Hi Community,
I added a few system monitors and then resized my main. It shows what the pressure requirements are, but now shows valve 00 as the worst case when it runs the mainline size. It used to tell me right then and there which valve was the worst without having to rerun the critical analysis. Also, the indicators all show a GPM flow of 35. Maybe that's the highest allowed due to my POC settings, but some of the indicators are at the end of lines that have maximum flows of less than 30 GPM. One location shows a negative 6 PSI but the valves beyond that indicator (which are less than 30 GPM (not 35) are just fine.
So, what's the weirdness and how should I use what appear to be false alarms?
Even worse, Now when I run the critical analysis, it identifies an indicator as the worst case. It should not use indicators in this calculation. Especially when we identified them as non-plot.
It would seem to me that the flow in the indicators should not be tied to the water source. They should be reading the flow in that piece of pipe.
This is most likely user error. Right?
System Monitors are a newer thing, so there will be places in the code that we can continue to tweak. In this case, it sounds like the mainline sizing function needs some additional logic. Or possibly even splitting Monitors into two types, those that are simply invisible monitors, indicating what is available, versus one that also doubles as a Cap and results to that much demand.
As for the quick workaround solution -- after using system monitors to make your determinations, you could then delete the pipe connecting to them, and optionally drop in Caps with the desired demand you want at those locations.
If there are improvements to just the mainline sizing logic that you think is warranted, you are welcome to send in your plan so we can play with it a bit.
--J
Jer,
Thanks for your quick response.
We weren't using them as caps. We are using them to provide additional information. I was hoping that when we sized the mainline it would determine the pressure and flow demands and show them as attributes. For instance, if we were to place it at the ends of mainline paths it would use the valve demands at those ends as the maximum flow and then show the flow and pressure at that location (on a non-plot layer) used for design purposes only. Using the maximum flow available at the POC (which the designer should already know) gives a false pressure reading since the real pressure reading would be what the actual flow of the valves at that location are drawing, not the maximum available.
So the workaround appears to be to remove the indicators until they represent the actual information that can be used to analyse the system. Right?
It would seem to me that the indicators can be used for one thing at this point. They will tell the designer what the pressure requirement would be IF the maximum flow were to be drawn at that location. Is this correct?
Okay. We're obviously using these incorrectly. Using indicators forces the mainline to be sized for maximum flow. If we place this indicator at an end of a run with a valve that uses 6 GPM, rather than sizingthe pipe at 3/4" it sizes it as 2" since it assumes a flow of 35 gpm. It's being treated as a valve, not an indicator of what the designed system would result in.
The indicator that I'm hoping for would indicate the results of the designed system. It would not affect the size of pipe, rather it would show the flow going through the pipe and the minimum pressure requirement at that particular location based on the critical valve demand located beyond the indicator. This would aid us in our design process. Is this clear?
That is correct, that is the primary use of them.
For what you are wanting, it sounds like you might be better served by an ability to call out a segment of pipe, with the ability to display the pressure and flow at that point.
--J
Correct. It would "indicate" the pressure and flow at that point. Wake Jake. JK.
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