indirect water heaters

[Hugh Mark North]

My very old propane-fired water heater is ready for burial. Several folks have recommended that I install an indirect water heater attached to my oil-fired Buderus boiler. I dont know anything about these critters and would like to hear some more. Amtrol and Phase III are two brands that have been recommended. Any suggestions?

[JeffBParticipant]

Unless the boiler was oversized, the heater may add too much of a load to it. The boiler will have to run 365 days a year, so the heating system will require controls to shut it off in the summertime and still allow the water heater to operate. They are expensive, and depending on your water quality, my require frequent acid cleaning of the tubes, and desilting of the exterior fins.: My very old propane-fired water heater is ready for burial. Several folks have recommended that I install an indirect water heater attached to my oil-fired Buderus boiler. I dont know anything about these critters and would like to hear some more. Amtrol and Phase III are two brands that have been recommended. Any suggestions?

[JeffBParticipant]

The indirect water heater, no matter the brand, does not have scaling problems like a coil. In the Phase III, for instance, it is a stainless steel tank inside a stainless steel tank. The domestic water is in the inner tank. The boiler water is in the outer tank. This gives a huge surface area for heat transfer, therefore the huge recovery rates. In regards to the boiler sizing problem, there are circulator relays on the market, such as Argo, that allow you to make the domestic hot water the priority zone. The heat to the house will shut off for the short period of time the indirect works. An oversized boiler is not needed. As far as the heat, unless a thermostat is calling for heat there is no need to shut anything off. And since the indirect heaters today are super insulated the heat loss out of them are very little. The boiler only runs when the heater calls for heat, just like a heat zone. The boiler does NOT maintain temperature.Jeff B– I suggest you go to http://www.danholohan.com This is a site frequented almost exclusively by hydronic experts. There is a place there called the Wall. Go there. It is a chat site. Today a bunch of us have been talking about indirect water heaters and especially how bad the Amtrol one is.

[Author]

Posts