Hydronics = Fluid Comfort
Steve Clark, P.E. has written a perceptive and provocative article (Hydronics vs. air…and the Clear Winner ) on the greenbuildingpro website, which argues that hydronics (which he defines as fluid comfort) should be the preferred means of heating and cooling in U.S HVAC systems – far beyond the paltry six percent he cites for new commercial projects – if U.S. engineers would embrace the energy-efficient space comfort systems of their European counterparts. Americans’ notion of temperature control is, unfortunately, as he points out, a bit antiquated – we are accustomed to employing energy-wasting systems like forced air, electric heat, through-the-wall A/C and split systems to cool interior spaces rather than using energy saving radiant cooling, as an example, as the Europeans do. As he points out, “When a client asks us to engineer a comfortable space, we give him a forced-air A/C system.”
FC hydronic systems will sooner and more efficiently get us to the goal of Net Zero.
What is your approach to comfort issues?
Filed under: Water vs. Air
