Lochinvar Corp. announced the grand prize winner of its VIP Contractor Showcase. Ken Tingey of Tingey Plumbing & Heating in Murray, UT, was awarded first place for his installation of the KNIGHT Heating Boiler. Five other VIP Contractors were selected as finalists.

The third annual VIP Contractor Program, which rewards enrolled contractors for purchases of the KNIGHT, introduced the showcase at the start of the 2007-2008 heating season. To be considered for the contest, VIP Contractors submitted descriptions and photos of their recent KNIGHT installations to be featured on www.knightheatingboiler.com. Based on these entries, a panel of Lochinvar judges selected monthly winners from November through April and awarded each of them a $250 gift card to Cabela’s or Bass Pro Shops. After reviewing the six monthly finalists, the judges chose the contractor with the most impressive project as the grand prize winner: The Canyons Resort in Park City, UT - submitted by Ken Tingey, Tingey Plumbing & Heating.

Grand Prize Installation

In August of 2007, Tingey Plumbing & Heating bid on a snowmelt addition for this residence in Park City, UT. The house, which was built in 1993, was heated by two 250,000 Btu/hr Lochinvar boilers direct-vented to the rear wall of the house and the snowmelt system featured Lochinvar’s Copper-Fin II Boiler rated at 1,795,000 Btu/hr.  The homeowners were planning to install a patio with an arbor, fire pit, hot tub and chef' station, so they wanted to add approximately 1,800 square feet to their existing snowmelt system. 

Since the boiler system was already in place, the mechanical room offered little space for new equipment. Tingey proposed installing four KNIGHT KBN500 boilers, using the same wall for direct-venting and combustion air to allow for proper clearance. The KNIGHT was selected due to its small footprint and cascading feature, which allows for greater fuel efficiency and increases the lifetime of the equipment by altering the boiler sequence, through a control integral to the boilers. 

With the help of his son Derek, Ken completed the installation of the four new KNIGHT boilers, which look like they were part of the original system. Though this past winter saw heavier snow than normal, the four new KNIGHT boilers ran flawlessly and a fuel savings of approximately 35% to 40% is expected in the first year. In addition to the $250 gift card Ken received for his monthly award, he selected a KNIGHT WBN080 boiler as his grand prize.

Top Finalists

The remaining five monthly winners were named finalists of the VIP Contractor Showcase, including:

• Joe DiBacco of Comfort Zone Heating & Cooling, Inc (N. Billerica, MA)
  
• Paul Rohrs of Biggerstaff Radiant Solutions (Lincoln, NE)
  
• Gary Harper of Excel Mechanical Co. (Des Moines, IA)
  
• Douglass Reammell of Three Peaks Plumbing (Tetonia, ID)
  
• David Young of R & H Mechanical (Eagle, CO).