MAINTENANCE ISSUES

Concern about the environment was not all that sparked the green movement at Portsmouth Abbey.

“We had maintenance issues,” Jestings said. “Boilers and water heaters just a few years old were breaking down. I'd call manufacturers to hear the old refrain, ‘Sorry, your equipment is just past the warranty period.’”

Jestings' search for new suppliers led him to Viessmann, a hydronic- and solar-equipment manufacturer.

“We now have 52 Viessmann products at the Abbey — boilers, solar equipment, thermal-storage tanks, and water heaters,” Jestings said.

The newest Viessmann product at the Abbey is a liquefied-petroleum-gas-fired Vitodens 200 boiler that is intended to serve as a backup heat source for the in-floor heat system installed in the basement of the solar house. A solar-to-thermal-storage-cell system will serve as the primary heat source.

In every mechanical room at Portsmouth Abbey are Grundfos circulators moving solar, hydronic, and even turbine-supplied electric heat to radiators, heat exchangers, and radiant floor systems.

Jestings said he was won over by Grundfos' wet-rotor design.

Grundfos units “use the fluids they circulate to cool and lubricate the pumps,” Jestings said. “All of the other circulators we had experience with before had bearing and gasket failures, requiring routine, expensive maintenance. These pumps are installed, and then we can forget about them. …

“Grundfos refers to the life-cycle cost of equipment,” Jestings continued, “pointing out that sturdier, better-designed equipment that may cost more on the front end saves a lot through product reliability and longevity. We've seen many years of success with their pumps, so we standardized on their circulators.”

A CALL FROM THE VATICAN

After learning of the energy savings at Portsmouth Abbey School, Vatican Radio, the broadcasting station of the Holy See, interviewed Brother Joe for a program called “Going Green,” which speaks of the Vatican's increased efforts to play a leadership role in reducing carbon emissions and combating global warming.

“Our costs for fuel oil and electricity were going through the roof — particularly oil at the start of the last heating season,” Brother Joe said. “Without the wind turbine, which provides electricity for various uses here, including energy for heat, and the new hydronic and solar equipment, we'd be facing some real tough decisions. Collectively, they're saving us. …

“And we're not done yet,” Brother Joe concluded. “Far from it. Solar-photovoltaic and geothermal equipment are on the list. More solar heat arrays and thermal-storage tanks. Some remaining older boilers to replace — all are parts of a greater plan.”

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Information and photographs courtesy of Viessmann.

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