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Heat generators

Heat generators are powerful pieces of equipment designed to provide reliable, cost-effective, and efficient heating solutions. They are ideal for emergency heating applications, such as when the main heating system fails, providing heat quickly and effectively. Heat generators are also incredibly versatile, with the ability to be used in many different settings and contexts, such as in warehouses, hospitals, industrial sites, and many more. Furthermore, they are easy to set up, cost-effective, and can be employed in both indoor and outdoor settings. With these invaluable features, heat generators are the perfect heating solution for any setting.

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Having thought of building your own house, you need to immediately think about how it will be heated. If the district heating networks are connected to the village, then the problem disappears, it will only be necessary to obtain technical conditions for connection from the heat supply organization. And if there is no heating network, can there be gas? If there is, then in this case the solution is unambiguous – a gas generator that will give the required amount of heat and hot water to the house. But when there is no heating system or gas, then here you have to choose between a solid fuel, liquid fuel or electric generator. Each of them has its pluses, its minuses and you will have to choose yourself. You can also make local heating of certain places by using infrared heaters. We are convinced that after reading our article, you can fundamentally decide on the choice of the type of heat generator.

Heat generators

Heat generatoris called a device that converts the energy of an energy carrier into thermal energy. Most often there are hot water boilers – heat generators for heating a home. The basis of any heat generator is a heat exchanger – a container in which the coolant is heated to the required temperature, after which it enters the heating system, after which part of the heat goes to heating living quarters. The coolant, which has given up its heat, returns to the heat exchanger, where it heats up again.

Household heat generators are:

1.by type of energy carrier:

  • solid fuel (coal, coke, wood, etc.);
  • gas (natural gas, liquefied gas);
  • liquid fuel (fuel oil, kerosene, diesel fuel, etc.);
  • electrical;
  • multi-fuel (combined);

2. by installation method:

  • hinged;
  • outdoor;

3. by heat exchanger material:

  • cast iron;
  • steel;
  • made of stainless steel;
  • copper;

4. by type of coolant:

  • water;
  • water and antifreeze.

The correct selection of the type and brand of the heating boiler determines not only the comfort and safety of the house, but also the costs of obtaining the required amount of heat. Boilers must meet many technical parameters, in particular, high efficiency, low energy consumption, good heat transfer. Modern boiler systems must still be compact and maintainable.

Statistics say that in Russia, out of all types of heating boilers for cottages and individual residential buildings, about half are gas boilers, about a third are liquid fuel, the share of electric boilers is about 10% and 5% of boilers run on solid fuel.

Gas boilers

Gas boilers received in Russia the largest share of the market among other types of equipment as a heat generator for individual residential buildings. On the market for space heating equipment, a large selection of boilers of this type from various manufacturers from different countries.

Gas boilers

For the correct choice of the type of gas boiler, you need to know the basic requirements for operation and safety, which are imposed by domestic standards.
The room where the boiler will be installed must have an area of ​​at least 4 square meters with a ceiling height of at least 2.5 m and a door width of at least 80 cm. In addition, there must be an opening for natural lighting in the room and a vent for the intake of outside air. The upper mark of the chimney should be higher than the ridge, and its diameter should be taken according to the size indicated in the passport of the installed equipment. In the room, a ventilation duct must be arranged under the ceiling, and here it is also provided for the placement of a power supply connected to a separate circuit breaker. In the room in which the gas boiler is located, there must be an air gas analyzer that warns of gas leaks and an emergency solenoid valve for emergency shutdown of the gas supply. The gas boiler can only be put into operation if all the above measures are taken..

The approximate power of a gas boiler is determined based on the calculation of the need for 1 kW per 10 square meters of house area with a ceiling height of 2.5 m. Water heating takes about a quarter of the boiler’s capacity. This calculation is extremely approximate, therefore these parameters should be reflected in the project, since other indicators also depend on them, in particular the diameter of the chimney.

When choosing a boiler, you should also take into account the metal from which it is made. Boilers made of steel are lighter, but less durable (10 – 15 years), while cast iron boilers are more than twice as heavy, but last about 50 years. Steel corrodes when the system is turned off, therefore for large houses (over 400 square meters), experts recommend the use of cast iron boilers.

To create an uninterrupted and long-term power supply to the boiler, it is advisable to use a voltage stabilizer or a surge protector. Automatic machines are also used that turn off when the voltage in the network exceeds the permissible values, so the boiler must be grounded and its power supply to a separate circuit breaker. At the same time, one should not particularly worry about the shutdown of the boiler during power outages. This does not lead to blocking of the boiler, it automatically returns to the preset operating mode after the power supply is restored.

Gas boilers are floor-standing and wall-mounted, and the latter are actually mini-boilers, since, in addition to the burner and the heat exchanger, a circulation pump, an expansion tank, a pressure gauge, a thermometer, and a security system are located in their housing. Boilers are produced that, thanks to the fan built into the unit, remove the combustion products through the opening in the wall, but they are produced only in wall-mounted version and with a capacity of no more than 24 kW.

A modern gas boiler for an individual residential building must have a whole set of devices and mechanisms that control trouble-free and safe operation. Usually, almost everything you need is supplied with the boiler and is already mounted on its body. Therefore, it is enough to connect a digital programmer to it and you can not only control the entire heat economy remotely, but also diagnose malfunctions, reflecting them on the computer display.

Floor standing gas boilers

Brand Manufacturer power, kWt Dimensions, cm (HxWxD) Weight, kg Price, rub
Vitogas 100-F 29 Vitotronic 100 / KC3 Viessmann, Germany 29 890x650x760 142 59850
ELITEC DTG 1306 EcoNOx / H 150 De Dietrich, France thirty 1700x600x846 232 98300
ARISTON UNOBLOC GPV 24 RI ARISTON, Italy 26.6 600x665x850 108 57350

Wall hung gas boilers

Brand Manufacturer power, kWt Dimensions, cm (HxWxD) Weight, kg Price, rub
Vitopend 100 Viessmann, Germany 10.5-30 850x460x360 44 38385
MCR 30/35 MI De Dietrich, France 6.6-31.6 670x400x300 32 73260
GENIA MAXI 30 BFFI ARISTON, Italy 10,1-30 950x595x470 59 67840

Liquid fuel boilers

In the absence of the possibility of using electric or gas boilers, the problem of providing heat to an individual residential building can be solved oil heating boilers. Most boilers of this type run on diesel fuel. Kerosene, fuel oil or heating oil are used much less frequently. All liquid fuel boilers are floor-standing, and their heat exchangers can be made of steel or cast iron. Steel heat exchangers are lighter than cast iron, but less durable.

Liquid fuel boilers

Fan burners are always used for diesel boilers. Such burners are characterized by increased noise, since air is blown into the combustion chamber by a fan, and its inflow is automatically controlled. Diesel burners are manufactured in one-, two- and three-stage. Multi-stage burners reduce energy consumption, increase the resource of boilers, and increase variability when adjusting the boiler heating mode. Heating boilers using only liquid fuel have stationary burners built into the boiler structure. Boiler models of this type consist of steel heat exchangers and built-in instantaneous water heaters. The boiler delivery set includes circulation pumps and an instrumentation system, which allows automatic monitoring of the boiler operation. Boilers are produced that, after replacing the burner, can use gas as fuel.

Oil fired boilers can be single or double-circuit with a flow-through water heater. Single-circuit boilers make it possible to prepare hot water for domestic needs using external storage boilers.

Oil-fired boilers with a closed combustion chamber, the flue gases of which are removed through a coaxial chimney under external influence, are called forced draft boilers. At the same time, air is pumped into the combustion chamber through the same coaxial chimney. Boilers of this type are produced with a capacity of no more than 35 kW..

Oil-fired boilers are highly dependent on the availability of electricity. If it is absent, the burner stops working, and the engine can be restarted only manually. For the normal functioning of liquid fuel boilers, fuel tanks made of steel or plastic and combined into groups must be installed in special rooms or outside the building. When installing tanks outside the house, it is necessary to take measures to prevent freezing of fuel lines in conditions of a period of time with negative temperatures.

Brand Manufacturer power, kWt Dimensions, cm (HxWxD) Weight, kg Price, rub
Bison30 Protherm, Czech Republic 27.1 870x450x385 121 29120
TURBO-21R Kiturami, South Korea 24.4 465x278x761 88 42214
Atlas D 30 Ferroli, Italy 30.0 850x500x400 127 36500

Electric boilers

When choosing a heating system for an individual house, many do not even consider the option of installing an electric boiler, without doubting in advance that it is much more expensive. This is indeed the case when compared with boilers that use main gas. But in the absence of a gas pipeline, an electric boiler turns out to be quite competitive with other types of heating boilers..

Electric boilers

The main advantages of heating systems on electric boilers include:

  • environmental friendliness, since during the operation of boilers of this type, harmful emissions are completely absent;
  • when using electric boilers in heating systems, there is no need to build a separate building for the boiler room and build a chimney;
  • high explosion and fire safety, since there is neither gas nor containers with fuel;
  • cleanliness in the premises, small size of equipment, ease of maintaining a constant microclimate in the house, ease of management;
  • high efficiency.

At the same time, there are a number of serious reasons that prevent electric boilers from increasing their popularity in Russia:

  • lack of dedicated power in most individual houses, sufficient for the normal operation of the heating system on an electric boiler;
  • quite frequent power outages;
  • rather high cost of electricity.

To make a rough calculation of the boiler power required for heating a house, it can be assumed that 1 kilowatt of power is needed for heating 10 square meters of area with a ceiling not higher than 3 m. Having received a specific number, you can check whether there is enough power allocated for the power supply of a house or summer cottage according to technical conditions to power an electric boiler or not. Most likely not, since usually individual residential buildings rarely have more than 10 kW, which will not allow using an electric boiler.

With regard to possible failures in the supply of electricity, that is, the positive experience of using two types of boilers in steam – the main, electric and backup, as a rule, solid fuel. The same steam is used to reduce energy consumption: initially, the house is heated with an inexpensive solid fuel boiler, but with an electric boiler, the house only maintains a stable temperature. It should be noted that in large cities with strict environmental and safety requirements, boilers on electricity may well compete with other types of boilers..

Electric boilera very simple device. Its main units: a heat exchanger, consisting of a tank with heating elements (electric heaters) mounted in it, a control unit. Some manufacturers include a circulation pump, a programmer, an expansion tank, a safety valve and a filter in the delivery of an electric boiler..

Electric boilers are available in two different versions: single-phase (220 V) and three-phase (380 V). Boilers with power over 12 kW are manufactured only in three-phase version. Almost all boilers with a capacity of more than 6 kW are manufactured in multistage, which allows during seasonal transition periods to turn on the boiler not at full capacity, but partially, saving electricity.

Brand Manufacturer power, kWt Dimensions, cm (HxWxD) Weight, kg Price, rub
EPO-30 EVAN, Russia thirty 565x270x220 15 20390
Dakon PTE 30 Buderus, Russia thirty 582x822x300 60 50091
27MA Noirot, France 27 602x405x275 25 29900
Intois 427 Intois, Russia 27 670x430x320 25 21150
EKCO.L1 36z KOSPEL, Poland 36 660х380х175 18 41760

Solid fuel boilers

Solid fuel boilers, known for many years, today combine the advantages of the first furnaces with modern achievements. Today’s solid fuel boilers are still not dependent on electricity, but at the same time they can maintain the required temperature of the coolant (water or antifreeze) in automatic mode. The temperature at the outlet from the boiler is controlled in the following order: a sensor installed on the boiler monitors the temperature of the coolant and, when it rises relative to the set one, closes the damper, which slows down the combustion process. If the temperature changes in the opposite direction, the process proceeds in the reverse order..

Solid fuel boilers

When installing solid fuel boilerit is necessary to strictly observe the requirements for the height and cross-section of the chimney, since in case of deviation from them, the probability of smoke pollution in the boiler room is high. These parameters depend on the brand and power of the boiler and are indicated in the operating instructions.

Solid fuel boilers are capable of firing coal, coke, and wood. Recently, modifications of boilers have been developed, which, when changing the burner, have the ability to operate on liquid fuel or gas. Such boilers are called multi-fuel.

The operation technology of pyrolysis boilers is somewhat different from the operation of traditional boilers using solid fuels. In pyrolysis (gas generating) boilers, not wood is burned, but wood gas released from dry wood as a result of exposure to high temperatures. The gas enters a special nozzle, and passing through it burns with a clean flame of almost white color. At the same time, a minimum of ash is formed, and soot is not formed at all..

Boilers with pyrolysis wood burning technology have an increased efficiency (up to 85%) and allow automatic power regulation. The disadvantages of such boilers include a high price compared to other boilers using solid fuels and an increased sensitivity to the moisture of firewood..

All over the world, the popularity of solid fuel boilers with free-standing silos and pellets is increasing. For Russia, such equipment is still very exotic, and since we have not yet produced fuel for them, we will only mention it. Pellets are fuel in the form of wood pellets, which are compressed waste from wood production. The length of the granules is 5-70 mm, and the diameter is 6-10 mm..

Brand Manufacturer power, kWt Dimensions, cm (HxWxD) Weight, kg Price, rub
Kalvis-2-25 Kalvis, Lithuania thirty 1467x550x1206 405 109516
40 DLO Bober Protherm, Slovakia 29 935x440x770 305 61600
Junkers K 32-1 S 61 Junkers-Bosch, Germany 9-32 1040x526x830 240 40775
KOTV-31.5 Dymok, Russia 31.5 760x650x840 153 30322

Infrared heaters

Other equipment that generates thermal energy is also used to heat residential premises. Such devices include infrared heaters (ICO). The principle of operation of the IKO is extremely simple – it is a special electric lamp that emits light with a certain wavelength.
Heating of premises with the help of IKO allows to reduce the difference between the air temperature at the floor and ceiling marks, since infrared rays do not heat the air, but the surface they have reached. This heating method significantly reduces the amount of heat consumed from heating radiators, since it is necessary to heat square, not cubic meters of the room..

Infrared heaters

The temperature in the room can be lower than usual, since the IKO heats specific places in the room where people are constantly present, and there are not so many of them – a desk, an armchair at the TV, a bed, a table with cosmetics. The heat begins to be felt immediately after turning on the IKO, therefore, heaters of this type are used when it is possible to reduce the temperature in the premises at night and to save energy accordingly, because it is calculated that a decrease in temperature of 1 ° C leads to a 5% saving in energy costs. If the ICO is correctly positioned around the room, then you can quickly raise or lower the temperature at any point in this room, regardless of its area or the volume of air that needs to be heated.

ICOs have certain advantages over traditional heat-generating products, in particular, they promote drying, prevent the formation of fungi and molds, and also destroy them, creating a sterile atmosphere. The heating system with the help of IKO is the most suitable for indoor use, with the stay of patients with pulmonary diseases, for rooms for newborns and children’s rooms. IKO work silently. They can be mounted on a wall, ceiling or mounted in the desired location on a telescopic stand. Thanks to the modern design, if they do not decorate the interior of the room, they will definitely not spoil it..

We think it would be advisable to give some comparative data on PPIs offered on the Russian market. As an example, IKO are taken with a capacity sufficient to heat a room with a size of about 14 square meters..

Brand Manufacturer power, kWt Dimensions, cm (HxWxD) Weight, kg Price, rub
UFO 1400 Turkey 1400 9x19x74 15 4350
EZ115 Sweden 1500 5x15x200 60 7950
IC1.4 Russia 1400 4×16.5×161 25 3050
EIU-1.5 Russia 1500 4×7.5×123 25 1740
Emotion Horizontal France 1500 9,5x47x85 18 10076

As can be seen from this table, the price spread is quite large, all other things being equal. Therefore, the choice of a specific heater will have to be made by the buyer..

Please note: the data given in the tables are taken from open materials published on the Internet (as of April 21, 2009), therefore, there may be some differences from the actual parameters. The prices indicated in the tables are obtained from the same sources, therefore they in no way claim to correspond to the price of any other company and do not constitute an offer. In addition, when setting prices, sellers most likely took the basic configuration, without taking into account the necessary components. Therefore, the given prices are suitable for determining the order of prices for a particular generator model..

Here is the information we wanted to share. We hope that now you have a fairly clear idea of ​​what type of generator is needed for the house, and in order to determine its specific completeness and the necessary parameters, it is best to contact the specialists: designers who will do the heat engineering part of the project and consultants of the company that will undertake to supply equipment.

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Comments: 1
  1. Emily Bennett

    How can heat generators be effectively used to provide heating solutions in homes and buildings? What are the different types of heat generators available in the market and how do they differ in terms of efficiency and cost? Are there any specific factors to consider when choosing a heat generator for residential or commercial purposes?

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