Bob meets with the plumber to look at the air handler and then goes upstairs to check out a bathroom floor heated with radiant heat.

Bob meets with Peter Merianos and the crew from Coastal Heating and Air Conditioning who are fabricating the AC ductwork on site. With the Kenmore air handler already installed in the attic, the crew begins assembling the ductwork using five-foot lengths of pre-crimped sheet-metal ducting as the basic material. The sections snap together and are secured with sheet-metal screws and foil tape. To add a new line off the main trunk, the crew cuts a hole into the the trunk with a special tool. A starting collar from which the new line will extend is then inserted into the hole. The ductwork is insulated using vinyl wrap, which is a one and a half-inch vinyl-coated fiberglass blanket.

Bob talks with Tim Cutler from TJ's Plumbing and Heating about the Viessmann boiler. The boiler is heating the domestic hot water, the radiant floor heating, and the hydro-air heating system. The hydro-air system has an air handler with a hot water coil. Warm air is dispersed throughout the building using this hydro-air system, which heats the existing, older portion of the house. Showers and hot water will be fed by a 79 gallon indirect, dual-coil, domestic hot-water tank. The bottom coil is fed by the solar heating system, which has 30 Viessmann evacuated tubes on the roof. The tubes have alcohol within them which has a low boiling point. When the alcohol in the tubes boils, it transfers the BTUs to a bulb, which transfers the heat to the lower coil for domestic hot water. A concrete cutter came in to cut an opening in the basement between the old portion of the home and the new addition. Bob talks with Bill Sloan from Viega North America about the radiant slab heating in the new addition. The radiant heating system uses PEX tubing. Viega manufactures the manifolds for this tubing and the copper tubing used to transfer hot water to the PEX tubing. ProPress joints that do not require any soldering are used for this sytem.

Bob meets with Mark, a heating, ventilating, and air conditioning mechanic. Bob and Mark have an in-depth discussion on why a homeowner had to add an air-conditioning unit to an existing air-conditioning unit. The new space added onto the residence was too large for the old unit to cool, so a new 1-1/2 ton unit had to be added. They also describe how the particular unit cools the home and the major components of the unit.

Kevin Callahan from Sears joins Bob to talk about the new Kenmore air conditioning condensers that will be installed. The condensers are Energy Star rated and have a life expectancy of over 15 years. Callahan explains the unit's internal components, starting with the copper coils that contain the unit's refrigerant. Heat is transferred out through the fins around the inside edge. These condensers are 3 1/2 ton units (one ton = 12,000 BTU's). Callahan also talks about the SEER rating, the Seasonal Energy Efficient Ratio, which is the measurement of the product's energy efficiency and helps determine its Energy Star rating.

Bob meets with Mark Gallivan from Sears HVAC and Brent Morin from Morin Mechanical Services to review the heating system installation at the modular home project. The high efficiency, state of the art Hydro-Air system uses components of a traditional boiler, humidifiers, variable speed fans, electronic air cleaners and three exterior condensing units. Carrier manufactures many of the heating unit�s components including the boiler. The boiler produces hot water for both a forced air unit and a baseboard radiant heating system. The forced air unit allows for a consistent level of humidity in the house, that traditionally radiant-only units cannot accomplish, plus it receives the efficiency of radiant by employing a baseboard system. This gives the home�s occupants a more comfortable living environment. There are seven zones employed in the home�s heating and cooling system. The cast aluminum heat exchanger in this unit transfers heat three times faster than a traditional heat exchanger. The boiler uses a direct venting system that takes air directly from outside and vents it through a flue located in the center of the intake vent. This means no combustion gases are being mixed with the home�s interior air. The system�s zones can be turned on or off as needed, providing an added level of efficiency if the entire home is not being occupied at a given time.

House ten of the Elmwood project. The third floor rec room remodel continues with the installation of Hy-Lite acrylic walls, HVAC system and insulation.

Plumbing and heating contractor Frank Iadarola meets with Mike Kaufmann to look at the high-efficiency System 2000. The low mass unit will be used to supply both the heat and hot water for the entire house.

Architect Greg Rochlin and carpenter Bob Ryley are on site to consult on the possibilities for our loft unit.

Bob joins Roxane Gilmore, Virginia's first lady, to tour the governor's mansion, and meets preservationist Fred Ecker who is removing a mantel for restoration.