not exceed 5,000 feet per minute (fpm). If system noise is an issue or is a concern to the owner due to sensitive building areas, reduce velocities in the system to 4,000 fpm.

Generally you do not want to size vacuum piping for greater than a 1-inch-of-mercury pressure drop per 100 feet. Many designers use this as a system design starting point or guide. It is a reasonable rule of thumb, and if



Table 5 vacuum PumP exhausT PiPe sizing

Total Vacuum Plant Capacity with All

Pumps, scfm

Equivalent Pipe Length, feet

50 100 150 200 300 400 500

Pipe Size, inches

10 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

50 2 2.5 3 3 3 3 3

100 3 3 3 4 4 5 5

150 3 4 4 4 5 5 5

200 4 4 4 5 5 5 5

300 4 5 5 5 6 6 6

400 5 5 6 6 6 8 8

500 5 6 6 6 8 8 8

Source: ASPE Plumbing Engineering Design Handbook, Volume 2

your system’s developed length is less than 500 feet, it should work and keep the total system pressure drop to the maximum stated value of 5 inches of mercury. If the system is expected to be more than 500 feet in developed length, which is very easy to achieve in a modern research building, then the pressure drop would need to be less than 1 inch of mercury per 100 feet.

To determine the building’s overall design pressure drop for the piping, the following cal-culation should be used:

Pressure drop (in. Hg per 100 feet of pipe) =5 inches of mercury

(System developed length ÷ 100)

Typically, pressure-drop tables and charts are based on 100 unit feet of pipe.The maximum allowable system pressure drop (3 to 5 inches of mercury typically) divided

by the equivalent length of the pipe run yields an equivalent unit pressure drop per 100 linear feet of pipe.

For example, a system with 500 feet of linear pipe and an additional allowance of 200 feet for valves and fittings would yield a total developed length of 700 feet. Therefore, the resulting calculation for an allowable pressure drop of 5 inches of mercury would be:

5 in. Hg= 0.7143 in. Hg per 100 feet of pipe

(700 feet ÷ 100)

For an allowable pressure drop of 3 inches of mercury, the resulting calculation would be:

3 in. Hg= 0.428 in. Hg per 100 feet of pipe

(700 feet ÷ 100)

Therefore, sizing between these two pressure drop ranges will provide a properly sized vacuum distribution system for this example.

When determining pipe sizes through the smaller individual risers or takeoffs and minor branch pipes, the diversity factors in Table 2 do not apply. However, pressure drop through the smaller pipe sizes is critical, and velocities should be limited to 4,000 to 5,000 fpm. When sizing the building’s vacuum mains and all major branches, the simultaneous use factor (diversity factor) should be used.

System Network Sizing When sizing the piping network, it’s important to have both the diversified system flow (scfm) and equivalent length of pipe run. With the diversified system flow (scfm) and equiva-lent length of pipe run, use the vacuum flow chart in Figure 3 to determine the pressure drop in the pipe size selected for each run. As noted earlier, the system pressure drop should not exceed 1 inch of mercury per 100 feet. This pressure drop typically is used throughout the

industry, but it’s not uncommon to use a pressure drop between 0.1 and 0.4 inch of mercury per 100 feet of equivalent pipe length. However, using a lower pressure drop across the system will increase the pipe size and should be used with caution. When sizing the system at a lower pressure drop, it’s good design practice to compare the selected system design pressure drop pipe sizes in Figure 3 to the corresponding pipe sizes and pressure drops in Table 4. Table 4 should be used for sizing pipe and determining pressure drops on standard vacuum pressure systems. Sizing the vacuum system on a lower pressure drop will provide the system with a built-in safety factor for both system flow and system pres-sure drop and will prevent system choking during peak demand periods.

The vacuum piping branches and mains should be sized on the scfm flow of each pipe run. The pressure drop used to determine the pipe size shall be equal to or less than the equivalent unit pressure drop per 100 linear feet as described in the previous section. Using Figure 3 and Table 4, the pipe size can be determined by selecting the pressure drop less than or equal to the equivalent unit pres-sure drop per 100 linear feet for the required scfm flow for that segment of pipe. Sequen-tial segments of pipe in the longest branch of the system must be added, maintaining the appropriate diversities found in Figure 3 for the increasing flow in each segment.

General System Equipment Layout When installing vacuum-generation equipment in mechanical rooms and penthouses, it’s important to provide the required clearances around the equipment for accessibility and maintenance. The general clear dimensions around equip-ment usually are prescribed by the pump manufacturer and the owner’s building standards. When locating the vacuum pump, sufficient room should be provided for the following: pump removal, general pump maintenance, vacuum receiver maintenance, and vapor liquid separa-tor (inlet knockout pot) maintenance. It’s important that the system incorporates cleanouts at system low points since heavy liquids and entrained solids will collect at these points.

| Lab Vac

The vacuum pump exhaust always should be designed to terminate through the roof to atmosphere. The design of the exhaust piping shall be as straight and direct as possible with minimal system bends. The location of the rooftop exhaust piping should be engineered so that it is located within the code-prescribed distances from air-handler fresh-air intakes, wall-mounted HVAC louvers, building open-ings, and maintenance personnel walkways. When sizing and laying out the exhaust piping, it’s important to consult with the pump manu-facturer for the exhaust pressure drop and total exhausted cubic feet per minute (cfm). The exhaust piping sizing criteria is primarily based on total vacuum pump capacity (scfm),


which would include the capacity of all pumps operating simultaneously and the exhaust equivalent length of run. Refer to Table 5 to determine vacuum pump exhaust pipe size. The exhaust piping should be designed to slope back toward the pump prior to connect-ing to the pump’s exhaust manifold. A vertical drip leg with a valve should be installed. (Refer back to Figure 1.)

Installing inline exhaust filters is recom-mended since these devices eliminate smoke and vapors and prevent foreign pathogens from escaping to the atmosphere. The sizing of exhaust filters is critical due to the effects of pressure drop on the vacuum pump exhaust rate, expressed in total cfm. When

sizing the exhaust filters, the pump manu-facturer should be consulted with respect to filter micron removal rating, rated flow capacity, material compatibility, housing design, and final specifications.

Installing a vapor liquid separator (inlet knockout pot) prior to the vacuum pump receiver will prevent entrained droplets, liq-uids, and particles from reaching the vacuum pump. It is recommended that all vacuum receivers and liquid separators be equipped with ASME-rated safety relief valves to protect the vessel and building environment from vessel over-pressurization due to extreme heat, fire, and internal vapors.

ConclusionsWith the need for utility-rich system designs coupled with system reliability, the perfor-mance of the laboratory vacuum system is nothing less than critical and thus should receive the proper attention during the design phase of any project. When designing a lab vac system, you must consider all of the system design criteria to design a reliable, safe, and maintainable system.

ResourcesDesign Requirements Manual for 1.Biomedical Laboratories and Animal Research Facilities, National Institutes of Health, 2008.

Dictionary of Terms for Vacuum Science 2.and Technology, American Vacuum Society, 2009.

Engineered Medical Systems and 3.Equipment: emse.com

Gardner Denver Nash: gdnash.com 4.

Dekker Vacuum Technologies: 5.dekkervacuum.com

International Vacuum: 6.internationalvacuum.com

AcknowledgementThe author thanks Henry Pinto, PE, senior mechanical engineer at KlingStubbins A/E and Michael “Moses” Bates of KlingStubbins A/E for their technical review of this article and Lisa Ryan for her stellar patience.

Rich Ryan, CPD, is a Senior Process Plumbing Designer with KlingStubbins A/E in Philadelphia. He has 25 years of experience in the field of plumbing and processing specialty systems. For more information or to comment on this article, e-mail [email protected].

Lab Vac |


Because the water company is never going to have a sale.

Moen and the Crossed Water Drops device are registered trademarks of Moen Incorporated©2010 Moen Incorporated

Looking for a real world way to lower your water bills? Switch to Moen Commercial. We have green solutions to reduce water consumption by up to 30 percent. That’s right, 30 percent. And we can help you earn valuable points toward LEED® certification. From our electronic and metering faucets to our sensor-operated flush valves and other low-flow solutions, every product is factory-tested for quality and backed by an industry-leading 5-year warranty.

Which means you can effortlessly save on maintenance and utility costs. Consider it a permanent water sale.

To learn more about how our products are built for the real world, visit www. moencommercial.com or call 800-BUY-MOEN.

Visit Booth #1325 at the 2010 ASPE Convention & EPE for a FREE 1GB memory stick pen. And your chance to win an Apple® Wi-Fi + 3G 64GB iPad™.Drawings held daily.

*Limited to Moen customers. Excludes agents, representatives or members of the press. Apple is a trademark of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. iPad is a trademark of Apple Inc.

42 Plumbing Systems & Design OCTOBER 2010

Continuing eduCation: acoustics in Plumbing

About This Issue’s Article

PSd

171

Continuing Education from Plumbing Systems & Design

CE Questions — “Acoustics in Plumbing” (PSd 171)Which of the following is an example of impact noise? 1.

scraping furniturea. plumbing noiseb. loud music vibrationsc. all of the aboved.

________ and ________ pipe wall construction leads to quieter 2. performance.

thinner; more brittlea. thicker; more denseb. lighter; thinnerc. heavier; more densed.

CPVC tubing expands and contracts at nearly _______ the rate of 3. copper tubing.

three timesa. four timesb. five timesc. none of the aboved.

Which of the following contributes to the noise emitted from 4. valves?

pressurea. frictionb. turbulencec. both b and cd.

Which of the following affects the noise in water-distribution 5. systems?

water pressurea. water velocityb. number and type of fittingsc. all of the aboved.

Chilled, condenser, domestic, and hot water equipment should 6. be isolated from _______.

all piping in the equipment rooma. all piping outside the equipment room within 55 feet of the b. connected pumpall piping more than 2½ inches in diameterc. all of the aboved.

Which of the following fixture materials absorbs sound?7. enameled steela. vitreous chinab. cast ironc. both b and cd.

________ are quieter than flushometer valve toilets.8. waterless toiletsa. flush tank toiletsb. dual-flush toiletsc. none of the aboved.

_______ are typically the quietest valves.9. full-way ball valvesa. full-way gate valvesb. globe valvesc. both a and bd.

What type of vibration-control device is used where deflections 10. of 0.3 inch or less are required?

air springsa. steel springsb. rubber isolatorsc. isolation hangersd.

What type of vibration-control device can be applied with 11. concrete bases?

rubber vibration isolatorsa. spring isolatorsb. neoprene padsc. all of the aboved.

the _______ establishes the submittal requirements, procedures, 12. acoustical materials, and methods required for a project.

plumbing noise and vibration specificationa. acoustical testb. acoustical engineerc. plumbing installation detail drawingd.

Do you find it difficult to obtain continuing education units (CEUs)? Through this special section in every issue of PS&D, ASPE can help you accumulate the CEUs required for maintaining your Certified in Plumb-ing Design (CPD) status.

now Online!The technical article you must read to complete the exam is located at www.psdmagazine.org. Just click on “Plumbing Systems & Design Con-tinuing Education Article and Exam” at the top of the page. The following exam and application form also may be downloaded from the website. Reading the article and completing the form will allow you to apply to ASPE for CEU credit. If you earn a grade of 90 percent or higher on the test, you will be notified that you have logged 0.1 CEU, which can be applied toward CPD renewal or numerous regulatory-agency CE programs. (Please note that it is your responsibility to determine the acceptance policy of a particular agency.) CEU information will be kept on file at the ASPE office for three years.Note: In determining your answers to the CE questions, use only the material pre-

sented in the corresponding continuing education article. Using information from

other materials may result in a wrong answer.

The October 2010 continuing education article is “Acoustics in Plumbing Systems,” Chapter 10 of Plumbing Engineering design Handbook, Volume 2.

Plumbing noise is one of the most intrusive and difficult sounds to mitigate. This chapter addresses this issue and related solutions, including why plumbing system noise is difficult to remedy; identification of common sources of plumbing system noise; a review of common attempts to mitigate plumbing system noise; proven acoustical materi-als, techniques, and resources; and steps the engineer can take to ensure success on the job.

you may locate this article at www.psdmagazine.org. Read the article, complete the following exam, and submit your answer sheet to the ASPE office to potentially receive 0.1 CEu.

WWW.PSDMAGAZINE.ORG


PS&D Continuing Education Answer SheetAcoustics in Plumbing (PSD 171)

Questions appear on page 42. Circle the answer to each question.

Q 1. A B C D Q 2. A B C D Q 3. A B C D Q 4. A B C D Q 5. A B C D Q 6. A B C D Q 7. A B C D Q 8. A B C D Q 9. A B C D Q 10. A B C D Q 11. A B C D Q 12. A B C D

Plumbing Systems & Design Continuing Education Application formThis form is valid up to one year from date of publication. The PS&D Continuing Education program is approved by ASPE for up to one contact hour (0.1 CEU) of credit per article. Participants who earn a passing score (90 percent) on the CE questions will receive a letter or certification within 30 days of ASPE’s receipt of the application form. (No special certificates will be issued.) Participants who fail and wish to retake the test should resubmit the form along with an additional fee (if required).1. Photocopy this form or download it from www.psdmagazine.org.2. Print or type your name and address. Be sure to place your ASPE membership number in the appropriate space.3. Answer the multiple-choice continuing education (CE) questions based on the corresponding article found on

www.psdmagazine.org and the appraisal questions on this form.4. Submit this form with payment ($35 for nonmembers of ASPE) if required by check or money order made payable to ASPE or credit

card via mail (ASPE Education Credit, 2980 S. River Road, Des Plaines, IL 60018) or fax (847-296-2963).

Please print or type; this information will be used to process your credits.

Name ________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Title _________________________________________________ ASPE Membership No. ____________________________________

Organization __________________________________________________________________________________________________

Billing Address ________________________________________________________________________________________________

City _________________________________________ State/Province ________________________ Zip ______________________

Country ______________________________________________ E-mail _________________________________________________

Daytime telephone ____________________________________ Fax ____________________________________________________

PE State _____________________________________________ PE No. _________________________________________________

Appraisal QuestionsAcoustics in Plumbing (PSD 171)

1. Was the material new information for you? ❏ Yes ❏ No

2. Was the material presented clearly? ❏ Yes ❏ No

3. Was the material adequately covered? ❏ Yes ❏ No

4. Did the content help you achieve the stated objectives? ❏ Yes ❏ No

5. Did the CE questions help you identify specific ways to use ideas presented in the article? ❏ Yes ❏ No

6. How much time did you need to complete the CE offering (i.e., to read the article and answer the post-test questions)?

I am applying for the following continuing education credits:

I certify that I have read the article indicated above.

Signature

Expiration date: Continuing education credit will be givenfor this examination through October 31, 2011.

Applications received after that date will not be processed.

❏ ASPE Member ❏ NonmemberEach examination: $25 Each examination: $35Limited Time: No Cost to ASPE Member

Payment: ❏ Personal Check (payable to ASPE) $❏ Business or government check $❏ DiscoverCard ❏ VISA ❏ MasterCard ❏ AMEX $

If rebilling of a credit card charge is necessary, a $25 processing fee will be charged.ASPE is hereby authorized to charge my CE examination fee to my credit card

Account Number Expiration date

Signature Cardholder’s name (Please print)

Who Are you mentoring?JULIUS BALLANCO, PE, FASPE, 2008-2010 ASPE PRESIDENT

A few months ago, a colleague passed away. I remember him vividly as one of my mentors in the codes and stan-dards profession. When I was a young plumbing engineer, he took me under his wing. As I got older, we remained wonderful friends. However, this friend wasn’t my only mentor. I can think of a number of other engineers who helped me along the way.

When speaking to a friend about the passing of one of my mentors, I asked if he was mentoring any young engineers. His response was, “This is a different generation. They don’t want mentoring; they only want a paycheck. Then they want to go home and play video games.”

I will agree and disagree with that statement. I agree that it is a different generation. I started in college with a slide rule. There were no calculators until the end of my sophomore year. This generation started college with computers. That certainly makes it different.

However, I disagree with the statement that they basically don’t care. I find that today’s young generation cares as much as I did when I was a young engineer.

I have enjoyed being a mentor to younger engineers. Yes, I will admit that I am in the second half of my career as a plumbing engineer. I like to seek out those in the first half of their careers and help them in any way I can. So, I would ask all of you: “Are you doing your job as a mentor?” We all have a responsibility to mentor the young. It is our responsibil-ity to find someone to replace us. We are not going to live forever.

Some younger engineers may be saying, “How can I be a mentor? I need the mentoring.” You are correct that you need us old guys to mentor you, but you still have a responsibility to mentor those behind you, especially those who are still in engineering school. Did you ever think about going back to your school and talking to the students about life as a plumb-ing engineer? That is mentoring. That is something you should consider doing. I also have been working with Boy

From the President’s Pen

www.aspe.org

ASP

E RE

PORT

44 Plumbing Systems & Design OCTOBER 2010 WWW.PSDMAGAZINE.ORG44 Plumbing Systems & Design OCTOBER 2010 WWW.PSDMAGAZINE.ORG

Scouts for the past 45 years. Yes, you are mentoring in Boy Scouts, as well as in other volunteer organizations.

This past week, I was talking to the CEO of a plumbing product manufacturing company. We were discussing the people he hires, and he told me that he doesn’t look for the highest grades, although he doesn’t discount good grades. He looks for someone who has been continuously involved because he finds them to be better employees. This company has many employees with years of service, and he claims that he doesn’t want a revolving door. Then he mentioned how well the older guys mentor the younger guys to help them move up in the company.

I also think back to 1978 when I was newly married, attending a meeting in New Orleans. I met a gentleman by the name of Don Dickerson. I knew he would be at the same meeting, and I was really looking forward to introducing myself to him. I was a young, 25-year-old plumbing engineer.

Don probably will deny it to this day, but he took me under his wing and told me I would be a good plumbing engineer. He always encouraged me to do what was right. He always checked up on me. If he thought I had screwed up, which I have done more than once, Don would call me.

Even now, Don contacts me all the time. I enjoy receiving his phone calls and always enjoy talking to him. Don is still mentoring me. Don, I thank you for that, and I thank you for mentoring so many other plumbing engineers.

This is my final column as president of ASPE. I would like to invite all of you to attend the Biennial Convention in Philadelphia to see the passing of the torch. As one of my fellow Chicago Chapter members says, “You have to attend an ASPE Convention at least once.” However, be forewarned: Once you attend one, you will keep coming back.

Be sure to come say hello and give me an opportunity to be a mentor like the great ones before me. Finally, thank you for giving me the opportunity of a lifetime to be your Society president for the past four years.

The Original Hunter Pa ers

The Foundation of Plumbing Engineering

Don’t miss your chance to add three exact replicas of a vital piece of plumbing engineering history to your professional library!


do not miss your Chance to Enhance your Career at the 2010 ASPE Convention and EPEIn these continuing tough economic times, we all need to take advantage of every opportunity that will help us advance in our careers. The 2010 ASPE Convention and Engineered Plumbing Exposition offers engineers and designers numerous chances to network, learn, and grow in their industry—all for an extremely competitive price compared to similar events.

Where else can you find thousands of your professional peers and more than 300 manufacturers and suppliers of plumbing and HVAC products all under one roof? What other event provides more than 50 technical educational sessions on the most innovative topics? In just a few days, you can mingle with and learn from the most experienced leaders in the plumbing industry—as well as earn continuing education units for your license and designation recertifica-tion requirements.

Thanks to our partnership with the International Code Council and the World Toilet Organization, this year’s Con-vention is representing all aspects of the plumbing industry, with a unique international perspective. Professionals involved in the design, engineering, specification, inspec-tion, and installation of plumbing, mechanical, and civil projects will be attending—which furthers your chances of expanding your professional horizons.

How exactly can the 2010 ASPE Convention and EPE help you advance in your career? At this event—which happens only once every two years—you can:

Network with thousands of plumbing industry profession-•als from around the worldAsses the overall economic health of the plumbing indus-•try and tap into growing marketsFind out how the products you specify work from the •engineers who design themDiscover how to enhance your designs with the newest, •most innovative productsLearn how to make your designs more sustainable to help •clients save moneyShow your dedication to the plumbing engineering pro-•fession and meet industry leadersExpand your knowledge to stand out from the crowd•The 2010 ASPE Convention provides a relaxed, social

atmosphere in which you can meet today’s movers and shakers from all over the country and around the world. Grab a beer and some pretzels as ASPE members compete in the “How Fast Can It Go?” Chapter-to-Chapter Grand Prix on Saturday evening. Explore our country’s history at the Sunday Night Welcome Party at the National Constitution Center. Chat with new and old friends in the Host Chapter

Hospitality Room on Monday and Tuesday before playing with all of the latest plumbing products at the Engineered Plumbing Exposition.

If you haven’t already registered, go online right now to learn all about the networking and educational opportuni-ties at the 2010 ASPE Convention and EPE and then make your travel plans to Philadelphia. You can register online until October 22 or bring your form to the registration desk at the Pennsylvania Convention Center.

You do not want to miss this fantastic chance to enhance your career opportunities now and into the future.

2010 ASPE Convention and Engineered Plumbing ExpositionOctober 30–november 3, 2010Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaRegister online at www.aspe.org/2010ConventionAndEPE


How a little Slipup Caused major misunderstandings

STANLEy WOLFSON, ASPE ExECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Oh my, I am about to start a brouhaha. An article by a worker bee for IAPMO recently “spelled out” what sup-posedly happened regarding a certain Memorandum of Understanding that was not sent in a timely manner to that organization. I must take full responsibility for that. Yes, I was late in sending it.

Let me explain. Earlier this year, the ASPE board of directors thought that it was time to make agreements, operational or otherwise, with both of the major code organizations, ICC and IAPMO. A director at ICC liked the idea so much that he immediately drafted a very innocu-ous MOU between ASPE and ICC. After some review and modification, the final draft was given to the ASPE board to decide if it was what they wanted to do. It was, and I was directed to immediately send the exact same MOU to both ICC and IAPMO, with the necessary organizational word-ing changes.

Oops. I slipped up. Since I happened to be working with the ICC on some other things at the same time, I sent them the approved MOU for agreement and signing. Before you could boil an egg, the ICC signed it, and so did ASPE. Uh-oh. The ICC was so proud of the MOU that they immediately made a lot of PR noise, which would have been okay, except that I hadn’t yet sent the MOU to IAPMO.

As soon as the muck hit the fan, so to speak, I sent the MOU to IAPMO. However, it was too little, too late. They were not happy campers. IAPMO asked if they could modify the MOU more to their liking, and the modified version was put before the ASPE board, which said, wait, we approved one that we agreed was for both. IAPMO did not like that answer, but they have since worked something out that just slightly modifies the MOU to be more in keeping with their orga-nization. I expect to have it for the board to review at their October meeting.

meanwhileWhile all of this was happening, two other things occurred. First, I wrote my article for the Annual Report for the Region Chapter Presidents Meetings in June, and in it I said that I think the Society should support only one code in the United States and that I think ICC is the right way to go. Oops again. I’m still lucky to have my head given the response from the West Coast as to how dare I, the execu-tive director, make such a pronouncement and that the Uniform Plumbing Code is as good as or even better than the International Plumbing Code.

Second, we were in the middle of planning the Convention and EPE, and I had a brilliant idea: How about we invite the United Association to bring their demonstration trailers to the Exposition floor so our attendees could get a better idea

From the Executive’s Desk

www.aspe.org

ASP

E RE

PORT


of what plumbers learn and get up close and personal with the actual tools and products.

Wow. Everyone liked that idea. The UA thought it was a great idea, especially since I would, in the spirit of friend-ship, provide the Exposition floor space at no cost. We shortly received an e-mail from the UA saying it was a go.

Wait for it… Shortly thereafter, I received a phone call from a very irate individual who claimed to be the UA official who scheduled the trailers and who also just happened to be on the IAPMO board. Who did we think we were not having an MOU with IAPMO? I again explained that it was my fault, I was late, it was being sent, etc., etc. Too bad. He made it very clear that unless we had a signed MOU with IAPMO by Monday (this was on Friday), he was not going to send the trailers to the ASPE EPE. Oh my.

Since then, the ASPE president and the UA have made nice, and they said they would be glad to send their trailers. Of course, without any early promotion, just having them show up is of no matter. It’s like a major speaker. The idea to hire them in advance is for the promotion you get when you market the event. The whole idea of marketing the Convention is the promotion of what will be happening to excite attendees.

As an aside, while all of this was going on, we were still selling the Exposition floor, and space was getting very tight. Through intermediaries, I said that if the UA wanted to bring their trailers, they could, but they would have to pay for the floor space, which would be approximately 1,000 square feet. The same space I initially offered for free was, and still is, worth about $30,000.

my lumpsSo now I have to take my lumps and try to do everything I can so the Society is not seen as unfriendly. A few months after the Convention, I will officially retire from ASPE. I know many are looking forward to that day. Me too, sort of. I’m looking forward to my new job and work schedule. However, I will miss ASPE very much.

We’re going greenBy now, everyone should have heard that the Society would like to be as green as possible at the Convention and EPE. Initially, we thought about providing all Convention docu-ments on e-books. Although we tried and tried, we were unable to find a device inexpensive enough to give to all Convention attendees without raising the registration fee dramatically.

Yet we still intend to go green. First and foremost, very little printed material will be given to the delegates. In fact, virtually nothing on paper will be handed out at the Busi-


ness Meeting. Each delegate will be responsible for deciding how he or she wants to bring the material to the Business Meeting—whether that means printing it out or downloading it to their laptop, e-book, or netbook. (Obviously, printing the material negates the greenness for which we are striv-ing.) Whatever they decide, we hope it will help us stay a bit greener at the Convention.

So, be aware. Each delegate will be responsible for bring-ing the delegate material to the meeting on their own!

In an additional attempt to be green, no paper handouts will be available at any of the program sessions. All handouts will be in digital form on a USB thumb drive or perhaps a memory card.

Some things we absolutely must print, but we will try to use recycled paper and provide recycling bins in the Conven-tion Center. The Exposition Show Guide will be continued in its magazine format. Also, the Convention Program Book will be provided in its easy-to-use pocket size.

finally, a Random Thought About PEs and CPdsShould a PE bother to take the CPD examination? After all, they are Professional Engineers who have graduated from

an engineering degree course at a university and are prob-ably a mechanical or civil engineer who has learned it all. So why now bother to become a CPD?

This is a good question, especially since it seems that many PEs look down on the CPD. All too many, our own members included, are not very good supporters of the CPD and espe-cially of the recertification that is required. After all, many PEs, once they have passed the exam in certain states, don’t have to do much to recertify their PE, except pay a fee.

Thankfully, that is finally changing. Many states now are requiring PEs to get continuing education credits to recertify. There doesn’t seem to be any real standard, but many states require 24 to 36 credit hours in coursework directly related to engineering.

Now, with all of that continuing education, you would think that a PE would be able to pass the CPD Examination with no trouble and probably, according to many, no real studying. The Society would like more PEs to become CPDs for a very simple reason: to show that the CPD is important to the profession and really means something.

Welcome to all new Society members. When you choose a chapter affiliation, you have twice the advantage. not only can you be involved at the national level, you also can participate in chapter functions and programs. To all members, old and new, this is your Society. your involvement enhances the plumbing engineering field as well as ASPE. Suggestions about how to make your Society more beneficial to both fellow members and all involved in the industry are welcome.

Atlanta Chaptermichael R. Barksdale

Boston ChapterJohn Apostolopoulos, gE Akindele Ogunbodede, gE

British Columbia ChapterOlesya gorodivska, gE

Central florida ChapterZhijun Wei

Central indiana ChapterTim dale Brown

Central Ohio ChapterJoshua lynn moran, gE

Central Texas ChapterJennifer Carol doyle, PE

Chicago ChapterHarry Bloom michael f. Hanney

dallas/ft. Worth ChapterChad Hartung

Eastern michigan Chapterdana Keith Boykin

Houston ChapterCole marshburn

Kansas City Chaptermichael Kerr, PE

los Angeles Chapteryuridiana y. Castellon uriel luevano Andrew P. luevano Joven-Cid dolor Parco

member at large matthew Kenji Takita

miami ChapterPeter m. dominguez

nashville ChapterChristopher loftis

new york City ChapterAdam m. Hersh

Overseas ChapterHassan El mogy, gE

Philadelphia Chaptermike Bilotta Raymond Armond foisy lawrence P. matesich

Phoenix ChapterRobert S. Haines matthew Klem

Portland ChapterAaron lee Anspach

Quebec ChapterBruno Pare, gE

Richmond Chapteristvan godri martis, gE

Wisconsin Chaptermark dahl, gE

new ASPE members


ClASSifiEdS/AdVERTiSERS indEX

adVertiSerS index

Looking to Fill a Position?Recruitment

Advertising Works

Place your ad into ASPE’s

Plumbing Systems & Design

Call 847.296.0002and place your ad in

the next issue.

Acorn Engineering ...........................................3www.acorneng.com

AcornVac ....................................................... 23www.acornvac.com

AHR Expo .....................................................IBCwww.ahrexpo.com

Armstrong .................................................... IFCwww.armstronginternational.com/brain

Bootz ........................................................... 10www.bootz.com

Bradford White .............................................. 19www.bradfordwhite.com

Charlotte Pipe .......................................... 11,17www.charlottepipe.com

CISPI ............................................................ BCwww.cispi.org

Delta ..............................................................1www.deltafaucet.com/watersense

Hoeptner ...................................................... 45 www.freezeflow.com

ISIMET .......................................................... 13www.isimet.com

Kusel ............................................................ 37www.kuselequipment.com

Liberty Pumps ............................................... 14 www.libertypumps.com

Moen Commercial .......................................... 41www.moencommercial.com

Neoperl ........................................................ 22www.neoperl.com

ProVent Systems ............................................ 15www.prosetsystems.com

PVI ............................................................... 26www.pvi.com

Sani-Floor ..................................................... 34 www.sanifloor.com

Schott ............................................................9www.us.schott.com/drainline

SeeWater ...................................................... 40www.seewaterinc.com

Sioux Chief ......................................... 13,15,38www.siouxchief.com

Tsurumi Pump .................................................5www.tsurumipump.com

TouchSensor .................................................. 24www.levelguardproducts.com

Zoeller ............................................................7www.zoeller.com

Zurn ............................................................. 25www.zurn.com

EI/PE’sLooking for Secrets to A&E Startups?

[email protected] Instant Report

3gc_Small Firm U Eye Ads Class.indd 3 8/30/10 8:12:12 PM

FREE HAT!Bring this coupon to the ASPE Pavilion

at the 2010 ASPE Convention and receive a free ASPE hat with any

purchase more than $10.Good only Oct. 30–Nov. 3, 2010, at the ASPE Pavilion in the Pennsylvania Convention Center.Coupon may not be reproduced.

FREE Show Registration, Hotel & Travel Discounts and Show Information: www.ahrexpo.com

Co-sponsors: Honorary Sponsor:

January 31 - February 2, 2011Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada

YOUR PIPELINE to What’s NEW!

Demo the Newest Products from Manufacturers showcasing Hydronic and Radi

Explore the Latest Technologies

Learn Best-practices and Growth Opportunities

Many free to all Attendees!

SEE, LEARN and ACCOMPLISH More for the HVAC Side of Your Business

Produced and managed by: Phone: E-mail: [email protected]

AHR Expo Plumbing ad 7x10.indd 1 7/8/10 12:59:43 PM

You can always trust the mark on cast iron pipe and fittings. Members earn the right to put that mark on their products

by submitting to frequent inspections to determine that they conform in design, material, dimensions and markings

to ASTM and CISPI standards. It’s a decades-old program that’s been approved by NSF. Spotting noncompliant pipe in

the field is never easy. But it is easy to tell when you’re buying a product that’s been put through a rigorous quality control program,

not just by the manufacturer, but also by CISPI and NSF. Simply look for the mark.

Always look for the CISPI mark because it’s never this easy to spot noncompliant pipe.®

®

52438 CPF CISPI PS&D.indd 1 8/14/09 1:17 PM


Documents

Plumbing Magazine