Hot water recric. loop

Buckshot

I want to run a recriculation line from my Master bed. back to the hot water tank. I don't know if I should run a gravity or recric. pump line. I've heard a gravity line may not work as well as a line with a pump along with a aquastat relay. What are the proa and cons of each.





                                                                           Thanks

                                                                          Buckshot

icesailor

HW Recirc:

Use a circulator and an aquastat. For a really fine job, use a clock timer so you can make it stay off when you don't need it. I also suggest using one of those light timer switches for bathroom heat lamps wired so it over rides the timer clock. Put it on the wall ion the bathroom you are trying to help. That way, if you want to use it at a time when the timer is off, you turn the dial for 5 minutes, it starts the circulator and in a few minutes, you will have hot water and you don't need to remember to turn it back off. It will act like the light. Run a piece of 1/2" PEX from the area you want to get to and go back to the water heater. Connect it to the bottotm. Use a check valve. Be sure to add a ball valve and drain so you can purge it properly.

It works well if you need to go more than 30' developed length. If it isn't that much, I don't think the material costs make it a payback.

Insulate the HW supply and return. The fact that it is not now insulated, may be part of your problem. Line heat loss.

Larry Weingarten

Another option...

... is to use a demand system.  These run only when you want them to, saving heat loss from the plumbing.  The originator of the design is Metlund, or www.gothotwater.com .



Yours,  Larry