A sad day coming ... Paul system getting ripped out.

mcsteamy

They've been doing work on our building, which has (as far as I can tell) a fully functional and well maintained (but poorly controlled) Paul system.  They control it by pulling out the pins in the basement.  Brilliant.  And this is a very, very large building.  A couple hundred thousand square feet, if I had to guess.  New owners have more money than brains (of course) and their solution instead of putting on a Tekmar or Heattimer?  They're running 2-1/2" copper throughout the building and installing all new air handlers to blow scorched air at us. 



Paul system is getting shut down in a couple years when they get all of this working, and if I had to guess, left to rot.  Why?  Someone thought this would be a good idea because they could then have computerized control from their central office and stop the "it's too hot" calls.  Cost of doing this (which will never work well or be as comfortable, and will make a constant racket) versus cost of installing and tweaking a Tekmar controller and some TRVs?  It frightens me to think about it.  I've been pissed off all day.  Not much I can do, though.  They already paid a mint for 2-1/2" copper throughout the building, and there is probably no stopping this monumental foolishness.

vaporvac

Mini-tube?

Perhaps they could use all that copper for a mini-tube system? I know I'm dreaming here and obviously trying to make light, besides which I think it's too big a diameter. That is very sad...crushing really and stupid, to boot. Steam is so great in these big old buildings;there's nothing quite like it.

Steamhead

Once again

you can't fix stupid!

mcsteamy

Yup.

Stupid thing is, from the sound of it, they might not even have a boiler here.  Sounds like they get steam from the steam plant, which they run on a stinking TIMER.  Bright side is, they probably won't actually rip it out, just mothball it.



So instead of using steam to heat cast iron, they'll use steam to heat water, circulate it with electric pumps, then use more electric to blow it around.  Brilliant.

MDNLansing

Wish There Was More Time

I'm building a controller that will maximize my old vapor vacuum system to run with modern steam boilers. I wish this was happening this time next year so I could send them data from my system proving vacuum systems are still very efficient, and without a doubt extremely comfortable. This is just too bad. There's no reason we can't marry old and new into something great. You just gotta think outside the box.