Best Of
Re: oversized water heater
Legionella protection makes sense in cases of hospitals, retirement homes, places where people are ill opr have compromised immune systems.
Every home in America??? I suppose it like buying insurance, what type of policy, how much coverage, etc, etc.
The mixing valve is a simple inexpensive solution, and it extends your WH output.
I think tank life is shortened with higher operating condition, more mineral precipitation.
Pros and cons
hot_rod
Re: A2W efficiency and calculating BTUh per SqFt....
@CWHudson said:
"This shows my structure needing between 1 and 2.5 BTUh per square foot to maintain my 70F interior temp."
As you know, that's your electrical usage converted directly to BTU, before applying the COP. If your average COP is, say 3.5, then your actual heat loss was between 3.5 BTU/hr/sq ft and 8.75 BTU/hr/sq ft. That doesn't sound unreasonable to me given your highly insulated, tight envelope and your relatively mild climate.
"an average of 1.1 BTUh per sq ft for every hour of February."
Again, that's before applying the COP. So if your average COP was 3.5, your envelope lost an average of about 4 BTU/hr/sq ft. Again, very good, but believable for your envelope and climate.
For a rough comparison, here in the Boston area, in a 100-year-old house with some envelope upgrades, we lost about 10 BTU/hr/sq ft average, with about 70% more HDD's than you. After correcting for HDD's, your envelope in my climate would have lost about 7 BTU/hr/sq ft, so your much better insulated envelope loses 30% less heat than mine, which is believable.
If you say what make/model heat pump you have, that would help to know what actual COP you are probably getting.
jesmed1
Re: Oldest Boiler
Hi, I like the olde style phone number on the thermometer 😊
Yours, Larry
Re: Honeywell L8148J Aquastat bulb seized.
Don't replace that aquastat with another L8148J. I would install a Resideo L7224U or Hydrolevel 3250. Both are superior to L8148 and have features that will improve the boiler efficiency and help you save money on fuel. And they are both less expensive than a L8148J.
Re: Help with hydronic piping to reduce hammer from circ pump
Are those Honeywell zone valves, the 8043?
Usually ZV hammer is caused by a fast closing valve against a high velocity flow, flow above 4 FPS, perhaps. It's more about the speed, not the volume of the fluid.
However if the ∆P circ is on the correct setting it should easily address the velocity? What circ do you have and what is the gpm or W. when the valve makes the noise?
One common hack for the HW is to remove one of the two springs from the brass sector gear. This slows the close speed by 2 seconds, and that fixes many of the hammer issues.
It does change the close off pressure of the valve by a couple PSI also. So make sure that zone isn't bleeding through when it is off and other zones are flowing.
hot_rod
Re: Help with hydronic piping to reduce hammer from circ pump
A properly adjusted pressure differential bypass on the discharge side of the pump should get rid of the water hammer.
Re: Is my plumbing wrong
This looks like it is at the end of one of the steam mains, in your diagram it looks like it is in the middle of a steam main.
109A_5
Re: Thinwall plastic pipe identification
From your picture that looks like schedule 10 pipe. It is commonly used for down spout drainage as pictured. Your hardware store will have fittings and pipe that will connect it. As for glueing the pipe. Many do not glue it as it is underground and will seep water there without concern. If you must glue it (I rarely have, and most I have seen is not) a common PVC primer and glue should be fine.
Intplm.
Re: Weird exhaust smell Nat. Gas GV3 not making C.O.
or to put it another way — either shut it down or bail out.
Re: Weird exhaust smell Nat. Gas GV3 not making C.O.
If you are reading 70 ppm inside, you're not safe. Just do some good research, and do understand the dangers to anyone in that place. I would not be comfortable with a level that high indoors.
Something's wrong here. It's dangerous at 70 ppm and with those numbers you have no room for error using cheap instruments that are imprecise and a malfunctioning heating plant that may continue to degrade.
