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What is it?

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Darin Cook_2
Darin Cook_2 Member Posts: 205
If there was any kind of water treatment being done that tank could be a contact tank. It would give the water and chemicals "contact" time. I have a contact tank set-up in use at my mothers house but that is for suspended clay particles. The contact tank allows the alum solution and the clay to interact, clump together and fall to the bottom of the tank. Then it is flushed out. Is it possible that the tank was used for some kind of treatment process?

Darin

Comments

  • Jeff Elston
    Jeff Elston Member Posts: 289
    large tank in DHW system

    This is a 15 floor building, with about 350 apt.

    The original DHW system was three 1,000 gal eletric water heaters.

    There is a 4th tank, and it is located between the CWS and the first 1,000 gal tank.

    The CWS feeds through the 4th tank and on to the three heaters.

    Problem is nobody knows what the 4th tank is or what its for.

    Anybody hava any idea?
    I am going there now for pics and more details Thank you.
    any help would be great



  • Mike T., Swampeast MO
    Mike T., Swampeast MO Member Posts: 6,928


    A tempering tank?

    Particularly during periods of lower usage the water entering the tempering tank has some time to warm to near ambient instead of cold, cold ground.
  • Brad White_9
    Brad White_9 Member Posts: 2,440
    That would be my guess, a pre-tempering tank

    especially if the tank were not insulated and possibly made of (dare I say it and don't tell anyone the address)... copper!

    You might see also if there is an immersion heater or provisions for same, within that, whether hooked up or not. Some municipal/utility steam systems dump the condensate to drain so this is a final use and cool-down before the dump.
  • Jeff Elston
    Jeff Elston Member Posts: 289
    Tank

    the water enters the bottom and exsits the top. the tank stands on end. The recirc tees into the CWS to the mixig valves but there is a check between the tee and the tank.. Also I am remembering ... there were tiny red beads that came out when the system was shut and drained for some others to work, the beads were translucant,(sp?) any way the others are gone, time to fix it!

    Thank you pics soon!
  • Tony Conner_2
    Tony Conner_2 Member Posts: 443
    Sounds...

    ... like a water softener.
  • Jeff Elston
    Jeff Elston Member Posts: 289
    Tank

    It is not insulated it is painted blue and I dont belive it is copper.
  • Brad White_9
    Brad White_9 Member Posts: 2,440
    That would seem to imply

    additional storage capacity during low-demand times, increasing the total volume and possible shaving demand to off-peak night rates if they ever applied. Either way, another 1,000 gallons ready to go in the AM. Of course if such was the case, I would expect to see the tank insulated; that too if the tank were to be used for condensate cooldown or other applied energy application. Bare tank for passive warm-up only.

    Brad
  • Jeff Elston
    Jeff Elston Member Posts: 289
    Tank

    the water softener is right next to it! anything about the beads. The maintance is all union and there has been some personel fliping (new people) One guy said he thought it was a settling tank. I dont know what that is.
  • Brad White_9
    Brad White_9 Member Posts: 2,440
    Beads

    Just guessing here:

    Solder bead which have absorbed copper directly by electro-deposition (no free O2 to make them green).

    Red Lead from old pipe dope.

    Some Red Hots Candy left in there by a playful plumber?
  • Jeff Elston
    Jeff Elston Member Posts: 289
    Tank

    Brad thank you

    This tank is much smaller than other three about 9 feet high and 5 foot across.

    What about the beads?
  • Jeff Elston
    Jeff Elston Member Posts: 289
    Beads

    They are all perfectly round and the same exact size.
    I assumed they were manufactored and then added or something
  • Brad White_9
    Brad White_9 Member Posts: 2,440
    Beads [2]

    Calgon- Take me away!

    Translation: I have no idea :)
  • SVDW
    SVDW Member Posts: 80
    Beads

    We had a contractor replace an existing softener with a new model. Unfortunately the valve on the new one was reverse piped from the old one & he blew the resin through the whole building. Poor guy is still getting service calls a year later. I wonder if your beads might be left over from a similar situation?
  • Tony Conner_2
    Tony Conner_2 Member Posts: 443
    The Only Other...

    ... thing I can think of is a dealkalizer, but they're normally used in steam plants to deal with the bicarbonate alkalinity in make up water. The have resin beads, and are similar in appearance to a softener. Any of the dealk of the dealkalizer installations that I'm familiar with are installed in series with the softeners.
  • Jeff Elston
    Jeff Elston Member Posts: 289
    here's the visual effect

  • Ed_26
    Ed_26 Member Posts: 284
    tank

    Sure looks like an old water softener to me... possibly a manual regeneration system that had failed, not able (or willing) to remove, so bypassed or left in the line???
    No records or service schedule available?
  • from the pixs

    Look like to me it was a old water softner with control head missing.. Replacement water softner (better) in background, twin alt. fleck conrol heads, giving the building 24 hours cond. water.. Meanwhile, the replacement didn't incudles the cost of removing the old one...
  • JK_4
    JK_4 Member Posts: 35
    another possibilty

    Itcould be a softener or dealk either would explain the beads but it also looks simular to a domestic pre heat tank that I have come across a couple of times in which hot water or steam was piped into the bottom of the tank and then rose in a coil by convection with the small pipe at the acting as both supply and return. I have only seen a few of these and only on pre 1930's systems.

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  • gerry gill
    gerry gill Member Posts: 3,083
    gwgillplumbingandheating.com
    Serving Cleveland's eastern suburbs from Cleveland Heights down to Cuyahoga Falls.

  • Brad White_9
    Brad White_9 Member Posts: 2,440


    Made in China
  • the tag...

    The tag says.... Under penalty of law this tag not to be removed except by the consumer..... Guess time for me to get out of bed and go to work....
  • Brad White_9
    Brad White_9 Member Posts: 2,440


    Now THAT is comedy!
  • Jeff Elston
    Jeff Elston Member Posts: 289
    TAg

    The tag says Patterson Kelly
    And just ratings
    I havent called yet to ask about the serial #
    Which is on tag aswell
    I dont think it was made ic China!

    What would the purpose of the Tank be if it is a tempering tank?

    I mean besides tempering
    I mean could the tank be a part of the old Eletric heater system
    The Eletric tanks are also Patterson Kelly
  • EBEBRATT-Ed
    EBEBRATT-Ed Member Posts: 19,599


    Could the beads be some type of tank lining that is breaking down?? Sounds like a tempering tank.

    If the tank isn't copper (which it isn't) the that is a steel tank lined with something ?? fiberglass but more likely stone lined especially with that manhole.

    Ed
  • Weezbo
    Weezbo Member Posts: 6,231
    it is as Swamp man says And ...

    on some supply side economics when you have an inch and a half comming in and 350 people wanting water Now, it may also be using off time to maintain a larger volume of water in the buildin to draw off of. while you cannot replace volume with pressure you can replace pressure with volume depending on the way it is piped and pumped....did that make sence?
  • Tom R.
    Tom R. Member Posts: 138
    Except for the top connection

    I would say it was an expansion tank for the 3,000 gal. of hot water, what with the taps on the side that could have been for a gage glass. Since Patterson-Kelly pretty much made only heat exchangers, it is safe to assume it came with the HW heaters, and its purpose was connected to them.
  • Jeff Elston
    Jeff Elston Member Posts: 289
    Thank you for all the input!

    > If there was any kind of water treatment being

    > done that tank could be a contact tank. It would

    > give the water and chemicals "contact" time. I

    > have a contact tank set-up in use at my mothers

    > house but that is for suspended clay particles.

    > The contact tank allows the alum solution and the

    > clay to interact, clump together and fall to the

    > bottom of the tank. Then it is flushed out. Is it

    > possible that the tank was used for some kind of

    > treatment process?

    >

    > Darin



  • Jeff Elston
    Jeff Elston Member Posts: 289
    Thank you for all the input!

    I don't think it is an EXP tank, there is no back flow and there is no EXP tank evidence.

    I forgot to mention there is a relief valve on it in the top.

    The whole bead thing has me stumped. There are no beads anywhere else in the system, and it seems like the water has to flow up through or past the beads, being at the bottom of the tank.

    Could this be something designed to protect the electric heating elements?

    As far as being the lining that sounds good, If the beads where applied with adhesive and now it is breaking down and the beads are coming off. I would like to look in the man hole but the risk of creating a leak doesnt justify it .

    The date on the brass is 1966 there in no model #



  • JK_3
    JK_3 Member Posts: 240
    Releif valve on top

    again this indicats possibly a preheat tank

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This discussion has been closed.