[Greenbuilding] Max Temp Storage Water Heaters+Temperature Sensors

[RT]

On Wed, 02 Feb 2011 10:41:16 -0500, elitalking <elitalking at rockbridge.net>  
wrote:

> I want to know the maximum temp that typical storage electric water  
> heater can safely accommodate.  
> Does anybody know of a heat sensor and or sound indicator when the water  
> reaches a set temperature?

Eli;

Without checking any manufacturers' product literature my guess would be  
that the tanks would be designed to easily accommodate temperatures of at  
least 212 degF (ie the boiling point of H2O) plus a factory of safety of  
25% (WAG).

But the temperature & pressure relief valve will kick in before the water  
temperature reaches the boiling point -- 210 degF /150 psi IIRC.


re: sound indicator for when thermostat shuts off current to heating  
elements

I'm not a gizmologist and short of Googling "no electric current flow  
indicator annunciator alarm"
my guess is that one might be able to pull the controls off of a  
diverted-from-the-wastestream electric clothes dryer and jerry-rig  
something to do the trick.

Or maybe just connect an ammeter onto the terminals of the heating  
elements and leave the meter in a location where you can see the display ?

Perhaps something to consider is laying up a few runs of 3 or 4 inch  
diameter DWV pipe into an empty ceiling joist cavity or in a false ceiling  
over a hallway where it would hold the 55 degF water from the creek and  
allow it to hang around for the better part of a day to temper it before  
it gets fed into the water heater so that the heater would only have to  
raise the temperature from ~72 degF to your thermostat set point.



-- 
=== * ===
Rob Tom
Kanata, Ontario, Canada
< A r c h i L o g i c  at  Y a h o o  dot  c a >
manually winnow the chaff from my edress if you hit "reply"
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