The centralized heating system involves heating the coolant in the boiler room and its further distribution to living quarters using a system of pipes and radiators. In order for the heating to be as efficient and uniform as possible, it is necessary to choose the right radiators, and also to take additional measures to increase heat transfer.
In the long term, knowing how to increase the heat output of a central heating battery will help the owner achieve maximum comfortable and smooth heating of his home, and permanently solve the problem of cold in the apartment when the heating system is on.
To understand how it works different methods to increase heat transfer, it is necessary to familiarize yourself with the variables affecting the efficiency of the central heating battery located in the apartment.
In general terms, the level of heat transfer from a radiator depends on the following factors:
There are also indirect factors due to which the heating battery connected to the circuit does not work at full capacity, these are:
Improving air convection
Among the most simple methods, which will help you understand how to increase the heat transfer of a heating pipe with your own hands, is the use of the laws of convection. Often, in apartments, batteries are filled with pieces of furniture, protected or hidden behind heavy curtains. All these elements impede air circulation and it is quite difficult to achieve comfortable temperature conditions in the room, even if the central heating is operating at full capacity.
To optimize the air flow rate, it is necessary to free up the space around the radiator as much as possible.
Without encountering obstacles in its path, the air heated by the battery will move freely around the room and will provide the maximum heating level provided for by the radiator power.
Using an electric fan to improve convection
The owners, who are familiar with the physical laws, according to which heating, sewerage, water supply is designed in houses, understand that the speed of air circulation affects the heat transfer of the battery. The faster the air circulates in the room, the more heat it can take from the radiator over a certain period of time.
To improve natural convection, electric fans can be installed near the radiators. It is worth giving preference to silent models that consume a minimum amount of electricity. The fan should be installed at a certain angle to the battery. This simple method is quite effective. He is able to raise the temperature in the room by several degrees.
Reflective screen arrangement
As a tool to increase heat transfer, foil for radiators can be used, which will help direct the flow of thermal energy into the room. Radiators that are not equipped with a reflective screen radiate heat in all directions, including given off to cold outer walls. The screen helps to focus the direction of heat flow and increase the temperature in the room.
The screen design is simple and affordable. It should have a larger area than the radiators and be installed on a clean wall behind the radiator. Instead of foil, you can use foil-insolon - a special material that has a foamed base on one side, and on the other is covered with reflective foil. You need to mount the screen on the wall using any high-quality construction glue.
Purging radiators
Under difficult operating conditions, the central heating battery can eventually become clogged or airy. Such changes are accompanied by poor circulation of the coolant and the appearance of cold sections. Blowing out radiators - a quick and economical way to increase heat transfer - will help eliminate air locks and blockages.
There are several purging methods that involve the use of different types equipment:
Using one or several methods of blowing out radiators will improve the efficiency of radiators and will allow you to forget about the cold and discomfort in the apartment.
It is worth remembering that a central heating system is a complex network of radiators and pipelines.
Therefore, it is advisable to perform some types of blowing of batteries together with neighbors, because otherwise the cleaned sections will again reduce heat transfer after a few weeks of operation. You can read more about the methods for flushing the heating system.
By following simple and affordable recommendations, you can increase the heat transfer of any type of radiator and get the most out of your central heating system. Complex use of methods is the most rational solution to the problem of poor heat transfer and will help the owner to achieve effective work heating appliances in his home.
Sometimes it's hard to find optimal model ... In most cases, several factors are taken into account - the complexity of installation, service life and heat transfer. The last indicator is the most important, since it will depend on the efficiency of the device.
With the advent of new materials for the manufacture of radiators (aluminum, bimetallic) cast iron receded into the background. But their unique performance has once again made buyers take notice. First of all, these are good performance properties. Unlike aluminum and metal, cast iron can accumulate heat and when the water temperature drops, the radiators will be warm for some time.
But back to the issue of heat transfer. A detailed calculation methodology can be found, which describes in detail the calculation methodology and indicates ways to increase this indicator.
Almost all manufacturers indicate the nominal value of thermal conductivity at ideal temperature conditions - 90 ° C. However, in fact, to achieve this from heat suppliers in apartment buildings problematic.
As a result, the heating indicators of the room differ significantly from the calculated ones. In this case, you can use a few small "tricks" that can increase the temperature in the room at the current performance of the heating system.
Installing a reflective screen
To prevent heat energy from being absorbed by the wall, a reflective foil shield can be installed on it.
In this case, the effective heat transfer of the radiator will increase by 5-10%. But at the same time it is worth remembering that if the wall is external, then without proper heating it can cause heat losses in the room.
Fan installation
Heating the room from cast iron radiators occurs by natural convection. To increase the passage of air masses through the sections of the device, you can install a small fan on the wall behind the radiator. This will slightly increase the temperature in the room, but at the same time it will cause the coolant to cool. A similar method can be applied to a central heating system.
Installation of steel decorative covers
They will artificially increase the area of \u200b\u200bthe radiator and will contribute to better heat transfer. At the same time, the heating time will increase, which will affect the inertia of heating the room from autonomous system heating.
These are just a few methods of artificially increasing the heat transfer of cast iron radiators. But the most effective will be compliance with the temperature of the coolant. For this, it is necessary either to improve the quality of the services provided by the management company with a central heating system, or to make it autonomous.
When it is cold in the room when the central heating batteries are running, many turn on additional heating devices, but rarely does anyone think about how to increase the heat transfer of central heating radiators... If turning on heaters is a temporary and very expensive measure, then increasing the efficiency of batteries is a long-term solution to the problem of a cold room, which often does not require additional investments. This article will show you simple and complex ways to effectively increase the heat transfer of batteries.
What influences the efficiency of central heating radiators?
- Coolant temperature in the system;
- Coolant movement speed;
- Type of connection to the heating system;
- The material from which the radiator is made;
- Heat transfer area and number of radiator sections.
Other factors that appear during the operation of radiators also play an important role. So, for example, the heat dissipation of the batteries will decrease if:
- Apply many layers of paint;
- Do not dust off;
- Do not bleed air from radiators periodically;
- The inner cavity, filters and pipes are clogged;
- The radiator is covered with a decorative screen, curtains, furniture, etc.
In general, disturbed air convection (the last point) is one of the main conditions for poor heat transfer from central heating radiators. To eliminate this problem first and you need to direct all efforts.
Simple ways to increase heat transfer from radiators
... Batteries transfer heat to air, which, when heated, rises, and then, when cooled, falls down. This is how the air circulates, and the room becomes warm as much as the heat dissipation of the battery and the air flow rate allow. Therefore, in order to increase the indoor temperature, first of all, it is necessary to ensure good air circulation. To do this, free up the space around the battery as much as possible: remove the protective screen, raise the curtains, move the furniture, and so on.
We accelerate air circulation with a fan. The faster the air moves, the more heat energy it can take from the battery. On the coldest days, you can turn on the fan by directing it towards the center of the battery to cover as much area as possible. To ensure the autonomy of such a system and ensure its quiet operation, you can place computer fans. They are quiet, low-power, and when placed directly under the battery do not disturb the natural direction of air movement in the room. The fans will allow you to raise the temperature in the room by 3-10 degrees, and their low consumption makes it possible to blow the battery around the winter without significantly damage to your wallet. Calculate for yourself: the power of ordinary fans is about 40 watts, computer fans are no more than 5. Total consumption: 40 * 24 (hours) * 30 (days) \u003d 29 Kilowatts \u003d about 95 rubles per month. In the case of computers, even less - about 23 rubles / month. when connecting at once 2.
Installing a heat reflecting screen.
Heat from the battery radiates in all directions, and in order not to heat the walls, but to direct the thermal energy into the room, you need to install a heat-reflecting screen behind the battery. For these purposes, you can use foil-insolon (foamed base with foil on one side), gluing it to the cleaned wall behind the battery with any suitable means (tile adhesive, universal adhesive 88, silicone, etc.). Ideally, the area of \u200b\u200bthe heat reflecting shield should be larger than the area of \u200b\u200bthe battery.
If the battery at the top is coldyou need to deflate. To do this, unscrew the usual or "Mayevsky" tap at the top of the battery.
It will not be superfluous to keep a container or a towel under the valve, because as soon as the air comes out, water will pour in a thin stream. As soon as this happens, the valve can be closed. The procedure should be repeated for each battery in the house.
Complex ways to increase heat transfer from radiators
If the previous methods did not help, or their application causes significant discomfort, you can solve the problem in one of the cardinal ways:
- Change heating radiators (below will be given a table of thermal conductivity and thermal power of radiators);
- Increase the number of battery sections (more battery area - warmer in the room);
- Clean the internal cavity of the radiator from dirt, corrosion, scale;
- Change the type of connection (optimal - straight diagonal or straight one-sided);
All these works are required with the heating system turned off, which in most cases is difficult during the heating season. However, the situation will be much easier if the input and output are set shut-off valves, allowing you to disconnect each radiator from the heating network separately.
Table No. 1: Coefficient of thermal conductivity of metals
Table # 2: Thermal power radiators
The best option is bimetallic radiators, which are not demanding on the quality of water in the heat supply system and at the same time have a high thermal power. This was achieved through a combination of steel (inside) and aluminum (outside), and also thanks to modern technologies, which made it possible to achieve a large area of \u200b\u200bheat transfer, with the relative oversize of the sections.
Competently using the resources of central heating, you can forever save yourself from the need to connect additional heating devices. And, knowing the ways to increase the heat transfer of batteries, you can adjust the temperature in the room at your discretion.
Prologue.
This year unprecedented frosts are raging in our country. In some areas of the republic, the air temperature dropped to -24 ° C, which is an anomalous phenomenon for warm Moldova. I don't have a thermometer in my room, but I felt that the hand on the table began to freeze, and I had to put a piece of foam rubber under it.
We, in general, like the Amundsen, are already accustomed to the coolness, but yesterday the chairman of our condominium, collecting signatures under the appeal to the heat supplier, asked what the air temperature in our apartment was. It is unlikely that the heat supplier will increase the temperature of the coolant, but perhaps the chairman wants to demand a forfeit under the pretext of providing low-quality services.
Whatever it was, but this event first prompted me to measure the air temperature in the apartment, and then to conduct this experiment.
Of course, to say that this experiment was unclean is to say nothing. There are too many variables that could affect the accuracy of the result, ranging from the direction of the wind overboard and ending with the activity of the computer working in the tested room.
But, the most important parameter, which at another time would not allow this experiment to be carried out at all, is the stability of the coolant temperature.
The fact is that in warmer periods of time, the temperature of the coolant is actively regulated throughout the day to save energy consumption. When there is an abnormal temperature outside, then all the valves are wide open.
The purpose of the experiment.
Confirm or refute the assumption that forced cooling of a steam heating battery, even at a coolant temperature of 42 ° C, can significantly increase the heat transfer of the system in an ordinary city apartment.
Temperature sensor.
To determine the effectiveness of one or another method of blowing the battery, it was decided to measure the difference in coolant temperatures before and after the central heating battery.
In fact, I started by measuring the temperature of the battery at different points, but the data obtained could not be processed.
For this, two identical temperature sensors were made based on semiconductor thermistors KMT-17.
And this is how the sensors were fixed on the steam heating pipes. To improve contact with the pipe, the thermistor was lubricated with KPT-8 heat-conducting paste.
To reduce the measurement error introduced by air flows, the sensors had to be additionally insulated with a foam rubber tape.
Selection of the optimal fan position.
The coolant temperature was measured at different positions of the fan relative to the battery. At the same time, the fan power did not change.
Throughout the experiment, the temperature of the coolant was 43 ° C, the air temperature in the room was 20 ° C.
In all cases, the distance from the center of the blades to the center of the battery was 70cm.
The difference in readings between the temperature of the coolant at the inlet and outlet is indicated in arbitrary units, since there was simply nothing to calibrate the thermometer with such high accuracy. At the same time, 0 (zero) conventional units was taken as the reference point, at which the battery was cooled naturally.
The air flow is directed from top to bottom, and the angle of inclination of the fan shaft relative to the horizon is 50º. In this case, the temperature difference at the inlet and outlet of the battery is 11 Conditional Units (hereinafter CU).
The air flow is directed from top to bottom, the fan works in the "sneak" mode (turns from side to side). Temperature difference - 8 YE.
When blowing the battery from the side, the temperature difference between the inlet and outlet is 13 YE.
By directing the air flow to the center of the battery, the highest temperature difference was obtained - 15 YE.
If you direct the air flow to the center of the battery, but at the same time turn on the "sneak" mode, then the temperature difference will decrease to - 12 YE.
The most advantageous from the point of view of heat transfer was the direction of the air flow from the floor towards the plane of the battery.
Experimental data.
The first day of the experiment.
All graphs show the change in temperature from 8.00 am to midnight.
Heat carrier temperature 42ºС.
The graph shows that the system worked more efficiently while the temperature difference between the air and the battery was large. When the difference decreased, the system stabilized.
The air temperature in the center of the room at a height of 65 cm from the floor rose from 15 ° C to 20 ° C in 9 hours.
Subsequently, the temperature increased by another 0.5 ° C.
The power consumption of the fan was 35.2 watts.
When, during the experiment, I left my room into the corridor, I immediately felt the difference in temperature, because by that time I had already taken off the warm clothes.
I went to the barn and brought another fan from there. This fan was not equipped with a power switch, so I connected it through a homemade triac regulator, the design of which is described in detail.
Well, life has become better, life has become more fun!
The second day of the experiment.
In the morning I again measured the temperature of the coolant, as well as the air temperature in the room. All values \u200b\u200bremained unchanged, including the overboard temperature.
No temperature changes were noticed during the day.
The third day of the experiment.
The coolant temperature increased by one degree and amounted to 43 ° C.
The temperature outside decreased and reached -15 ° C.
At the same time, the temperature in the room increased by another 0.5 ° C and reached 21.5 ° C.
The fourth day of the experiment.
The coolant temperature is still 43 ° C.
Temperatures outside in the morning are -15 ° C.
The temperature in the room in the morning was 21.5 ° C.
Since no significant temperature changes were noted over the past day, I decided to increase the air flow and installed a second fan at 10.00.
After 10-15 minutes, the air temperature immediately increased by one degree, and then by another half a degree and reached 23 ° C.
Walking like that, I thought, and at 19.00 turned on both fans at full power. The temperature in two hours increased by one more degree and reached 24 ° C.
Results and Conclusions.
- I managed to increase the air temperature in the room by as much as 6 ° C, and in the extreme operation of the fans even by 9 ° C, which confirmed the assumption that it is possible to increase the heat transfer of the central heating battery even at such a low temperature of the coolant.
- When using a regular household fan without a speed controller, the room becomes too noisy. However, if you use the heat accumulated in the room, then, for example, in the bedroom you can turn off the fan at night, and in the dining room, on the contrary, turn it on. Then, you can use the fan at full power.
- If you are in that part of the room where the movement of the air generated by the fan is most noticeable, then a false sensation of a decrease in temperature is created.
- Those who fear that the fan will wind up a lot can calculate the monthly energy consumption.
35 (Watt) * 24 (hours) * 30 (days) ≈ 25 (kW / hour)
Small details.
To measure the temperature of the steam heating battery faster and more accurately, it is enough to apply a small amount of heat-conducting paste "KPT-8" to the ball of the digital thermometer sensor. The contact point for the time of measurement must be covered with several layers of fabric or a layer of foam rubber.
The above experiment made me question the accuracy of my digital thermometer. To make sure his readings were correct, I compared them with the readings of a mercury thermometer. To do this, I immersed both thermometers in hot water to the same depth and followed the readings as the water cooled.
Long-term operation of the fans immediately revealed the weak point of modern devices.
If the 1973 Penguin fan has a front sleeve bearing equipped with an oil seal (the arrow marks the hole for filling the oil seal with oil), which allowed it to work for almost 40 years, then in a modern fan there is no such oil seal at all.
In addition, the "Penguin" has a spring that prevents the occurrence of longitudinal beats of the shaft. The new fan, after two days of operation, began to rumble, since due to the longitudinal beating of the shaft caused by the eccentricity of the propeller, one of the fluoroplastic gaskets quickly worn out.
To eliminate the longitudinal backlash, it took several ordinary and two thin-walled washers, as well as a gasket cut from foam rubber.
First, I disassembled the stator.
Then he put on thin-walled washers and a gasket on the motor shaft, and with the rest of the washers increased the clearance between the bearings.
To ensure any kind of long-term operation of the fan, I cut out an oil seal from the felt, and from some nylon cover an oil seal plug and pressed it all into a recess around the shaft. Naturally, he did not regret the oil either.
I started thinking about buying two dozen 120mm computer fans. I think if you install them directly between the sections of the batteries, then this should reduce noise and increase the efficiency of heat transfer.
Tired of writing this article, I got distracted to surf the net. Here's what we managed to unearth on the Internet. High-quality plastic windows price under the order If you didn’t find anything of value, then please note: the moped is not mine, I just gave an announcement. (from)
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Comments (50)
NoneWhen I wrote about CFL, I meant video filming. For her, I use lamps that say 2700K. In my house, in general, all the lamps are at 2700K, simply because we like the light, which resembles the light from incandescent lamps. I balance the target and shoot. Everything is as usual.
For photography, of course, flash is more convenient for a number of reasons. Firstly, you can shoot handheld, secondly, if you shoot with a DSLR, you can provide a large depth of field at low ISOs, thirdly, the spectrum is much better than that of CFLs, and fourthly ... again, energy savings.
Some of the heat escapes through the heat transfer windows
Please describe. At least briefly.
Rather, this is specifically what interests:
I have a solution that I have been using for 20 years.
Somehow the temperature is slowly gaining, here it is -20 outside the window and somehow I want to heat up the room quickly. I tried to put a fan on, but in reality it makes a noise and because the room is cool after all, excessive circulation gives coolness
Dmitry, you have to wait a couple of days until the room warms up. To keep the fan quiet, it will have to be prevented. Alternatively, you can install computer 120mm under the battery, but the efficiency will be lower.
Well, I'll try, I'll have to turn off at night so that there is less noise
Hello, dear discussants! I stumbled upon material about a fan and batteries and could not pass by. Maybe someone is interested in my experience of dealing with winter. 1) Increase the number of sections in the battery. It's absolutely quiet and works great. If the batteries are connected to the riser as in the photos in the article (the entrance is on the bottom right, the exit is on the top right, or vice versa), then this will not work - about the first 7 sections will be warm, and then it is useless. It is necessary to connect the input-output diagonally, then the entire battery will be hot (I checked it). There is another, less obvious, way of connecting pipes, which not everyone knows about - the input from the bottom, the output is also from the bottom, from the opposite end of the battery. In this case, the entire battery is also heated (checked by me). Of course, basic plumbing skills are required here, but polypropylene works wonders. In some cases, it is convenient to pass pipes (at least one) inside the battery, especially if there are no partitions in your battery (manufacturers are lazy, and recently such batteries prevail on the market) so that they are less interfering. Unfortunately, battery modification is best done in summer and not in the coldest weather. 2) Of course, increasing the airflow to the battery raises the temperature in the room. Those decorative boxes help to quietly enhance the airflow of the battery. But most often they are only decorative and cover the battery only in front and on top. It is better to make them yourself from any material (yes, even from cardboard!) So that they clasp the battery from all sides, without slots on the sides, but with completely open ends at the top and bottom. The battery will develop traction like a classic stove (samovar, boiler) pipe. To perfect this idea, the shroud around the battery shouldn't just end with an open top end, it should continue with an air duct going almost to the ceiling. The air duct can bend around the window, repeating the course of the upper branch of the riser (hiding the riser in itself). The cross section of this duct can be 2-3 times less than the cross section of the battery casing, so as not to spoil the view of the apartment too much), but it should still be large enough so as not to create noticeable air resistance. I have not tried this myself, but I am sure the thrust will increase significantly, the fan may not be required! There will be no noise either. Rather, I have not tried to do this with air, but I have tried with water. So we had a shower for several years in the hostel: at the bottom of the heating element from the electric kettle, around it there is a pipe from a plastic bottle. The water spun very strongly, the entire tank had the same temperature. I think the air will behave exactly the same. 3) And of course, a fan on the battery! In my life, this served as an emergency measure, allowing me to survive several days of severe frost, never left it permanently. The fan, quite right, you need to take a large outdoor Chinese, it is quieter and more efficient, and not the old Soviet small one. A very high speed is not needed here, it is enough that the mode when the fan is still almost inaudible, or when it is heard, but not annoying yet. You can slow down the fan by connecting in series with the motor a paper capacitor of 400 volts. The capacity is selected for a specific case by poking. It is compact, cheap and quiet (LATR sometimes makes noise itself, and the thyristor controller can make the fan motor make noise). This is especially true if there are children in the house - they will definitely wind up the LATR and the thyristor regulator. And the capacitors are so compact that after selecting the capacity, they can be permanently hidden in the box where the buttons are located by the fan, they will not be heated. If you want to further strengthen the method with the air duct, you can add "computer" fans of the largest possible diameter to the bottom of the battery casing, of course, also slowed down. A couple more words on the topic. My batteries do not hang at some distance from the floor, as is customary everywhere, but stand directly on the floor (on plywood 7 mm thick). Therefore, our floor is always quite warm, despite the first floor, that is, there is no layer of cold air on the floor. In the case of air duct casings, it is not necessary to outweigh the batteries, you just need to stretch the casings almost to the floor, leaving only a gap with a total area comparable to the section of the casing. Then the cold air from the floor will be sucked in by the battery and sent up. Here. Sorry if it's messy, but my life has so much to do with this fight with this freaking cold! The last 1-2 years, we accidentally began to heat much better. This is due to the fact that our wrecks are demolished one after another, and the rest get more heat. But for most of adulthood, this was far from the case! Good luck and warmth in the house to everyone! spock2004
P.S. If you buy or change batteries, think ten times which type to take. I am very skeptical about new (relatively) aluminum batteries. Yes, they look beautiful. Yes, they have slightly more surface area per unit volume in the room. I have no statistics on corrosion, but purely theoretically, they should corrode stronger than cast iron. Although, like the people do not really complain. The people complain about something else. Aluminum batteries have rather narrow channels inside. This has two bad consequences. 1) They are clogged several times faster by the rubbish brought by the central heating water. 2) They work well only if high temperature water and / or its intensive circulation. And this is not always found in the open spaces of the former Soviet Union (I, for example, live in Ryazan). Let's just say, it does not occur more often than it occurs. Of course, if you have a personal cottage with a private closed heating system, with a circulation pump and a membrane expansion tank, then yes. Then you can use any batteries, even if they are stamped from a thin steel sheet. And for ordinary apartments, where "uncle" drowns (in the amusing expression of my grandmother), I strongly recommend the old Soviet cast iron! Well, or new Russians, but the same cast iron. They have very low hydraulic resistance, which creates very good conditions for water circulation. And a very large internal volume of this very water. Therefore, even if it takes many minutes to completely change the water in the battery (like mine), the batteries will still be hot. As hot as the heating system can get. Well, and, of course, they do not clog up with sediments for a long time (I had to cut the "registers" of ten-centimeter pipes, where a narrow channel for water remained, and most of the volume was filled with this mixture of rust, oil, scale and God knows what). And another tip: do not paint the batteries !!! Above there was a discussion about what color to paint them. As far as I remember, the color of the surface affects only how it "binds" to it, and how it radiates depends only on the temperature. I'm not sure about this, but I think so, I'm sorry if I'm not right. In any case, at a coolant temperature of 42 degrees, as in the article, radiation can be neglected, the main thing is heat transfer to the washing air. It also needs to be strengthened. The new battery has a finely bumpy surface, repeating the irregularities of the molding earth, and is sprayed with something ginger, purely symbolic. My advice: leave it that way! Heat transfer will be maximized. The microroughnesses also increase the surface area, and not just the ribbing. If it's already crashed, stop and don't add any more! In houses with especially fanatical mothers and grandmothers, the paint layer on the batteries can reach millimeters. Needless to say, paint conducts heat much worse than cast iron. For beauty, it is better to wear the same casing. But you can already decorate it as you like! Good luck again! spock2004
