My sales territory has winding roads up and down steep mountains. To cut my travel costs, I traded in my gas-gulping truck for a small SUV with an equally small four-cylinder engine. The first trip to a remote customer made me question my decision. I set the cruise control for three miles per hour over the speed limit. As I reached the first steep hill, the engine whined and complained and finally shut off the cruise control as if saying, “You are on your own.”
I punched the gas pedal to the floor, and the vehicle could not even reach the speed limit. Even school buses passed me. I visited the dealer when I returned home, and the sales person informed me my new vehicle was designed for short city commutes and not that type of travel. While this has nothing to do with boilers, it does remind me of how misapplied equipment can cause unexpected consequences and possibly an angry customer. There are several considerations when designing a replacement hydronic boiler system in a commercial building.