New Boilers Installed at Beecher Road School

WOODBRIDGE, CT: The bitter cold experienced in January underscored the need for building improvements at Beecher Road School building. During the polar vortex weather pattern last month, many classes had to relocate to other parts of the building to be warm. Displaced to spaces turned into make-shift classrooms, the students’ regular rooms simply could not be heated due to outdated, worn out and malfunctioning equipment.

Prior to this, the Town Beecher Road School Building Committee put forth a list of recommendations to address the extreme energy loss from the school due to the old heating system and insulation, single-pane windows and doors all of which that are about 50 years old.

On that list of recommendations is the replacement of the two boilers. That replacement had to move from recommended status to do it now status as one of the boilers broke down, and due to age and wear, was beyond repair. It was discovered during routine 2013 summer maintenance that one boiler’s internal works had deteriorated so badly it was not only a heat problem but could possibly be a safety issue if used. When the matter in question was brought to the attention of the Boards of Education, Selectmen and Finance, the decision was made to replace the boilers immediately.

New boilers were ordered early in the fall and installation began in December. Three new energy efficient natural gas burners were tested on a weekend, commissioned and brought into service in mid-January.

That is good news for the students, staff, parents and other citizens who use the school. However, as was explained by Facilities Director Greg Kula, that’s only one part of the equation. He said, “The three boilers are wonderful and functioning well. They create more than enough heat to potentially warm the building.” But, he went on, “The heat has to get from the boilers through the delivery system to the various parts of the building. That’s where we have more work to do.”

School Superintendent Guy Stella agrees saying, “The infrastructure of the air handling systems in every part of the school needs serious revamping. Heat in the boiler room is great. But that’s just the first link in the chain.” He posed the rhetorical question, “Do any of us have 53-year-old heating systems, or circa 1960 – 1970 insulation in our homes? Probably not.”

What’s next? The Town Beecher Road School Building Committee has recommended several items to renovate and upgrade the building’s mechanicals (heating, ventilation, air-conditioning, plumbing, etc.) and the envelope (the physical separator between the interior and the exterior environments) of the school. A partial list of recommended items includes north roof replacement and increased insulation, mechanicals, ceilings and ductwork, window replacements, envelope improvements, energy conservation measures, green energy and alternative energy (microturbine, wind, solar).

The cost of the proposed upgrades is $13.3 million. The proposed Beecher Road School renovation project is now on track for a town referendum.