Prepping the Radiant Manifolds

I have been SUPER BAD lately about getting my rear off a chair and actually getting anything done.  Some kind of motivation problem...  Well, I did work over last weekend and then took the kiddos to an airshow (strictly for them, I got no enjoyment out of that ;-)

Anyway, even after that still having a motivation problem.  But, lots to report anyway...

1.  Lighting Control equipment was ordered and already delivered...
2.  Radiant Manifolds are now ready to stick into place...

Here are some shots of the radiant manifolds.  Starting from parts out of the box...  I had heard that some of these good deals were because the manifolds were not pre-assembled....  Turns out there is a reason for that...

Here are the parts out of the box...ok, still in the box...

Out of the box...

I threw this picture in because I searched for months for this very picture on the internet myself.  The flow rates on this gage start at 0, and then increase to 1.2 gallons per minute in increments of 0.2 gallons per minute.  There is also a metric scale in Liters per minute.  This is on the supply manifold, and is basically a little plunger that gets pulled down into the water against a spring.  The faster the water flow, the more it gets sucked down.

Looking inside the supply side of the manifold at the plunger and flow control mechanismn...

Now looking into the blue return manifold.  The shutoff valve for each zone is actually located on the return.  It is just another plunger than pushes a seal down over a seat, and stops the flow.  The blue shutoff valve can be replaces by a solenoid type deal that is controlled by a thermostat, but I am using the "outdoor reset" concept, so I don't have that actuator.

Finally, 4 completed manifolds, ready for action.  Ok, so I said they were not pre-assembled.  I have some manifold locations that would be better served if I can route the supply lines in from the right side rather than the left.  Disregard what the manifold guy told me, I switched the position of the air elimination valves with the supply shutoff valves, and presto...  OK, the supply valve handle is on the bottom rather than the top.  I don't think that will matter...

Here is a shot of one of the Centralite dimming relay panels.  This one has the cover one, and is 14 1/2 inches wide and 44 inches tall. 

Here is a shot with the cover off. (10 screws, by the way...)  At the bottom of the panel is the Super Star board, which hooks up to all the "buttons" and senses activity.  When a button is pressed, the star tells the Master Control Panel (not pictured), which decides what to do with the lights, and then fires off a command to the Relay Driver Board (smaller board just above the STAR.  The Relay Driver Board then varies a command voltage over a phase control dimming relay (solid state dimming by shutting on and off the electricity 60 times per second, which therefore controls the voltage, resulting in a lower voltage square wave)    thus controlling the light circuit.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            

Another closeup shot of the Star, lower larger panel, and the Relay driver board, smaller panel upper right.  Both of these panels are powered by a small A/C transformer. 

Closer up shot of the dimming modules, each dimming module consists of 4 dimming relays, fed by a 20 amp circuit breaker.  So in one panel, there are 6 modules of 4 circuits, to control 24 banks of lights each.  I have 3 panels, for a 72 load total.  But that is just for dimmable loads, which are incandescent and halogen lights....

Here is what controls the other "devices"... a High Voltage Relay Board.  These relays are NOT dimmable, and notice I didn't say it controlled lighting.  It can control lights by turning them on or off, but it can also control anything you can plug into an electrical circuit...  hot water recirc pump, whole house water shutoff, kitchen outlets, bathroom outlets, etc.  In my case I am using these to control ceiling fans on and off as well as ventilation fans, plus the other mentioned items.  Each box has 16 loads each, which just acts like a light switch on/off, but computer controlled either by programming or by command.  These boxes do NOT have a STAR in them, but they could.  I already have 3 super stars which are capable of 96 button inputs each, for a total of 288 inputs.  These could be Centralite switches, or any kind of momentary contact switch you can dream up.  The system also interfaces via RS232 ports with other control systems such as a home automation controller.  I have two of these HVRB's, for 32 loads.  Centralite also makes a LVRB, or Low Voltage Relay Board.  This board is quite a bit different and can either switch a low voltage on/off/on (for reversing dc motors) or it can supply the actual low voltage itself for various things....  sprinkler valves, electronic shades, blinds, etc...

The HVRB...

Sorry these pictures aren't turned exactly right.  The red cables are premade leads with spade connectors on the ends.  I need to confer with my electrician about the best way to feed all these HVRB devices I have discussed, but I am leaning towards a series of 20 amp circuit breakers each feeding the appropriate items. 

Ok, enough of this post...  I have an enormous amount of work to catch up on, but sleep first... 

Good night...