The heating system in any building should provide uniform heating of all its premises. In case of violations of the hydraulic balance, it may turn out that, for example, in a private house in some rooms the air temperature will be too high, and in others - low. This will result in a huge waste of electricity. It will also cause significant heat loss.
In stuffy rooms, in this case, you will have to open windows and doors to ventilate them. In poorly heated rooms, it will be necessary to additionally turn on electric radiators. That is why in many cases it becomes necessary to balance the heating system.
When may be required?
First of all, the balancing of the heating system is carried out immediately after its installation. Also, such a procedure may be required:
- after repair and reconstruction of the old system;
- in old networks when scale accumulates in pipes andrust;
- when replacing or connecting new consumers.
The main factors indicating the need for such an operation are:
- overrun of coolant;
- uneven heating of radiators.
In addition to the excessive consumption of electricity and significant heat losses, the imbalance of the heating system causes a rapid failure of the heating equipment. After all, the boiler in this case begins to work in enhanced mode. Also, in houses with this problem, drafts usually occur in living quarters.
Unacceptable practices
Sometimes, in order to balance the heating system and equalize the temperature of the radiators, the owners, for example, of private houses try to take the following measures:
- increase boiler power;
- put a more powerful circulation pump.
Unfortunately, the problem of uneven heating of the batteries cannot be solved by either method. With an increase in boiler power, the temperature of the water in the pipes will, of course, be higher. However, this will lead to the fact that the radiators in the rooms closest to the heating unit will begin to heat up even more. Batteries in distant rooms will still remain cold. An increase in the power of the circulation pump will cause faster circulation of the coolant through the pipes. It also won't solve the problem. Nearby radiators will still warm up much more strongly.far.
Basic balancing methods
Setting up the heating network in buildings, including suburban low-rise buildings, can be done in two main ways:
- according to the estimated water consumption;
- approximate temperature.
The first method is considered the most accurate. According to the water flow, the balancing of the system can be done as efficiently as possible. However, this technique requires the owners of the project to have a heating network in their hands. This document, among other things, must indicate the flow rate of the coolant in each circuit in the building.
Temperature control - less precise, but simpler method. This tuning technology is used when the owners of the house do not have the design documentation for the heating network in their hands. This is not a rare case. In such a situation, do-it-yourself balancing of the heating system is usually done.
Ball valves
To regulate the movement of the coolant through the pipes, among other things, various kinds of sanitary fittings are used. Sometimes owners of country houses simply use ball valves for the purpose of balancing. However, this decision is wrong. Ball valves, unlike special fittings, are designed only to shut off the coolant flow.
Experts advise using completely different fittings when balancing the heating system. If the setting is supposed to be done by consumption, you will need to purchase:
- special Y-valves;
- electronic flowmeter.
Special equipment
Y valves are so called because they have a special body configuration. After inserting into the system, it is located at an optimal angle to the highway. This minimizes the effect of fluid flow on the valve and improves balancing accuracy. The structural elements of such a valve are:
- control knob;
- outer stem seal;
- brass drain valve;
- setting memory device;
- measuring nipple, etc.
This equipment for balancing a two-pipe heating system maintains a constant pressure difference between supply and return. In single-pipe communications, valves of this type "monitor" a constant flow of coolant. There are also universal models that can be installed on any network.
To measure the temperature of radiators when using the second technology for balancing the heating system at home, you should use a special contact thermometer. Without such equipment, the setup procedure in this case may be ineffective. Tactilely accurately equalize the temperature of the radiators, of course, will not work. A contact thermometer is very inexpensive, and it is extremely simple to use. Such a device is simply applied to surfaces, and it immediately determines the temperature of its heating.
Technologyflow balancing
According to this method, the heating network is set up in most cases by specialists. But sometimes homeowners use this technology to adjust the heating of radiators on their own.
Y-valves are used in this case to balance the heating system. Also, devices of a special design are used - flow meters. When using this technique, a balancing valve with fittings is mounted on the return branch. Further, the operation is carried out as follows:
- take a diagram with indications of the coolant flow rate for each of the branches;
- attach the electronic unit to the valve fittings;
- turning the spindle regulates the flow in the branches.
Thus, heating systems in multi-storey buildings are usually balanced in this way. Very often it is also used to set up a network in private buildings.
Simplified technology
In low-rise residential buildings, in some cases, a slightly different flow balancing technology can be used. Electronic flowmeters are, unfortunately, quite expensive. Therefore, owners of not too large private cottages sometimes use a special type of balancing valves to adjust the heating network - with a special flask. The latter is equipped with a coolant flow rate scale. This allows you to perform the necessary work without the use of expensive electrical equipment. But the adjustment in this case can only be made relatively rough.
Balancing heating risers and branches using this technology allows you to achieve very good results. But it is still not customary to configure each radiator in this way. At the final stage, when using this technique, the pump is switched to the calculated speed of the coolant.
Radiator Balancing Technology
Setting heating systems by temperature is usually used only in small one-story private houses and cottages. For example, it is in this way that the balancing of a dead-end heating system is most often performed. Two-pipe networks of this design in small one-story houses, as you know, are mounted quite often.
Balancing in this case is done for each specific radiator. To do this, a special valve is installed on the batteries. The heating system is balanced in a private house using this technique as follows:
- on the consumer farthest from the heating unit, the valve opens;
- the other valves open at a certain number of turns.
Example of temperature balancing
Let's say there are 6 batteries in the house, and the valves are unscrewed five turns. In this case, one turn is made on the first radiator, two turns on the second, etc. After this procedure, the temperature of the valve body is measured. If it is too high, the tap is slightly covered, if it is low, it is slightly opened. All subsequent measurements when using this technology do notearlier than 10 min. after the previous ones. This is necessary so that the temperature of the metal body of the valve has time to stabilize.
The valves themselves are installed on the outlet radiators. This valve differs from conventional ball valves in that it opens or closes a few millimeters with each revolution.
What other equipment can be used?
Sometimes, instead of shut-off and balancing valves, special thermostatic valves with presetting can be used for temperature control. They are installed on the feed.
Balancing valves at the outlet are not mounted in this case. The fact is that a thermal valve with presetting is at the same time a conventional and balancing valve at the same time. If there is such a shut-off valve on the return, it is allowed to install a simple ball valve. You can also embed a shut-off valve here. Then the battery will look more aesthetically pleasing. For reasons of economy, if there is a thermal fan on the return, you can also put nothing at all.
Stop valves of this type can be manual or automatic. In the latter case, the valve is supplemented with a thermal head. It is believed that the first type of valves is more suitable for two-pipe heating systems. Manual devices are usually mounted in single-pipe networks.
Sometimes much cheaper thermal valves without presetting are also included in the heating system during balancing. In this case, for supply or return, additionallythrottle washers are mounted. At the same time, their resistance is calculated in such a way as to obtain the mass design flow rate of the coolant. Washers, which you can make with your own hands, for example, from coins, in this case will serve as presets.
What recommendations should I follow when installing?
Properly made hydraulic balancing of the heating system allows you to make living in the house as comfortable as possible. In order for such communications to function effectively in the future, when designing and installing them, it is worth following the following recommendations:
- The length of the heating circuits in the network should be approximately equal. To do this, the pipeline is divided over the area of \u200b\u200beach room.
- If there are a large number of circuits in the house, it is advisable to mount a collector. The advantage of such systems is that, if available, it becomes possible to use additional equipment designed to limit the flow of coolant in automatic mode.
Basic principles of adjustment
It is impossible to create significant closures when balancing the heating system in a private house or apartment building. One of the main goals of such a procedure is to ensure the freest possible movement of the coolant. Closing during balancing is a forced measure.
Achieving absolutely the same temperature of radiators in the house due to a significant delay in the coolant current is in any case not worth it. If the difference in battery heating isbe 3-4 degrees at a water temperature, for example, at 80 ° C, nothing bad, most likely, will not happen.
Before you start balancing a single-pipe or two-pipe heating system, you must definitely check the network. In no case should there be air pockets in the highways. You also need to check the working condition of the coarse filters. The pressure difference between supply and return must be high enough.
