Humidification With Hydronics

Jim Pompetti

Actually both , it for general information . Both have radiant and rads .

Jim Pompetti

What kind of whole house humidification do you guys like to recommend w/ hydronic heating?

Rich L.

New or old?

Jim, are you talking about a new house or older existing structure?

Marty

nortec

They make a great small electric steam one, expensive to run and not exactly cheap to buy but works great. http://www.humidity.com/ look around there ways to do it with and without any ductwork.

Unknown

AprilAire

Has a few models that you may want to look at.

Cosmo_3

Nortec

Hey Jim, I have the contact info for our local Nortec rep-

Ron Zaritzky
Thermal Specialties Company
P.O. Box 5401
Lancaster, Pa. 17606-5401
Tel 717-560-4238
Fax 717-560-5918
thermalspec@comcast.net

I have been in contact with him recently and I am bidding a Nortec for a whole house radiant job I did 2 yrs ago. If I get it I will let you know. As was said above, the unit is a little pricey, but I am not sure that it is anymore expensive to run than any other steam humidifier. They have a steam chamber cartridge that you simply replace when needed.

www.humidity.com is the website, and there is a rep locator link, you simply type in your zip code and it gives you contact info for the rep in your area.

Cosmo

jimbo_7

Aprilaire 350/360

I've installed a few of these, particularly the 350, for baseboard and steam customers. 100% satisfaction rate, though personally I prefer the duct-able 350, as installing the unit itself in a remote place away from primary living space is best due to fan noise. But either way, installed correctly (this is key for anything) they'll work just fine for you.

Plumb Bob

> As was said above, the unit is a little pricey,

> but I am not sure that it is anymore expensive to

> run than any other steam humidifier. They have a


It's expensive to run for two reasons. First, the cartridge has to be replaced and it is very expensive. Second, it uses electric heat to evaporate the water, whereas a blower-type evaporator like the Aprilaire is basically a desert cooler, it cools the house and then the boiler has to run longer to keep the house warm. So the Aprilaire uses cheaper energy to evaporate the water (natural gas or whatever fuel your boiler is using).

Bill W@Honeywell

Check out our new TrueSteam...

Mounts directly on duct or up to 20 feet away with optional remote hose assembly. 6,9,12 gallon sizes, plug & Play installations. Works with VisonPro IAQ stat, TrueIAQ air control or standard humidistat. Go to www.hotfreshcool.com for more details.

Cosmo_3

it depends

R. Kalia, it depends on the application.

An evaporative panel humidifier's output capacity is directly effected by the air temperature flowing through it. Higher temperature, as from a gas furnace, or oil furnace will be able to evaporate water at a faster rate than say a heatpump that uses lower temperature air when not running the electric back-up heat.


In the application I mentioned, which was a whole house radiant job, the number one enemy is draft. Turning on the a/c fan is just a big no-no. Add to this the fact that the air through the a/c system will not be heated, room temperature air may not evaporate enough moisture to keep up with demand.

The Nortec, (well any brand steam humidifier w/ an integral blower) does not require the use of the a/c system fan or ductwork. Also a steam humidifier like the Nortec will not be a mold source like a typical panel type humidifier may be when not maintained properly. No matter what STEAM humidifier you use, water still boils at 212F, and when using electric to make the water boil I would dare to say that all brands of steam humidifiers require the same wattage to boil a given amount of water. Some steam humidifiers can deal with the mineral deposits left from the steaming process better than others.

Sorry to disagree with you, but you see......it depends.


Cosmo