'Residents will never be left out in the cold again'

A heat pump is not a guarantee of sustainable heat and hot water. In order to significantly reduce the energy costs and CO2 emissions of a home or block of homes and raise comfort to the highest level, the installation must also be properly explained, installed and maintained. If this does not happen sufficiently, adjustments may be necessary, such as recently at the Graskopstraat in the Transvaal district of The Hague.

During construction, the 330 homes at 87-97 Graskopstraat were equipped with a central heating and hot water system with two heat pumps and two gas-fired boilers, which together can provide 1,000 kW of heating power. However, due to an installation error, this system never functioned according to the design conditions, knows Mario van Gorsel, director of KOREX Benelux. "As a result of the installation error, the heat pumps did not reach their temperatures (45°C). As a result, the central heating boilers had to step in too much and too often and the sustainable ambition of housing corporation Woonbron was not met." KOREX Benelux has dealt with this axe more often. Also on behalf of Woonbron, for a project in the heart of Eindhoven. "By prescription of the housing corporation and together with De Jong Techniek, I inventoried the existing heat pump installation at the Graskopstraat and had the opportunity to make a proposal for improvement." Where De Jong Techniek makes an adjustment to the piping, KOREX Benelux takes care of pressure maintenance, expansion, degassing and refilling of the installation.

Assured of warmth

In mid-September, KOREX Benelux delivered and connected two new AIR-SEP® units in the boiler room of the residential block. "Chosen was an AIR-SEP® AS-T 600/6 and AIR-SEP® AV 600/6 with integrated VK-kit. Both AIR-SEP® units are hydraulically coupled in such a way that they are continuously connected to each other and can operate both combined and standalone," says Van Gorsel. "The setup allowed me to create a total of three circuits. The first AIR-SEP® is linked to the hot tap water system and takes care of pressure maintenance, expansion, degassing and automatic refilling of the hot tap water. The second AIR-SEP® takes care of the low-temperature heating and cooling water system. If an unexpected malfunction occurs in one of the units, the hot tap water circuit automatically disconnects from the heating and CHP circuits. Then the AIR-SEP® will independently and completely autonomously take over the water treatment. As a result, residents are now assured of heat." An additional security is the coupling with a similar AIR-SEP® system with two units across the street, where Woonbron owns a residential block with 300 homes. "As a result, residents will never again be left out in the cold."

Automatic feedback

A unique feature of the AIR-SEP® installation in The Hague Transvaal is that the units automatically receive feedback from the building management system about which season they are running in. This enables an even more energy-efficient operation.

About KOREX Benelux

KOREX Benelux specializes in the sale, supply and maintenance of various devices and fittings in the field of water and/or coolant treatment in Closed Circulating Pressure (GCD) installations. "We offer technical advice and support and make calculations and connection sketches for cost-saving, energy- and CO₂-reducing installations, aiming at improved capacity of heating, cooling and freezing systems, closed source systems and solar energy systems."