Projects Overview
Ft. Leavenworth
Mendota Federal Prison Camp
Sonoma County Water Agency
National Park Service Intern Center
City College of San Francisco
Cameron Park
Eleanor Roosevelt Circle
Kingwood Commons
Mutual Housing at the Highlands
Yuba City, California
Project Start: Fall 2007
Project End: Completed Spring 2010
Architect: McCandless & Associates, Architects
Owner: Consolidated Area Housing Authority of Sutter County
Kingwood Commons is a 64-unit, multi-family affordable housing complex in Yuba City, California. As part of an extensive renovation of the complex, Meline Engineering designed a new, energy-efficient hot water system. In the existing system, hot water generated at the central boiler plant was circulated through an underground loop to individual apartment buildings. The system not only used excessive energy, it also failed to provide adequate hot water.
Meline Engineering researched hot water alternatives for the Sutter County Housing Authority, investigating first costs and operating costs. The final design included a new gas meter serving an instantaneous water heater for each apartment, allowing metering of each renter’s gas use. Gas distribution was designed for Wardflex CSST pipe to minimize material and installation costs. New gas and water piping layouts were coordinated to minimize cutting of gyp board walls and to use existing piping wherever possible.
During construction, the owner and plumbing contractor requested a change from copper to PEX water piping. While PEX piping provides a cost savings, it creates higher pressure drop, and the requested substitution raised concerns about adequate water pressure at apartment outlets. Meline Engineering provided water pressure calculations and updated construction drawings to ensure successful installation and operation of the alternative water piping system.