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Brown DrainBack Water
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Martin Romero
Member Posts: 40
in Solar
Solar Wizards,
My System:
4 SunEarth 4' x 10' collectors
Stainless Plate Heat Exchanger (radiant); Quad Rod Heat Exchanger (DHW)
15-20 Gallon Drain-back Tank
Unpressurized Drain-back Setup
Closed Loop
A few months after firing up my system about 2-3 years ago, I began noticing just a slight browning of the water visible through the sight glass outside my drain-back tank. It presently looks like what's shown in the attached photo.
I'm interested in hearing your thoughts on how to proceed and how much of a concern this "browning" is.
Thanks,
Martin Romero
My System:
4 SunEarth 4' x 10' collectors
Stainless Plate Heat Exchanger (radiant); Quad Rod Heat Exchanger (DHW)
15-20 Gallon Drain-back Tank
Unpressurized Drain-back Setup
Closed Loop
A few months after firing up my system about 2-3 years ago, I began noticing just a slight browning of the water visible through the sight glass outside my drain-back tank. It presently looks like what's shown in the attached photo.
I'm interested in hearing your thoughts on how to proceed and how much of a concern this "browning" is.
Thanks,
Martin Romero
0
Comments
-
my guess
would be that the system has a pump with a cast iron body. If so that is where the red color is coming from. A bit of color actually makes it easier to see the level in the sight glass.
I prefer a pressurized drainback, but as long as it is a true closed loop, you should not see a lot more dis-color.Bob "hot rod" Rohr
trainer for Caleffi NA
Living the hydronic dream0 -
Browning water
Thanks Hot Rod,
I was certain the pump was brass, but I will double check. No real concern about heat transfer?0 -
Most likely a steel tank
Martin,
My first guess was also a cast iron pump. That tank could be steel, however. Do you have the brand name and model for it? Even if it is a glass-lined steel tank, a little bit of rusting at the fittings would be normal.
BTW if it is a true unpressurized drainback system, that means it must be vented somewhere. A vented system usually causes a cast iron pump to fail prematurely. If it's truly a closed loop system, it will create some pressure when the air and water gets hot.There was an error rendering this rich post.
0
This discussion has been closed.
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