Heating bills had become so costly at Envoy Condominiums due to exposed steam pipes and wide temperature swings common with manual radiator values  that the homeowners’ association was considering replacing the steam boiler.  Fortunately, Envoy turned to Energy Trust before taking such a big step.

“Energy Trust told us we could save a lot of energy and improve comfort by converting our manual radiator valves to thermostatically controlled valves,” said Rob Hawthorne, board president, Envoy Condominiums Homeowners’ Association.

The 115 new radiator valves allow residents to accurately control temperatures in their individual condos, avoiding wide temperature swings. Envoy also installed pipe insulation to help stop heat loss in the steam distribution system.

“Residents are more comfortable and no longer open the windows because it’s too hot,” said Hawthorne. “And we’ve trimmed the building’s heating requirement by 40 percent.”