Product Spotlight

An industry leader in hydronic and plumbing balancing technology, Caleffi North America has expanded their product offering with a Y-pattern dynamic balancing valve. The new 128 FlowCal™ Series valves with DZR low-lead brass bodies are now in stock and available for order in North America. This valve series was developed to make flushing, commissioning, cleaning and balancing easy with a cartridge that can be temporarily removed while the circuit is flushed. Factory-installed pressure temperature ports allow for quick flow verification, all in a compact design.

The 128 is functionally similar to the popular 127 Series, but with an easy access port for servicing or changing the flow control cartridge without removing the valve body from the piping. The 128 uses the same flow cartridges as the 127 Series (0.35 GPM to 10 GPM flow control), has dual union connections, has the same pipe sizes and tailpiece connection types (sweat, NPT, press, PEX expansion and PEX crimp).

Used in plumbing applications, the FlowCal+ models have an inlet check valve to prevent reverse flow and an optional outlet temperature gauge for local indication. The easy to swap, dynamic flow cartridges maintain a specified flow rate, with no adjustments or differential pressure charts required to set up. Patented anti-scale low noise polymer cartridges are utilized for silent operation.

Visit our website at www.caleffi.us or call us at (414) 238-2360 for further product information.

The first of its kind in North America, Uponor previewed an exciting new innovation at the 2022 ASPE Convention & Expo — the AquaPort™. Ideal in multifamily or hospitality low-rise, mid-rise, or high-rise applications, the AquaPort is a self-contained unit that converts a building’s hydronic heating supply to on-demand domestic hot water.

This solution eliminates centralized domestic hot water (DHW) and recirculation piping in a structure to provide numerous benefits, including energy and water savings, improved water quality, installation efficiencies, and reduced maintenance.

Compared to traditional pipe-routing methods, incorporating AquaPorts can reduce hot-water energy use by up to 35%, eliminate up to 40% of unnecessary piping, and remove more than 50% of the total DHW volume in a building for improved system performance, efficiencies, and hygiene.

The innovative and simplified design and installation provides efficiencies for installing contractors and facilities management to help keep projects on schedule, within budget, and running smoothly. It removes gas and electrical supply lines and venting in each dwelling unit to save on both short-term and long-term expenses, and it eliminates DHW supply and return piping for fewer piping supports, fire penetrations, insulation, and accessories required in a building.

The compact, in-wall design is only 25.6″ (650 mm) tall by 14.5″ (368 mm) wide and 5.4″ (137 mm) deep to maximize overall square footage. Additionally, the AquaPort is extremely lightweight at 47 lbs. (21.3 kg) for the 100K BTU/hr. version and 57 lbs. (25.9 kg) for the 180K BTU/hr. version, which makes it easy for one person to maneuver and install.

“Uponor is striving to innovate tomorrow’s buildings with high-performing solutions like the AquaPort to save water, minimize energy use, reduce risk, and eliminate waste,” says Aaron Stotko, director, Segment Marketing, at Uponor. “We anticipate the AquaPort will revolutionize hydronic heating and domestic water design to elevate building construction to a new standard.”

For further details about this new product innovation, refer to the AquaPort Brochure. For more information about the concept of decentralized DHW systems, review this white paper or watch this recorded webinar on Exploring Efficiencies of Decentralized DHW Systems.

Uponor AquaPEX^® Red pipe is now available and ready for your next plumbing installation in ½”, 300-ft. coils as well as ¾” and 1″, 100-ft. coils.

Designed for professionals that want complete color differentiation to easily distinguish hot-water lines, Uponor AquaPEX Red pipe features all the same benefits of Uponor AquaPEX White pipe, including PEX-a manufacturing for maximum flexibility and durability, kink repairability, resilience in freezing conditions, and resistance to corrosion, pitting, and scale buildup.

Uponor AquaPEX Red pipe offers the highest chlorine resistance rating of ‘5’ and provides six months UV resistance, all covered by Uponor’s trusted, industry-leading, 25-year transferable limited warranty.

Learn More about Uponor AquaPEX Red pipe.

Navien, Inc., the leader in condensing technology, has started shipping the new PeakFlow C scale prevention system for commercial applications and larger homes. The PeakFlow C is the latest model in Navien’s line of eco-friendly scale prevention products which includes the PeakFlow S and PeakFlow A.

PeakFlow C is a chemical-free and environmentally friendly scale prevention system meant to handle flow rates up to 20 GPM, and can be installed either at the main water line to prevent scale for the entire water supply, or at the cold water inlet line just before a tankless water heater or combi-boiler DHW system.

“PeakFlow C is an outstanding addition to the Navien line of water quality products,” said Ernie Lee, Water Quality Product Manager at Navien. “The use of the PeakFlow C scale prevention system will help reduce unnecessary service hours due to scale issues for contractors working on larger domestic hot water applications.”

Navien PeakFlow technology transforms potential hard scale build up to soft scale (aragonite and vaterite) that can easily be washed out with water flow. Without PeakFlow, the precipitated calcium carbonate forms as calcite, which is a very hard scale form that builds up in heat exchangers, lowering heat transfer efficiencies and blocking water flow.

To learn more about the new line of PeakFlow scale prevention products, visit Navieninc.com.