The efficiency of a heating system depends on many factors. These include materials for the manufacture of pipes and devices, a correctly selected boiler and a professionally drawn up scheme for laying the line. The latter affects not only the quality of work, but also safety and durability. For country cottages with a large area, the radiation heating system of a private house with their own hands is most often used. What is its feature and why is it more effective than standard pipe routing?
Radiant heating circuit
Traditionally, pipes are laid along walls. However, this technique is unacceptable for houses with a large area and several floors. The main disadvantage is the rapid cooling of the coolant. This problem can be solved by the radial heating system of a two-story house with the distribution of hot water to separate circuits. But first you need to find out what a radiant heating system is - photos and videos will help with this.
The design principle is to create separate circuits, each of which is connected to one or more devices (radiator, warm floor, etc.). In this case, the distribution of pipelines is not done along the wall, but along the floor. A properly assembled DIY radiant heating system has several advantages:
- Uniform distribution of the coolant across all devices. In fact, there is no temperature difference, as with a serial connection - the farther the radiator is from the boiler, the lower the water temperature in it;
- The ability to regulate the heating level in each individual circuit. For this it is necessary to install a two-way (three-way) valve;
- Radiant heating system makes it possible to carry out repair or maintenance work without shutting down the entire system;
- Reduced hydraulic losses. This is due to the fact that pipes are laid with a minimum number of corner joints.
However, the radial wiring of radiator heating also has disadvantages. Firstly, it can only be two-pipe. The cooled coolant is necessary for mixing with a hot stream in order to minimize the cost of heating water and automatically regulate its temperature. If the return pipes run separately from the main ones, it will be almost impossible to install a mixing unit.
The opinion about the greatly increased consumption of materials for installation is erroneous. If you correctly draw up a pipe laying diagram, it turns out that the radial distribution of the heating system will in some cases be more economical.
To do this, you need to correctly approach the issue of creating preliminary design documentation.
Diy radiation heating
Is it possible to make a professional drawing of a beam heating system for a two-story house? This is quite possible if you apply an integrated approach to solving this problem. This will require initial design skills (creating elementary drawings), knowledge of the basics of heating. If you are not confident in your own abilities, it is recommended to contact specialized design companies.
For those who want to make a radiation heating system for a private house with their own hands, the work should be divided into several stages:
Mayevsky crane (air vent) Room condition analysis... The main condition for laying pipes is the absence of a finished floor.It can be equipped only after laying the highways.
- Radiator installation locations... Their installation is recommended on external walls under window structures, since there are the greatest heat losses.
- Drawing up a house plan... It first notes the initial data required for a two-tube radiant heating system - the location of the boiler and radiators.
- The plan indicates the laying of pipelines... For a two-story house, it is first planned to install a central distribution manifold, to which separate circuits will be connected.
- Shut-off and safety equipment... The radiant heating circuit must have safety groups and shut-off valves. These include Mayevsky taps (air vents), manometers, thermometers, overlap and manifold taps. Their installation order is necessarily indicated on the diagram.
The last point is very important, since for standard piping, it is enough to install one air vent. In our case, their number should be equal to the number of circuits in the system. This is necessary in order for the radiant heating system of a private house to work normally, without the occurrence of air jams. The Mayevsky crane is installed at the highest point of the contour. This is usually the upper radiator pipe.
Collector or radial piping
The main element of the system, without which radiant heating of the house is impossible, is the collector. It is designed to distribute the coolant from the central line along separate circuits. Externally, the collector is a hollow cylinder with a branch pipe for inlet (outlet) of water and connecting elements to which the circuits of the system are connected.
In order for a two-tube radiant heating system to function normally, two types of collectors are required:
- Input... For optimum performance, complete with pump and 2-way (3-way) directional valve. For the functioning of the latter, you will need a thermometer installed in the collector body. Receiving from it the values of the current water temperature in the radial distribution of the heating, the valve mixes the hot and cooled heat carrier. Thus, there is an automatic regulation of the heat in the pipes.
- Output... After the liquid has gone through a full cycle along the circuits, it must return to the boiler for further heating. An outlet manifold is installed to collect it. Additional control devices - balancing flowmeters - can be installed on its branch pipes. With their help, the water temperature of each circuit in the radial distribution of radiator heating can be changed by adjusting the throughput of the nozzles.
At first glance, when designing a system, you can dispense with a manifold by simply distributing using tees. However, in this case, the radial distribution of the heating system will experience malfunctions. Without pumps, distribution and regulating mechanisms, there is a possibility of "downtime" of some circuits - the coolant simply will not circulate in them.
Pipes: Material Requirements
What pipes are recommended to be selected when installing a radiant heating system with your own hands? There are several criteria that determine the operational and technical qualities of the future highway. The starting point can be considered the installation conditions - the pipes are mounted in a cement screed or under a decorative wooden floor.
The specificity of laying such a line lies in the need to bend pipes, the angles of which are most often not equal to the standard ones. It is therefore recommended to use a material that is flexible enough to avoid a large number of joints. Cross-linked polyethylene is best suited for the radiant heating system of a private house.
The XLPE pipe structure must have an airtight layer.
This is a prerequisite, since without it, polyethylene will allow air molecules to pass through, enriching the coolant. As a result, the rusting process will progress on the inner surface of the radiators and the boiler heat exchanger. The material of manufacture must be indicated on the radial heating scheme.
In addition, when choosing pipes, you need to pay attention to the following factors:
- For collector wiring, it is typical to use pipes for circuits with a smaller diameter than the section of the common supply pipe. The optimal size is 32 or 24 mm;
- Providing protection against mechanical stress. The radiant heating pipes of the house, laid on the floor, are poured with a cement screed. During this, you need to ensure that the line is not squeezed.
When installing a radiant heating system of a private house, only on its own, the integrity and correctness of the pipe connection is checked before pouring the screed. To do this, after installing all the elements, the heating boiler is started. There should be no leaks during the circulation of the liquid through the lines. Only after completing such a check can the decorative floor be equipped.
Beam installation tips
Unlike the standard installation scheme, the installation of a radiant heating system for a two-story house has a number of nuances. First of all, this concerns the place of mounting the control manifolds. The common distribution unit should be located immediately after the coolant leaves the boiler. Most often it is a specially equipped boiler room.
If the house is large enough, then there may be several distribution manifolds. For a two-pipe radiant heating system, it is important that the user has free access to each of them. Therefore, they are installed in a special closed box.
The collector must not be left in the screed or hidden behind non-removable decorative panels.
To ensure control of the operation of the radial distribution of heat supply, sensors and shut-off valves are installed:
- Manometers and thermometers... At least one pair of these devices must be located at the outlet of the hot coolant from the boiler. It is also recommended to mount them on each manifold. In this way, you can visually monitor the level of water heating in the radial heating distribution for each radiator (or group) separately. This is one of the basic rules for organizing a radiation heating system on your own;
- Protective fittings... It includes Mayevsky air taps and pressure stabilization safety valves;
- Shut-off valves... It is installed in front of the boiler inlet and for each collector separately. With their help, it is possible to carry out repair or preventive work with radial distribution of heating without disconnecting all circuits. It is enough to restrict the flow of the coolant to a certain of them.
Currently, the use of a radiant heating system for a private house is the best option. But only if the installation of a standard one is impossible due to low efficiency. Therefore, you must first calculate two options. This can be done using special programs, for example - Valtec, Oventrop CO or Kan CO.
For a better understanding of the practical side of installing a radiant heating system, photos are not entirely suitable. Therefore, it is recommended that you familiarize yourself with the video material, which explains the specifics of installing collectors and connecting pipelines to them:
