SPOTLIGHT: STELRAD
A shining light Stelrad’s improved STARS package can help you achieve maximum energy efficiency in your heating system
through an on screen floor plan. Stelrad product manager Chris
To ensure that the maximum energy efficiency is obtained from a heating system - and by definition, that emissions are lowered and energy costs are reduced for the householder - it’s vital that the radiators on that system are correctly sized, to reflect the size and shape of the room they’re in and to take into account the materials used in that room’s construction.
oo many homes are still suffering from oversized or in fewer cases, undersized radiators, meaning the rooms are too hot or too cold, or more likely, the radiators selected are never working to their true capacity. Stelrad Radiators has for a long time provided a special tool for installers and specifiers called STARS – the Stelrad Technical Advanced Radiator System. STARS has been used on PCs around the UK for several years to help people to work out the right sized radiators to heat a home. To update and improve the information available, Stelrad has released a new and improved version of STARS as a free download from
www.stelrad.com. It will also shortly be launching a new App version for installers and system designers to use on their smart phones.
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NEW AND IMPROVED RADIATOR CALCULATOR The new HeatLoss Calculator has been devised to improve the sizing of radiators with far greater accuracy. STARS now allows the user to draw a much wider range of room shapes and a visual check on room shape is achievable
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Harvey, the man behind the new version of STARS, says: “STARS enables instantaneous heat loss calculations using the unique room planner, where you can literally drag the walls of the room using your computer mouse, and the output figure is calculated in real time. With the STARS application being online, you can log in from anywhere if you have web access and use your account immediately. As a major bonus, your account will remember all your previous projects, so you can easily duplicate similar projects to save time and hassle.” STARS emphasis is on energy efficiency, increasing insulation levels and strict Building Regulations, all of which create additional difficulties when striving to achieve accurate Heatloss and U value calculations. The advanced domestic heatloss design service and BTU calculator incorporated in STARS are designed to help specify a room’s heatloss by incorporating all the CIBSE standard U values. The new U Value Calculator incorporates all the current building regulation requirements along with the CIBSE standard U values. Unknown U values can be calculated accurately as STARS is able to cope with different materials, whilst other construction materials can be added when required.
A RADICAL APPROACH TO MEETING YOUR NEEDS Launched at Ecobuild Stelrad’s Radical radiator is a great new option that could be utilised to help maximise the efficiency of your heating system. Claiming to be the first genuinely energy efficient radiator on the marketplace, the Radical offers a 10.5 percent gas saving compared to a standard heating system - a fact
independently confirmed by KIWA. It’s also the first ‘serial feed’ radiator on the UK market place and the first to come with an integrated thermostatic valve insert.
Standard radiators are ‘parallel feed’, where the water enters the radiator and is fed via a ‘T’ piece to enter both panels at the same time and the same rate. A serial feed radiator allows the water to enter via a centre tap connection, directing the water flow into the front panel first before, after circulating around the front panel, the water eventually makes its way from the front panel into the back panel. Because the front panel of a Radical heats up first, there’s a higher average temperature in the front panel than you get from a standard radiator and less heat is lost from the back panel. With Radical, the front panel heats up more quickly than a standard radiator would and ensures the front panel gives off more radiant heat – increasing the feeling of comfort to people in the room.
The Radical is an ideal
companion to lower temperature renewable heating systems, with the return flow from the heating system to the boiler being at a lower temperature, ensuring that the condensing boiler is actually able to condense efficiently. When a boiler condenses, it uses less energy – using less gas to produce heat, so a welcome energy and as a result, cost saving is available to the home owner.
RIBA CPD ACCREDITATION Having received accreditation by the RIBA as a CPD provider, Stelrad’s initial seminar on offer to architects is based on explaining the technical differences between serial and parallel feed radiators, and highlights how new serial feed technology helps reduce fuel costs and a property’s carbon footprint. The seminar takes attendees through the basics of radiator technology, explaining the mix of radiant and convection heat generated by them and highlighting the basis on which current radiators operate, using parallel feed technology. The seminar progresses into the concept of serial feed technology used in
the new Radical range. n
For more information telephone 0870 849 8058 or visit
www.stelrad.com
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