Boiler Sensors Bring Measurement to Building Temps

By Andrew J. Pisani

We all know how the story goes – balmy October days flip overnight into bone chilling cold, as buildings tune up their boilers for another long season. Inevitably, building owners, managers and maintenance staff confront the long standing need of making inefficient systems more efficient.

One need only set foot into a pre-war building to understand the challenge. Frigid apartments lead to complaints, with the general solution being to crank up the boiler. Cold units become piping hot, and tenants crack the windows for relief. Out flows the hot air, and with it, essentially, the fuel needed to run the boiler in the first place.

A new breed of sensors may offer some solutions to this ongoing challenge. Systems involving temperature sensors are designed to monitor temperatures in separate locations, and interact with motorized valves installed within heating risers. This allows a building to essentially create multiple heating zones, and therefore control each of these zones separately.

The savings on such systems may be eye opening for owners. Better controls means less wear and tear on the units, and fuel savings go right to the bottom line. The best first step is always getting the facts, and for that, a good place to start is right here. As always, our friends at Green Partners can help you navigate through any questions.