Separator helps university add savings, subtract trouble calls
Situated on 320 acres in downstate Illinois, EIU is attended by over 11,500 students, approximately 35% of that total living in on-campus housing. Its three million square feet comprises 70 buildings, 12 of which are residence halls and 17 are apartment buildings. It's Reed's responsibility to make certain these buildings are kept comfortable all year long for students and faculty alike. Air and dirt problems in many of the buildings were making his job very difficult.
Reed thought that the air and dirt problems he was experiencing in Carman Hall and throughout the campus were all part and parcel of an operating hydronic system until he saw a working demonstration of a Spirovent® Combination Air & Dirt Separator. The Spirovent, made by Spirotherm, Inc. (Glendale Heights, IL), employs the patented Spirotube® coalescing/barrier medium to scrub air and dirt from hot and chilled water systems, allowing it to break free of the flow path. The air is released from the top of the unit via a patented air release mechanism, while the dirt falls to the bottom and collects in the dirt chamber where it can be blown down through a manual or automatic blowdown valve.