Electric Heating Goes To School

this is Monroeville Pennsylvania a suburb of Pittsburgh population 21,000 family income about average everywhere here there's newness generous use of land and modern imagination yes this is today's typical miracle this is Monroeville its industry well you might say raising children a big job it is to this kind of industry calls for modern homes up to date planning modern churches modern administration and most of all modern schools now there's a big responsibility for you those schools in Monroeville as in most American communities that responsibility rests with a select group businessmen doctors an engineer a lawyer they are the school board serving without pay they guide the destinies of their community school system help chart the future of Monroeville 4,500 youngsters and they have an arduous task to use wisely that tax dollars entrusted to them get the most from every cent spent building by the finest facilities so monrovia's youngsters may be healthier happier and better educated not long ago the board met to discuss the method of heating a new elementary school they were planning the bill some members felt a truly modern school ought to be heated by electricity they asked their architect no one knew all the facts so he did what a conscientious planner would do he called in all the experts his engineers power company first to speak was a representative of the Duquesne Light Company they supply electrical power to the Monroeville area and so I brought with me some of the facts that I believe you're looking for if there are any questions please don't hesitate to ask them as you go along I have a question yes isn't it true that your electric power costs more than any of the other kinds of fuel we can use how can you possibly justify heating the school electrically on those grounds alone a good question but first let's see what's required to heat your schools with those other fuels may we see that film please here you see a drawing of a school building much like the one your architect is flan now unless it's heated electrically this building will need a big boiler room and a boiler or two of course that's going to require some space valuable space and chances are some excavation trenching for pipe runs usually is desirable lots of pipe to carry hot water or steam too many radiators throughout the building let's not forget the condensate or circulation pumps and a massive chimney now even though the building is not heated electrically it still needs electric power power for the pumps for boiler controls or thermostatic room control but if we change our minds and decide to heat the building electrically we can eliminate boiler room boiler pumps piping this type of control chimney and just change the location and quantity of roof insulation and increase the size of our electric supply quite a difference quite a difference and he proceeded to show them in black and white the comparative construction costs resulting from the difference in two schools one an existing Monroeville school with gas fired steam heating and the other their newly planned school which the architect had designed similarly except a little larger and equipped with better roof insulation and electric heating believe it or not the electrically heated school would cost forty one thousand five hundred dollars less to build that's very convincing but it is true isn't it that your electric power is the most expensive of any fuel well let's take a look at that point gas consumed to eat your school now cost you about two thousand one hundred twenty dollars annually we estimate the cost of electricity for heating your new school will run you around 5,200 dollars a year so where's the saving that's coming look here he pointed out that it costs 1383 dollars a year for 30 years to repay the bond money for additional construction required by gas heating average annual interest at four and a half percent costs another 933 dollars plus an annual reserved for boiler replacement cost of pump operation boiler insurance hire building insurance cost of boiler maintenance repairs and supplies at all this to the annual cost of gas and you have a grand total of five thousand seven hundred sixty eight dollars a year for gas heat against an estimated five thousand two hundred ten dollars for electric heating saving five hundred fifty eight dollars a year by heating the school electrically you talk about boiler replacement boiler insurance boiler maintenance doesn't your electric system require maintenance to true the wet heat equipment outside the boiler room takes only slightly more maintenance in its electric counterpart but the electric equivalent of the boilers are the power transformers and these are normally furnished and installed by the utility the actual boilers of the power generating station and it is also maintained entirely by the utility and paid for in the electric bill now as for future fuel costs but look at this chart will show you the cost of fossil fuels has been steadily increasing while the cost of electric power has remained about the same what will tomorrow's costs be four gentlemen you can draw your own conclusion and draw them they did in response to eager questions from board members concerning available equipment their architect and engineer suggested that they would arrange a full explanation by equipment manufacturers one leading manufacturer was on hand when the board can be in the week later our chrome locks unit ventilator it assures optimum classroom comfort by providing individual room control automatically for ventilation warming and cooling does so quietly without drafts and economically because of Adam and Sentinel our unique control device which increases the unit's heating capacity as it feels outdoor air temperature dropping the manufacturer shows his simple compact unit ventilator and goes on to explain how it fits specifically the varying demands of class room occupancy and temperature variations he shows how rooms on the sunny side of the building may need cooling while rooms on the side exposed to shade and chilling winds require heat he notes the need for warmth at the time the classes begin he then shows how the body warmth of the students contributes heat to the room causing the heat requirement of the unit ventilators to be lowered he points out that only with built in individual room control can quick modulation of heating and cooling be provided to ensure that each classroom is properly maintained at optimum comfort temperature this unit with built-in temperature control fulfills the most critical demands it both warms the room cools the room and brings in fresh air from the outside mixing and delivering the air and filtered and measured amounts throughout the room another chart this one showing a typical classroom indicates where the unit ventilator is mounted against an outside wall where it can draw in fresh outdoor air as needed an automatic deafer controls indoor and outdoor air flow to provide proper room ventilation or cooling the air mixture is then filtered and electric elements and heat according to the actual need this air is then directed almost straight up to the ceiling by the unit ventilator fans this curtain of rising air passing the window box the external cold it hits the ceiling flows across it to the side walls where it drifts down into the living area then it travels back across the floor at desk level returning to the unit ventilator its temperature is sampled for comfort control and again is mixed with outside air filtered and warmed if need be and the cycle is continued we have removed this panel to demonstrate that everything is built into this unit at the factory including all automatic controls now this means easier more economical installation and maintenance this unit never needs to be oiled it requires only a few minutes once a month to change the filter the board members interest increases here are more savings and they like the idea of built-in individual room control they also like the idea that this electric heating doesn't call for an engineer an expert to operate and here's another individual control they like to all power to these heaters is fed or cut off by a simple arrangement of centrally located time clocks please permit the temperature to be reduced when the building is not in use but suppose there's to be a special meeting in one room some evening a responsible person merely presets the clock override on the unit in the room to be used and at the appointed hour of use that room will be comfortably warm and after the meeting will then be returned to overnight temperature automatically the manufacturer also shows the board how these unit ventilators can be used in conjunction with other electric devices such as baseboard radiation in offices cabinet convectors for corridors console type heaters for entrance ways auditorium type unit ventilators for gym multi-purpose rooms and auditoriums unit heaters for kitchens and food storage even special chroma locks heating cable embedded in pavement to melt snow automatically you can heat the floor of your kindergarten this way and economically too so the tots can play right on the floor without feeling the slightest chill you know what it feels like to open presents Christmas morning well that's about the way these people felt these people whose job it is to spend their neighbors tax dollars the best possible way the Monroeville school board made its decision electric heating for the new northern pike school working as a team architect engineer manufacturer and contractor plan and install the system have it ready and operating in time for the first scheduled day of classes then came the real test the comfort of teachers and students regardless of the weather at an operating costs within the range of the estimates made of the school board in order to prove it careful records were kept of the weather setting of automatic controls and time of special activities beyond the normal school day then I have here the operating costs for heating northern pike school during the past full 12 months remember the original estimate given to us for that period was 5210 dollars well even though the past winter was nearly four percent colder than normal the bill actually amounted to only five thousand two hundred and ninety dollars this is almost on the nose with our original figures I think they proved we made a wise choice thanks to electric heating at northern pike school they have this and they have this with its clean quiet electric heat they have this and as the population grows an expansion of classroom facilities may be required how easy it will be just to run electric lines into the new rooms and install compact packaged electric unit ventilators how very economical and how very practical electric heating has proved itself practical today nothing else may be practical tomorrow that's how they feel about it in modern Monroeville Pennsylvania where modern thinking includes planning for tomorrow and that includes heating comfort for today's youngsters the all-electric way Oh