The heating season is here! Although it is called heating, I am really "afraid" of it...

Review expert: Wang Shengwei, Senior Engineer, Beijing Municipal Engineering Design and Research Institute Co., Ltd.

In the cold winter in the north, there is a cold wind blowing outside the house, and water will freeze into ice if it is spilled. At this time, eating ice cream in short sleeves in a warm room is probably the best compliment to heating. So, what exactly is heating?

▼ What is heating?

Heating is a centralized heating or heating facility and system that is mainly used for heating . It is widely used in the northern regions of China where winter is cold. Although it is called heating, the main character is not "gas" but heated water. Heating systems are mainly divided into two types: water heating system and gas heating system. Water heating system uses water as the heat transfer medium, and common applications include radiators and floor heating, while gas heating system uses gas as the heat transfer medium, such as household split air conditioners and hot air blowers.

Source: Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences

In northern China, water heating systems are commonly used in central heating systems . The system consists of four parts: heat source, heat network, heat exchange station and heat user. It transports steam or hot water generated by the central heat source (such as a boiler or thermal power plant) to the radiator in the room (i.e., radiator and other radiators) through the thermal pipe network. When hot water flows in these radiators, it transfers heat to the surface of the radiator and dissipates the heat into the indoor environment, and the indoor temperature gradually rises, thereby achieving the heating effect. The hot water in the radiator releases heat, gradually cools down, and then returns to the boiler through the return pipe for reheating. This cycle is repeated continuously to ensure that hot water continues to flow in the system.

In order to further improve the efficiency and comfort of the system, water heating systems are usually equipped with temperature control devices. The temperature control device can automatically monitor the temperature difference between indoors and outdoors, and automatically adjust the operating status of the boiler according to the set temperature range, effectively maintaining a constant indoor temperature while avoiding overheating and energy waste.

01 Radiator and floor heating

Radiators and floor heating are common radiators in water heating systems.

The radiator mainly relies on its own thermal conductivity to transfer heat from the inner wall to the outer wall. The outer wall warms the air in the room by heat convection and heats objects in the room by radiation.

Floor heating is achieved by evenly laying heating pipes under the floor to evenly heat the entire floor. This design utilizes the heat storage characteristics of the floor material and the principle that heat naturally radiates upwards, thereby achieving heat conduction from bottom to top.

02 Heating is "afraid" of gas

Although it is called heating, it is actually very "afraid" of air.

If the heating system is not warm, it is very likely that the "gas" in the heating system is causing the problem. As a closed circulation system, when the water heating system is first operated and filled with water, most of the air will be discharged after a few days of operation. In theory, there should be no air during its operation cycle. However, the reality is often not as expected. In actual operation, air often appears in the water heating system, which is also the "culprit" for poor heating effect or malfunction. If the heating system is not hot, usually releasing the gas can solve the problem. Other problems need to be handed over to professionals.

Of course, in order to ensure the heating effect, the water heating system also needs regular maintenance and service to check whether various facilities have leaks, blockages or damage.

Warm Tips: Although heating is good, you should also pay attention to the fact that as the indoor temperature rises, the air humidity may decrease, and the temperature difference between indoors and outdoors will also increase. We can increase the air humidity by adding water or using a humidifier to avoid over-drying. In addition, you can also adjust your clothes appropriately according to the temperature changes to prevent colds caused by alternating hot and cold.