| How is condensation controlled in a high humidity environment? |
| Outdoor air is pre-conditioned and dehumidified by the Dedicated Outside Air System (DOAS). The building is maintained at a slight positive pressure with respect to the outside in order to control infiltration of humid air. Once the dehumidified air is in the space, the dew point is monitored and the chilled ceiling is controlled to remain above the dew point. |
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| What if a pipe leaks? |
| Leaking pipes or fittings are not a problem. It is very simple to repair the leaks. First run the water through the mats in order to see a wet spot on the drywall or plaster. Open this damaged areas, then fuse the piping on both sides. This will not affect the capacity for cooling or heating. |
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| What is the pressure loss of capillary piping? |
| Despite their thinness, capillary mats have very little loss of pressure. The water in a capillary tube system runs through many parallel tubes rather then through large tubes. The average velocity through capillary tubes is only 10 to 20 cm/second, thus the pressure drop is very low. The velocity in the capillary tubes is always laminar. The tubes are tested at a pressure of 20 bar. |
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| What happens to indoor air quality? |
| Indoor air quality improves because cooling and heating by capillary tube systems incorporates Dedicated Outside Air System. This is 100% outside air with no re-circulation of indoor air, thus spreading of odors and other airborne contaminants is avoided. |
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| What type of buildings can this be used? |
| This system can be installed in any type of building with the sensible heat gain of less than 25 Btu/hr. With DOAS controlling the humidity of the supply air, a hydraulic radiant system can be installed independent of the outside climate. |
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| What about the operating cost? |
| Thermal energy can be transported through pipes with little pump power, saving approximately 70 to 80% of the fan power normally used to condition the building. This alone reduces the peak-power of the air conditioning system by about 30 to 45%. |
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| Construction/Installation cost |
| Although the cost associated with the material and labor may be slightly higher than forced air system, there are other significant savings that should be taken into consideration. Due to reduction in the air volume, the size of the ductwork is greatly reduced. |
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| Why are capillary tubes better than other systems? |
| Capillary tubes and fittings are made of polypropylene material. All pipes and fittings are fused to gather in the field, thus installation is much easier. Because the Capillary tubes are only 1/16" thick and spaced about 1/8 inch apart, the cooling and heating is even. Our capillary tubes have been proven very successful in the European market. |
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| Does Capillary Systems provide complete system? |
| Radiant Cooling Corporation (RCC) will provide capillary mats & fittings along with the design, equipments, energy study, payback study and estimated installation cost of the radiant system. |
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| What is the cooling capacity of the chilled ceiling? |
| The chilled ceiling can provide cooling capacity up to 25 btu/sq.ft. This capacity is generally sufficient if the project is designed using on green energy concepts. Most architects are familiar with green energy design. |
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| Can your system be used in existing Building? |
| Yes. In fact this will be a better system as it uses very little ceiling space. Capillary mats can be applied to the existing ceiling lowering the ceiling by only 1 inch. Main supply and return piping can be installed in crown molding or inside 2 x 4 wall space avoiding extensive work. |
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| Do you provide the sub-stations? |
| Yes. We will provide components for the sub-stations (to be field assembled) which consist of pump, valves, gauges, expansion tank, heat exchanger, piping and all associated controls based on the load and zone distribution requirements. |
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| Do you provide engineering services? |
| Yes. We have in-house engineering personal. We can provide design, drafting and an energy study for radiant cooling and radiant heating. We will require architectural drawings and cooling and heating loads in order to provide an estimate for our services. |
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| Do you provide estimating services? |
| Yes, we will provide a cost estimate for our product. Any additional services required will be estimated based on customer requirements.. |
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| Is there a problem with corrosion or oxidation? |
| No. Pipes and fittings are made from polypropylene (plastic). Also heating water is at a low temperature (around 103 F for heating and 61 F for cooling), so corrosion and oxidation does not take place. |
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| How quick is the capillary tube ceiling reacting? |
| The Capillary System is fast reacting. After just a few minutes, the capillary ceiling begins to cool the room effectively. This is brought about by the very small capillary tubes and the positioning of the capillary mats close to the surface. In addition, capillary tube ceiling is able to regulate itself quite well. |
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| Will your system cost more than the conventional system? |
| A general perception exists that replacing one system with two parallel systems, Radiant ceiling (cooling or heating) and Dedicated Outside Air System with a latent cooling will cost more. But there are areas of many offsetting cost reduction in building mechanical system and overall building cost. At this point the cost will be about 15% higher and the payback is very fast. |
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| An article in ASHRAE Journal 43 "Ceiling Panel Cooling System" list nine categories of building mechanical system and overall building reduced by Radiant ceiling and DOAS. |
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Reduced chiller tonnage |
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Reduced chiller capacity |
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Reduced condenser pump capacity |
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Reduced ductwork size and cross section |
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Smaller air distribution plenums and thermal boxes |
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Reduced Air handler size |
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Reduced electrical service in line with reduced peak chiller, blower & pump |
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More "rentable space" due to smaller equipment |
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Reduced total floor height by minimum o f12" per floor. |
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| Cooling by Capillary Tubes is not new to the HVAC industry. Capillary tube system have been used in Europe for the last twenty years. Many commercial and institutional projects are done using capillary tubes. See www.beka-klima.de for list of completed projects. |
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Why Capillary mats are in the ceiling? |
| It is often asked,” why put cooling mats in the ceiling? Heat rises, doesn't it? The answer is no, warm air rises. The Capillary mats are placed in the ceiling because heating and cooling is more effective when there is no interference from the objects in the room.Also more ceiling area available for the mats |
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