"Point of use" water heating

[Feltwell]

Thank you all for your thoughts and contributions!

Graham, that site shows a 1.5bar pump that would almost certainly be suitable - I'll fill out their enquiry form and see what they say. Could get expensive though as their installation instructions specify that you have to have a particularly large cold water tank if you want to use a pump.

If the pump ends up being too expensive I'll look at that low rated heater unit.

When we bought the house, we knew the gas boiler was old but we expected it to last more than 3 days before going terminally wrong! We did look at a Megaflo system then - just too expensive at the time, it worked out at 3 times the cost of putting an ordinary condensing boiler in. I have heard they are very good, but we've had no problems with the system we've got.

 

[skier-hughes]

cold water tank needs to be largeish, as it needs to be kept full while also filling your hot water tank which will be emptying at a faster than normal rate, so you don't weant to pump your hot water tank dry and ruin your pump., which unless someone leaves the hot tap on is very unlikely to happen.
Whereas we had a whole house pumped system for a short while.

 

[Feltwell]

I must like making life complicated for myself.....

Apparently most shower pumps are activated by a flow switch - so there needs to be some water flowing through the pump in order to turn it on. In my situation the tap is above the cold water tank, that in turn feeds the hot water tank - therefore there will be no flow when the tap is opened without the pump running.

You can get pumps to cope with this - but they either need a manual switch of some kind to turn the pump on each time (not ideal) or a pressure vessel system, like on the one below. This is starting to sound expensive!!

http://www.techflow.co.uk/negativeheadsolutions.html

Only other solution would be a tap from a caravan or motor home, as they often incorporate a micro-switch. However to make that micro-switch operate the pump I presume I'd need some kind of low-voltage relay setup to then switch the pump on.

 

[Moo]

In the olden days, before all this newfangled internal plumbing complicated things, they'd have just carried a jug of hot water to the bedroom.

 

[MdB]

Sounds like you want a pressure switch rather than a flow switch.

 

[Moo]

There you go again, making things complicated.

All he needs is a decent size enamel jug.

 

[Feltwell]

There you go again, making things complicated.

All he needs is a decent size enamel jug.

Life would be much simpler with servants as well.....

Sounds like you want a pressure switch rather than a flow switch.

I think that's basically what the pressure vessel version on my link above does. I'm guessing it retains some pressure between the pump and the tap when the tap is closed - and then senses when that pressure drops. But that is a guess!

 

[MdB]

I think that's basically what the pressure vessel version on my link above does. I'm guessing it retains some pressure between the pump and the tap when the tap is closed - and then senses when that pressure drops. But that is a guess!

That is how the pump in my parents inlaw's boat (*) worked. Do not get one of this type unless you want to be woken up by machine gun type of sound everytime it switches on....


(*) parent inlaw's boat, parent's inlaw boat, parents inlaw's boat, parent's inlaws boat, parent's inlaw's boat....

 

[TomW]

How about a manual pump, something similar to a pub's beer pump.
Should ensure she doesn't use too much hot water. :mrgreen:
Tom

 

[Moo]

(*) parent inlaw's boat, parent's inlaw boat, parents inlaw's boat, parent's inlaws boat, parent's inlaw's boat....

On the assumption that the boat belongs to two parents-in-law, should it be 'parents inlaws' boat' ?

 

[Lime]

Parents in-law's boat.

 

[Lime]

Or the boat of my wife's/husband's mum and dad.

 

[MdB]

(*) parent inlaw's boat, parent's inlaw boat, parents inlaw's boat, parent's inlaws boat, parent's inlaw's boat....

On the assumption that the boat belongs to two parents-in-law, should it be 'parents inlaws' boat' ?

I have two "parents inlaw" with no s on the inlaw. I would therefore say it should be "parents inlaw's boat" but I await Penners' correction.

 

[Moo]

I was taught to turn the phrase round to test the plurality of the owner/s of the object(s)
For example: the toys belonging to the dogs = the dogs' toys
Whereas : the toys belonging to the dog = the dog's toys.

So if you only have one parent-in-law it would be a case of 'the boat belonging to my parent-in-law' = my parent-in-law's boat
And if you have two parents-in-law it would be 'the boat belonging to my parents-in-law' = my parents-in-laws' boat.

I think.

Um...

S.O.S. Penners!

 

[Onetap]

Apparently most shower pumps are activated by a flow switch - so there needs to be some water flowing through the pump in order to turn it on. In my situation the tap is above the cold water tank, that in turn feeds the hot water tank - therefore there will be no flow when the tap is opened without the pump running.

They're called negative head pumps, or negative head kits to fit standard pumps. You could start the pump with a switch, I think there are pressure bulb switches made for this purpose. To complicate tghings even more, you may also need a flange (Warix, Essex, Surrey, etc.) fitted to the hot water storage cylinder to stop air bubbles getting into the hot water pump's impeller.

Surrey flanges are not superior to Essex flanges but I wonder how many Aga owners have opted for a Surrey flange.

 

[Penners]

S.O.S. Penners!

Sorry, Moo. I have included myself out of this topic, on the grounds of terminal confusion.




I've omitted to mention the boredom, for the sake of good manners.

 

[Penners]

Surrey flanges are not superior to Essex flanges

If I had to have a flange, I'm sure I would find a Suffolk flange to be absolutely de rigueur.

 

[FamilyWiggs]

(*) parent inlaw's boat, parent's inlaw boat, parents inlaw's boat, parent's inlaws boat, parent's inlaw's boat....

On the assumption that the boat belongs to two parents-in-law, should it be 'parents inlaws' boat' ?

I doubt it. The plural of that phrase is "parents in law", thus the plural possessive would IMHO be "parents in law's" or very possibly "parents' in law" boat.

I understand Penners may have had a proper edukashun in grammar - he'll be along shortly to correct us. Meanwhile I'm going to have a couple of gins and tonic with some Governors-General. :wink:

 

[essexbearhunter]

Are there any other options? Has anyone come across a way of pumping hot water up a floor (similar to a shower pump) so I could use the hot water supply as per the rest of the house?

eeer Servants? :wink:

 

[philpjuk100]

How about?