Hot Water Supply

"Hot water rises above cold water by convection. Hence all hot water should rise
before it comes out of the tap." Hot water supply in building should be designed
with this principle.
Hot water supply systems consist of 1) Water heater 2) Storage 3) Supply line
network.
Water heaters: These are of various types. These are based on various types of
energies that get used in heating.
Energy for heating
Heating can be done with 1) Solar heating 2) Gas based heating 3) Oil, Wood,
coal and other heating 4) Electrical Heating
Solar heaters are preferred as clean heating systems
Wood and solar energy is considered as renewable energy.
Heat extracted by A C equipment is also used for heating water in luxury hotels
to save energy.
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Geysers and Heaters
Boilers of various capacities are used. These are of two types 1) Continuous
geyser type 2) Storage type Heaters.
Continuous heaters
The continuous geysers are available in electrical and gas based heating type.
Electrical heaters are available in various capacities. In these heaters there are
heating elements over which the water is made to pass. The heat gets
exchanged.
Continuous gas geysers are available in Automatic and semiautomatic type. In
automatic gas geysers, the gas supply gets turned on when unit is supplied with
water at a particular pressure. There is a mechanism by which the gas gets
ignited automatically due to electrical spark. This ignites the flame. The flame
heats up water running through brass tubing and hot water is supplied
instantaneously. These units are available in 5 and 8 liters and many more per
minute capacities
In semi automatic type of unit the gas must be turned on and off manually
whenever required whereas it gets ignited automatically due to built-in sparking
mechanism.
The gas geysers are now becoming popular because gas is now available in
large quantities.
It is not very economical to provide large quantity of running water with help of
electrical energy. Hence steam generated with help of some cheaper fuel is used
as heating element to supply large quantities of hot running water.
Storage type heaters
Storage type heaters are available in electrical and Solar type for small units.
Smaller units are also available for burning garden refuge like dry leaves and
sticks etc.
Larger units as used in hotels hospitals are available in Solar units, electrical
units, Diesel units, units using coal and wood as fuel. The efficiency of such units
is around 50%. The capacity of wood based units is 35 liters. It can be fitted in a
small space of 2 sft. This is made out of a pipe section and can be installed
outside the building near toilet block. The hot water line rises into the toilet block
and can be insulated. It is also useful for small guesthouses etc.
Electrical water heaters of storage type are available in the market. These are of
various capacities. These are horizontal and vertical type. The capacity is 8 liters
15, 25, 35, 50 etc.
In the electrical heaters the supply in provided from the bottom and the hot water
is collected from a tube at the top of the storage capacity. A heating element is
provided inside the heater. This element gets heated due to resistance to
electrical current. Generally the heating element is thermostatically controlled.
The heater is insulated to prevent loss of heat .
The heated water molecules rise to the top of the container and can be derived
from the hot water supply line. The hot water gets pushed over due to supply of
cold water.
Pressure boilers are used where hot water in large quantity is required in small
time. An insulated container with inlet and outlet lines and electrical element
forms the boiler. The pressure inside is regulated with a pressure relief valve
which is set at 35 kg/ cm2.
The smaller units used in individual bathrooms are fitted at a higher level than the
user. Many a times, these are installed over the loft slabs above the bathroom.
Since the supply tank is the same for hot and cold water, it provides near equal
pressure for mixer for shower, wash basin etc. But the hot water flow is not
instant.
The larger boilers should be installed in the basement of the building. This
ensures supply of hot water as the tap is turned. Sometimes the boilers get
installed on terraces. These are boilers using Diesel, firewood, coal etc. These
are installed on the terraces for ease of removal of smoke. But these do not
provide hot water as the tap is turned.
The solar units are available in 100, 125 liters capacity as the water is just
adequate for 4 to 6 persons.
Solar heaters have panels that can be connected together to enhance capacity.
Water is made to run through pipes with heat collectors. The tubing is of copper
and the heat collectors are oxidized black so that they collect maximum of heat
from sunrays. The heated water molecules rise through the tubing to a storage
tank at the top. The temperature of water is maintained due to insulation around
the storage tank. Generally the unit gets installed over the terrace. Hence water
has to run downwards from the storage unit. Hence hot water is not available
with the turning of tap but there will be a first run of cold water before hot water
becomes available. This will create problem and will not give satisfactory results
in case of hot water supply to wash hand basins and showers.
For supply to basin and showers, the supply must be from below. A hot water
storage tank must be placed at the bottom from where hot water shall rise upto
the tap. Since hot water is lighter than cold water, hot water shall remain filled in
the pipeline and shall emerge as soon as the tap is opened.
All hot water lines must be insulated to prevent loss of heat to the atmosphere.
All lines must be insulated with Glass-wool or Mineral-wool of 2" thickness and
shall be protected with Tin sheet shell if the pipe-work is not concealed. The
pipe-work should be of B or C class pipes of GI. The joints should be made
watertight with Hold-tight solution.
Hot water systems in Luxury Hotels and Hospitals and buildings in cold
climatic conditions
In multistoried buildings like hospitals and hotels, it is essential to provide hot
water supply to all the fittings. In cold climatic conditions this must be done to
provide hot water as the tap turns.
In this case the boiler Placed in the basement or lowest level is fed from a cold
water supply line from an overhead water storage tank at the highest level.
The Systems that arise after this are known as up feed or down feed systems.
The up feed systems are once in which the line rises from the boiler to supply to
the fittings above. In down feed system hot water rises to the top of the building
and is then again brought down to supply to the fittings. Hot water storage tanks
may also be provided in between to ensure water supply when many taps are in
use simultaneously.
A vent pipe should be provided above the rising hot water pipe and should reach
the level above the cold storage tank. (See diagrams)
Conventionally hot water heaters are located in cellars or basements. This gives
economy of space in ease of building design, storage of fuel, ease of ash
disposal in case of wood or coal as fuel.
Return system of piping is provided where the hot water system is very long and
is more than 30 meters to the farthest end. The hot water piping looses heat to
the surrounding. Hence the water at the farthest end may not be hot to the
suitable temperature when the water gets drawn for he first time. Hence a lot of
water may be wasted. The line of hot water supply may be insulated with glass
wool or asbestos to minimize the problem. The return pipe brings cold water back
to the heating system. Hence hot water is available as the tap is turned.
Market survey and studies
Survey of Hot water pipes
Systems in use
Fuels in use
Deviations from theoretical systems.