indrect hot water heater VS Stand alone gas hot water heater

Matt_5

Hi
Does anyone have a recommendation for a good website giving the pros and cons for a indirect hot water heater vs. a stand alone gas hot water heater type comparison. Or have thoughts on which you would choose if you were replacing an
ancient oil furnace with a Burnham Revolution RV4 anyway.
My brother in law(HVAC techn.) and everyone I speak with in the industry seem to think I should go with Burnham Alliance
indirect. While my grandfather the elder engineer thinks otherwise...

JIM F.

pro's!!

lets see------
1 burner running instead of 2 in winter ($$$$$$$)
indirect costs less than a oil fire water htr ($$$$$$)
burner runs on boiler all year round preventing cold water shut down in summer(saves boiler life$$$$$$$$$$)
not as much oil movement in lines-less chance of clogging($$$$$$$). also yearly maintenence on 2 units as opposed to one($$$$$)
i would go indirect all day long
jim f.
milford,ct.

kevin

ditto...

to what jim said but i see you are going with a gas boiler. oil lines are not a problem . No flue standby losses, longer life,sealed combustion, greater afue(60% vs 88%), better recovery....are ther any CONS? Just more up front cost. Cost that will be recovered sooner than later. kpc

Bill Clinton

cons

1. Some indirect coils lime up in a hurry: those with fins are the worst. Diminishes heat transfer real bad.

2. Dubious about the fuel savings, especially with a gas boiler: You either let that boiler run all the time just in case it needs to make some hot water, or you let it cool off between recharges and have to cold start everytime theres a call for more hot water. Most of the difference in efficiency ratings between water heaters and boilers lies in the different rating methods. For boilers, standby losses/jacket losses are counted as useful heat. Water heater ratings are more realistic and don't count it.

3. Dubious on argument that using only one fired appliance will require less service than two. There is pracically nothing on this earth more trouble free than a water heater: certainly not the wet rotor circulator you will wind up installing to operate an indirect.

4. With an indirect, if the boiler breaks down, you not only got no heat; you got no hot water too--more than doubly annoying.



Bill

hr

I tend to

agree with Bill. although I'm not well versed with oil fired equipment.

Hard to beat a condensing tank style water heater for high efficiency operation in the 65- 130 degree range. Ideal condensing range. Well insulated, sealed combustion, stainless steel construction. Kicks butt against 85% boilers and indirects, in my opinion.

I'm leary about all my "eggs in one basket" approch to heat and DHW. Just depends what you and your customer are most comfortable with.

hot rod

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