Wali-1
2015-05-20 10:54:10
- #1
Heating Water Analysis
I am a neutral heating water technician, unfortunately I have to educate at least 4-6 property owners per week about the facts of underfloor heating.
The fact is, there is no widespread damage to underfloor heating pipes.
The aging behavior of plastics depends, besides the properties of the plastic itself, on time, temperature, pressure, and the composition of the transported medium.
However, the durability of the pipes is mainly impaired by the effective duration of the stabilizers contained in the plastic. To put it bluntly, these additives have a shorter lifespan than the base material, the plastic. The material ages, becomes less elastic, that is, brittle. Especially older underfloor heating systems operated at relatively high flow temperatures (around 60° to 70°C) age much faster than low-temperature systems, as are common in today's new buildings.
What does this effect mean for the manifolds of the underfloor heating? And here some clear relativizations are appropriate:
Pipes for underfloor heating consist of polyethylene (PE), especially cross-linked polyethylene (PE-X), polypropylene (PP) – including copolymer polypropylene (PPC) – or polybutylene (PB, also called polybutene).
Secondly: In a statement by EMPA, with project-specific and correct dimensioning of the systems, a service life of 50 years is mentioned. The standards also assume this service life. The SIA suggests 30 years as the calculated service life of an underfloor heating system. For these timeframes, the aforementioned embrittlement effects are completely uncritical.
Conversely: The aging process of the plastic up to a leakage takes much longer than the underfloor heating system actually “lives.” Conclusion: Underfloor heating pipes tend to become brittle but generally do not cause damage.
Maintenance and care of an underfloor heating system:
Homeowners should perform a heating water analysis annually. If the values comply with VDI 2035 Part 1 + Part 2, it is also possible to extend this to every 2-3 years.
A heating water analysis should be carried out professionally correctly, that is, with accredited measuring devices and by a trained specialist.
The analysis should be neutral.
An understandable interpretation of the measurement values and a comparison with the guidelines are required, so that the customer knows exactly where they stand and what may need to be done.
Best regards Daniel Weiss