Heating water in 2- 55 gal trash cans

hot_rod

The indirect tank operation will not change, you are just pulling some heat from the tank, it's control will maintain 135F in the indirect.

The indirect DHW tank doesn't know or care if you flow water to a faucet or through a pex coil, really.

Still not sure why you want to run copper from the boiler location to the barrel? pex will work fine for that also, unless there is some code issue?

I would use the entire 100 foot roll of pex, some for the 30 foot run back and forth, the balance for the HX coil. That small Grundfos recirc pump will flow enough through 100 feet of pex to accomplish your goal.

A picture of your indirect tank would help, maybe it has a recirc pump already? If so a couple tees and ball valves, pex is all you need.

RobG

I would run the copper lines (supply and return) above the cans and do reverse return drops of the pex. How often you plan on changing the water will stipulate what kind of controls are needed. As HR said, if you have the time to watch them, you can just plug in the pump when you want to heat the water. Insulate the cans as well to help with maintaining temp.

maybemark

The dhw has a circulating pump for the dhw loop. I guess what I am not sure about is, when the tank gets satisfied, 135, the pump will turn off. If you feel it will help I'll got take a picture

maybemark

I took the photos, but I don't know how to get them to the computer.
I just got windows 10, need some learning

RobG

I think that you aren't quite grasping the system. The pump I believe you are talking about circulates water from the boiler into the indirect? We are talking about teeing in and adding a pump to the domestic hot water {the water that goes out to the faucets) and teeing in to the cold water line going into the indirect. You are basically making a hot water recirculation loop. It can be manual or automatic.

Gordy

No not windows 10 there's a reason why it's free. Apple baby

maybemark

Rob
I am not talking a bout the water that comes out of the faucet, I am refering to the boiler water to heat the water that comes out of the faucet

RobG

The reason we are recommending using the domestic is because the boiler will operate on it's own controls no changes have to be made to the controls. Look at page 9 of the installation manual for the piping of a recirculation loop.

maybemark

Rob
I do not see anything at all on page 9 of the boiler install manual.
I just went to look at my boiler. I do not have any room to put a tee, before the mixer. I would have a lot of intriquit piping to be able to get it in

maybemark

Now that i think about it, this way you are suggesting would be fine, I do keep the tank water set for 135.
when you thought of this way, are you saying it will not work using the boiler water?

maybemark

I think I figured out on to put photos on the wall

maybemark

Rob, the last photo shows how little room I have between the tank and the mixer

hot_rod

It looks like hot comes out the top of the tank, a check valve, recirc pump, maybe an ElSid?, mix valve hot port.

On the top "C" cold port is another check, then to the right, the mix port it goes to the home?

Not exactly the correct piping. The pump should be on the return back from the farthest branch, not pumping through the mixer. And a pump should always pump away from the mixed port, not into the H port.

The pump doesn't move hot water to the home, the water pressure does. The pump just completes a circuit for faster DHW at distant fixtures.

I assume it works?

It should look more like this

Looks like another stainless Grundfos in the background? maybe it is the actual record pump and the one on top is no longer working or used? Not enough detail in the pic to figure that birds nest out.

RobG

Mark, I was talking about page nine of the indirect's manual.

maybemark

Hot rod
the pump you see is for faster hot water, not the pump to heat the tank. On the next photo you see the pump for the tank.
Everything else you see is correct.
Rob
Oh, I didn't think about the squire tank. I'll have to find where i have it, and tank a look
thanks Rob

maybemark

Rob
I see page 9 but I don't see it using the hot and cold water, maybe I am wrong, I see the tank being heated, then continue on the the system.
for a while i could not understand using the the water that goes to the faucet, my thoughts were to take the boiler water to heat the coil in the garbage cans

RobG

Go online and look at page 9 of the most current manual. If you already have a hot water recirculation loop you are almost there.

maybemark

I went online, it's the same picture that I have on my manual
I do not have a conventional recirculating loop on my hot water. The system I went with uses the cold water line for a loop and the pump you see is the circulating pump for my faster hot water.
I see the circ on the bottom right side
Help me understand why you would use the hot water from the tank rather than use it from the boiler?

RobG

You have domestic hot water priority on your boiler. When you are circulating the domestic water through the indirect the temp sensor in the indirect will tell the boiler when to fire when the domestic hot water temp drops below set point. No additional controls necessary if you operate the pump manually. If you want it to make it automatic you will need a temp sensor and a relay to control the pump. It's called simplicity of hydronics. Use the KISS system. Send me a PM with your number if you need to talk about it when I get back.

I will be gone until Wednesday so this will be my last post until then. Good luck.

Gordy

The only additional device you need is a thermostat to regulate the water temp of the the fish water.