Country shower looking for a water heater

How nice, if after hard, righteous dacha work you can freshen up and wash away the fatigue under a stream of warm showers! After all, in the cottage, first of all we rest, recuperating after a hard working year.

So why not make a full-fledged vacation without depriving yourself of comfort? Moreover, to solve the problem with hot water is not so difficult: you can use a huge range of water heaters – both electric and gas.

Electric water heaters: for yourself or for your family?

Because of the connection conditions in suburban and rural areas, where 2.5 kilowatts at 230 volts – is all that can be taken from the mains, only storage water heaters are suitable for villas.

In addition, storage tanks can operate in places where there is no piped water supply: in this case the water with the help of a pump built into the pipeline is pumped directly from a well or a well, or flows by gravity from the tank located above the water heater.

Accumulation water heaters can have a capacity of 5 to 500 liters. For washing dishes and washing suit small accumulators of 10-15 liters, heating water to 40 ° C for just 9-13 minutes.

They are not only compact but also lightweight because the body is made of corrosion-resistant and heat-preserving plastic. Therefore, they can easily be attached to the wall or installed under the sink, and since they are usually available with a built-in faucet, you only need to connect the hose – a simple and very inexpensive solution to the problem of dirty dishes.

For the shower you need a storage tank with a volume of at least 30 liters. If the water in it is heated to 65 ° C, the amount of water obtained by mixing with cold water to achieve a comfortable 40 degrees will increase to about 60 liters. What at normal

for the shower at a flow rate of 6-8 l min. will allow you to bliss for about 8 minutes. Not much?

Install a storage tank of 50, 80 or even 100 liters – there is always room in the cottage. Another person in the household can then also use the shower without having to wait for the next batch of water to heat up.

Though, it is necessary to switch on the water heater of average and moreover of big volume beforehand: for example, the time of heating up to 65°C of a 100-liter device with the power of 2 kW is 3 hours.

You can easily calculate how much time it takes to heat water in any storage tank to the desired temperature, based on the ratio that 1 minute for 25 degrees heats 0.57 liters of water at 1 kW capacity .

And you don’t have to warm up the water right before using it, even if it stays the whole day: high-quality insulation in the best models retains heat so well that the water temperature drops by only half a degree during the day.

Accumulators of medium 30-100 liters and large over 100 liters volume are pressurized working at the pressure of the water mains with the obligatory use of a safety group , so they can serve several points of consumption.

By installing one appliance of the appropriate volume, you provide hot water to both the kitchen and the bathroom. And to estimate how much storage capacity you need for the whole family can be based on the fact that the average rate per person per day is 30-50 liters of hot water this rate includes the consumption of warm water for cooking, a few cups of tea or coffee, showering and other daily needs .

Reliability: sure to crack the case?

Hot water is an aggressive medium and destroys the tank material. To protect against corrosion, the inner surface of the tank, made of steel of such thickness that it can easily withstand the pressure of the water supply network, is coated with a layer of enamel.

The components of coating and technology of its application – the secret of the company, because it is the durability of coating depends primarily on the service life of the entire device. As a rule, manufacturers give a warranty period for the tank, which can be from 1 to 7 years.

Of course, a long period affects the price, but it’s worth it. The tank made of stainless steel, in the coating is not necessary and serves longer, as the enamel over time can begin to crack due to the stresses arising from thermal expansion of the tank.

An additional means of protection against corrosion is a magnesium anode placed inside the body. Its function is based on the fact that metal salts contained in the water mainly calcium are more willing to interact with magnesium than with the body material, so that the processes that cause corrosion pass to the anode.

Over time, the magnesium anode dissolves completely, and you have to open the case and replace it with a new one. To perform this operation less often, a magnesium anode with increased magnesium content is used.

In recent years, some companies began to install an active anode instead of the magnesium one: powered by a 12-volt external source, it supplies electrons to the corroded areas thus it helps to “patch” the damaged areas without sacrificing itself and therefore does not need to be replaced.

But even in this case, you must from time to time to take out of the body of the bottom flange to check the condition of the coating, to clean the heating element from scale and remove sludge that collects in the bottom of the tank.

Therefore, it is extremely important how the flange is attached to the body: if it is screwed directly into the body, as it is done in cheap models, then after a month everything is so stuck that it is not always possible to unscrew it without breaking the sealing gasket.

If the flange is fastened with screws, the necessary “opening” is made easily and without damage.

And lastly: intensive formation of insoluble calcium carbonate scale begins at 60 ° C, so experts recommend not heating water above this temperature without special need, and when you need it, you can, turning the thermostat controller, quickly bring the temperature to the desired level.

By the way, on many models there is a special mark, corresponding to the mode in which the operation of the water heater is the most economical and harmless.

Gas water heaters: simpler, bigger and cheaper!

Gas is cheaper than electricity, so if your house or cottage is connected to the gas line, it is preferable to get hot water with a gas water heater.

Moreover, if there is gas, you can use not only storage, but also flow-through water heaters.

A necessary condition limiting their use in urban conditions – the presence of a chimney in the dwelling when installing gas water heaters with a closed combustion chamber – is performed without much effort at the cottage.

Boilers: gas heaters heat instantly

The greatest demand has gas water heaters – flow-through gas water heaters, which provide almost instantaneous water heating.

Many people still remember the prototype of the modern gas water heater: those whose houses had them installed in the 50s, were considered lucky. Modern water heaters are not only much more attractive in appearance, but much more convenient, and most importantly – they are absolutely safe in operation.

This is ensured by three protection systems: a valve that cuts off the gas supply in case the burner accidentally goes out, a draft sensor, ensuring that strong winds do not allow flue gases into the house, and protection against overheating.

Column, as it should be a flow heater, is characterized by the capacity, depending on the capacity of the device. For example, at a heating capacity of 19.2 kW speaker provides a flow of hot water equal to 11 l min., and at a power of 24.4 kW – 14 liters per minute. With a capacity value above 10 liters per minute. The heater can serve several hot water points.

The set temperature is maintained automatically, and in modulating burners the water flow itself controls the flame size t.e. gas consumption . The ignition of the burner is made either by a piezo device, or from an electric spark from an alkaline battery or a water mini-turbine.

The most advanced models are equipped with a display that shows not only the flow parameters, but also the results of self-diagnosis, which allows you to not waste time looking for causes of failure. For normal functioning of the heater requires a minimum water pressure of 0.1-0.2 atm., and gas – 5-8 mbar.

Gas storages: it is a thermos with heating, only bigger

Domestic gas storages under the acronym AGV have long been known to villagers. This is the same thermos with heating, but the exchanger heating the water gets heat from a gas burner, the flame size of which is set by the user. And the main enemy of gas storage units is the same as the electric – corrosion. Therefore, their inner surface is also covered with a layer of enamel, and the anode provides additional protection.

Thanks to the high power of gas burners from 6 to 27 kW , they can heat a very large amount of water: up to 200 liters or more. However, even a 150-liter storage unit is enough to provide 3-4 points, which can completely replace the centralized system for a family of four.

Restrictions on use are the same as for columns: water and gas pressure must be above the threshold.