Calculation of the heating system of a private house (and not only a private one) is a very important stage on which the success of the entire project depends. It determines how energy efficient and comfortable the home will be. Such calculations are classified as complex. But if you wish, you can independently develop a project for a heating system. The calculation will require certain knowledge and skills from the performer. You will have to delve into the specifics of the subject, study the regulations and building codes. You will also need to master some software products. This will significantly speed up the design and calculation of heating systems, as well as select the optimal equipment configuration.
Designing heating systems is a process that is more creative than purely mechanical. The exception is, perhaps, only typical apartment buildings, in which the parameters of the heating system have long been calculated. And even then, many people prefer to install autonomous heating in their apartments: this significantly reduces costs and significantly improves the microclimate.dwellings.
The boiler is the main element of the heating system
The central node of the system, its heart, is the boiler. And the calculation method and the parameters of the system as a whole largely depend on what fuel will be used.
There are boilers:
- electric hot water;
- solid fuel (coal, firewood, wood briquettes, etc.);
- working on a liquid type of fuel (gasoline, fuel oil, kerosene, etc.);
- gas boiler equipment.
Description and general characteristics of electric boilers
Such equipment consumes a lot of electricity, the prices of which are quite high and continue to grow regularly. For this reason, not many owners prefer to install this type of boiler. In addition, there is a possibility in winter for several days, or even for a week (especially in rural areas) to be left without heat, one on one with the elements: power lines are often cut off by fallen trees.
However, when using an electric water heating boiler, installation and calculation of the heating system of a private house is much easier and faster. And this circumstance is one of the main, in addition to low cost, competitive advantages of such boilers.
The final decision will be made by the owner himself, after weighing all the pros and cons.
Description and general characteristics of solid fuel boilers
Peat, coal, all kinds of wood materials can be attributed to solid fuels.
All these substances emit different amounts of thermal energy during combustion. This is due to the complexity of calculating the water heating system of the house. But this type of boiler is considered the most economical: solid fuel is inexpensive, and in some cases it can even be obtained for free. Among other things, such a system is truly considered autonomous: it is not afraid of river floods, or breaks in power lines, or any other manifestations of the raging elements.
There are special devices for sale that capture and automatically supply fuel to the furnace. However, such a decision will significantly increase the cost of the entire project.
The most efficient among solid fuel boilers are the so-called pyrolysis plants. The essence and principle of operation of boilers equipped with this type of device is as follows: solid fuel emits gas, which is burned and heats water throughout the entire circuit of the heating system. The calculation of such devices is rather cumbersome and complex. And yet, in recent years, more and more people are installing such boilers. The fact is that this technology is very economical and allows you to achieve an efficiency of 85%, which is a very good indicator and significantly exceeds the efficiency of traditional equipment.
Description and general characteristics of liquid fuel boilers
Diesel fuel is used as a carrier of thermal energy. Also recently recruitedpopularity of boilers running on waste industrial oil.
Waste oil boilers are effectively used for heating industrial buildings, car repair shops and service centers for servicing heavy equipment, that is, where this same oil is present in excess. Thermal calculation of an oil heating system can only be carried out by qualified engineers with the appropriate education and extensive experience.
As for private housing, oil-fired boilers, not to mention expensive diesel fuel boilers, are almost never used. Firstly, you need to store large amounts of fuel somewhere, and secondly, this is an extremely expensive pleasure.
Also, such installations are sources of harmful emissions that are hazardous to human he alth and the environment.
Sometimes such boilers are still installed. The fact is that in the future, a liquid fuel boiler can be converted to gas. And therefore, in remote villages, where it is only planned to lay a gas main, people install similar boilers: the calculation of the heating system and the purchase of all equipment can be done once, and then no longer spend money.
Description and general characteristics of gas boilers
Calculation of a heating system with a gas boiler will not cause difficulties even for beginners: reference tables with all the necessary data have been developed a long time ago. All information is reliable and proven countless times.
Natural gas boilers aremost in demand on the market. The operation of such equipment is relatively cheap, and due to their small dimensions they can ideally fit into any room. Modern automation tools make the operation of gas equipment safe and extremely efficient.
Types of heating elements (batteries)
If earlier heating radiators were cast exclusively from gray cast iron, today the market offers a wide range of products from a variety of structural materials: steel, cast iron, aluminum, composites. But, despite the external attractiveness and ostentatious gloss, modern batteries are hardly inferior to the "ancient" cast-iron ones in terms of the most important indicator for them - heat capacity and thermal conductivity. This means that they heat the room much more efficiently.
The specific type and size of the radiator depends on the amount of heat loss and the area of the heated room
General characteristics of steel and cast iron batteries
Steel heating radiators are extremely rare and not popular with the population. The reason for this is their rather high cost. In addition, due to poor casting qualities, steel batteries cannot be obtained by casting. More often, such batteries are obtained by welding low-carbon pipes into a radiator. But such batteries have a low heat capacity and quickly cool down if the water supply has been suspended for any reason.
Strong cast-iron batteries are associated, at least among the adult population,with a happy childhood. Such radiators were installed in houses throughout the existence of the USSR. With the development of foundry technologies, the shape and technical characteristics of cast-iron radiators were optimized, but old batteries still serve without complaints to this day, and they are unlikely to be able to compete with a newfangled product.
Cast iron is a very durable material, capable of withstanding enormous pressure, besides, it does not exhibit cold brittleness (it does not become brittle) during temperature changes, it absorbs shocks well.
The disadvantages of both cast iron and steel batteries include their large mass. For this reason, they cannot be mounted on thin partition walls.
General characteristics of aluminum batteries
Aluminum alloy heatsinks have recently been popular and are in great demand in the market. They are produced, as a rule, in the form of typesetting blocks, which can be connected to form radiators of different sizes, depending on the heated room. When calculating the pump for the heating system, it is necessary to take into account how much water circulates through the radiators and connecting pipes. A low-powered pump may not be able to cope, resulting in the heating not working properly or not working at all.
Modern aluminum-based alloys fully meet the safety requirements for the operation of equipment under high pressure at high temperatures. At the same time, suchthe material weighs a little, has good technological qualities, thanks to which you can get a stylish and beautiful product. It is also important that, upon contact with air, an invisible oxide film is formed on the surface of aluminum, which prevents the further development of corrosion phenomena. In other words, these radiators will never rust.
An example of calculating the heating system
The accuracy of the calculation will depend on many factors. It is especially difficult to develop and design a heating system for non-standard solutions in housing construction.
The choice of heating calculation by area or by volume is made. The first method is the most common due to its relative simplicity. An effective and accurate calculation by area is if the ceiling height is standard and is 2.7 meters. The product of the area of the heated room (rooms) by the coefficient that characterizes the climatic zone, as a result, gives the necessary power of the boiler equipment. This coefficient is a reference, and for Moscow and the region it is assumed to be 150 W/m2.
In this case, the areas of those rooms that border the street through the wall are summed up. All auxiliary and utility rooms are not included in the calculation.
It is customary to choose and purchase a boiler whose power exceeds the calculated value by 30%. This will create the necessary power reserve in case of abnormally frosty winters and other unforeseen circumstances.
Thus, the power of the boiler required to power the heating system of a private house with a total living area of 60 m22 is calculated as follows:
601501, 3=11.7 kW.
Main features of the software product Instal-Therm
This program will greatly simplify the calculation of radiators and other elements of the heating system. Implemented the ability to scan design documentation, a method for calculating heat losses. There is a large catalog of materials with an indication of their thermophysical properties, which greatly simplifies and speeds up the design of a heating system.
There is an insignificant, but still annoying drawback: the printing of design documentation is not implemented. But this problem can be solved by converting the document to another format, and only then output it to the printer.
"Instal-Therm" will help you correctly and rationally choose the material and diameter of pipes, types and characteristics of batteries, the height at which it is necessary to fix the pump and other equipment, the calculation of temperature indicators and consumption rates of conventional fuel.
Calculation using Herz software
The licensed version of the program is freely distributed. It must be downloaded from the Internet and installed on a computer. The program will help design a heating system in a new house, as well as improve an existing old one.
"Hertz" will determine all the technical parameters: heat loss, system pressure, flow rate, the required power of pumping equipment andothers
The results of the calculations are displayed on the computer monitor in a convenient form.
Good help and user support available. If a mistake was made in the original data due to inattention, "Hertz" will definitely report it and explain what needs to be corrected.
The program will help to significantly save money on the purchase of excess equipment and components.
Benefits from using Oventrop software
This computer program will help you perform calculations very quickly and efficiently. The information necessary for the calculation is entered in the appropriate columns: heating system (two-pipe or one-pipe), radiator material, pipe diameter and material, ceiling height, surface area, etc.
The program will offer a choice of the optimal configuration of the system, it will automatically calculate the fuel consumption, the speed of water through the pipes. The program implements a comprehensive library of standard heating system elements and structures.
The results can be printed, exported to other files for further analysis and development (if necessary).
This program will also determine whether the volume of the water tank built into the boiler will be sufficient, or whether it will be necessary to purchase and connect an additional tank. Calculations of single-pipe heating systems for small rooms show that in most cases a built-in tank is sufficient. If the system is more branched, designed to warm uplarge areas, then, most likely, you will have to buy additional capacity.
Also, this software product can calculate a warm water floor. And if the floor is installed in accordance with the recommendations of the program, then the temperature in the house will always be comfortable, while energy costs will be the lowest.
