Chap.

Domestic hot water system

By Dr. Ali Hammoud
BAU 2008

Contents

Hot Water Consumption and Demands

Pipe Sizing and Water Heat Storage
Pumping Systems and Performance
Boiler types & selection
Examples

Supply Hot Water Pipe Sizing :

In a manner similar to cold water
pipe , the hot water Pipe is sized .
First of all calculate the total fixture
units (0.75 of total FU) then find the
corresponding flow in gpm and then
refer to pipe flow chart and select the
corresponding pipe size. You could hot
water pipe sizing.
The higher the temperature of the water, the lower
would be the limit of flow velocity

Pipe Sizing
Avoid oversizing & undersizing
Oversizing
High cost extra but unnecessary
Delay in getting at outlets
Increase heat loss from distributing piping

Undersizing
Slow or even no water during peak demand
Variation in temperature & pressure at outlet (obvious in mixer for
shower)
High noise level
4

Pipe insulation :

Boilers, storage tanks,

calorifiers, chimneys, and
hot water pipes lose their
heat when exposed to
outside air. Hence they
should be insulated
Insulation material should
be non-corrosive, nontoxic, moisture resistant,
rot- and vermin-proof,
fire-resistant, light, easy
to apply, anti-weathering,
durable and, in addition
possess good insulation
properties and low thermal
conductivity.

Insulation material could be

fiberglass or rubber type
insulation like armaflex which
comes in the form of tube and
the pipe is pulled inside it .

Pipe insulation:
reasons:
Heat conservation.
Reduce noise.
Control surface condensation.
Freeze prevention.
The insulating material is the same used in duct insulation
(Fiber glass)

Insulation thickness
Thicknesses or insulation to be supplied and installed for the various
systems shall conform to the following table:
(Fiber glass thickness)
a. Conditioned air supply and return (ductwork)
1 1/2"
b. Refrigerant suction and liquid lines:
1/2"
c. Condensate drain pipes
1/2"
d. Acoustic duct liner.
1
e: Heating water pipes up to 1" diameter:
1"
f. Heating water pipes above 1 :
1 1/2"
g. Domestic hot water pipes:
1"
k. Boiler, water heater
2
L. Boiler breeching & steel chimney
2.1/2

Domestic hot water system

Electrical water heater

Water to water storage Heater

Boiler +Water Storage

Instantaneous or semi-instantaneous
types of heaters

Electrical Water heater Power

3/4 of the total fixture units are used for hot water
Hot water

Thermostat

Drain

1.25 "

4 bar
Pressure Releif valve

Inlet water flow ?

Electrical power :

Temp.

1.5, 2.4, 4-5, & 9 Kw

Electrical water heater

Size of EWH :

1"
Cold water

1"

15, 20 , 30, 40, 50 ,

66, 80 &1 20 gallons

3/4 of the total fixture units are used forc old water

Power =

S .hc Kg T .
4.2 150 (65 10)
=
= 4.2 Kw
Heating time Efficiency
3 3600 0.75

Where Shc is the specific heat capacity of water ( 4.2 Kj/kg. K), Heating time or recovery period T = 3
hrs, The mass of water 150 Liters = 150 Kg., Temperature rise from 10 to 65 C.
Insulation efficiency is 75-80 %.

In general, electric water heaters are fully automatic and have

a storage tank, one or more electric elements, and operating
and safety controls. The heating elements are available in a
variety of standard voltages and wattages to meet the
specific requirements of the installations.
Electrical water heater are fitted with electrical resistance
( heater) 1.5 Kw, 2.4 Kw , 4- 5 Kw, 9 Kw . They could be
horizontal or vertical type . EWH are insulated and
protected by steel jacketing.
EWHs should have pressure /temperature relief valve
which will relieve excessive pressure . For high pressure
EWH the use of none -return is not recommended. In this
case ,the pressure relief valve is connected to nearest
floor drain.
EWHs are controlled by thermostat which will activate the
electrical heater automatically.
Available EWHs size are 15, 20 , 30, 40, 50 , 66, 80 &1 20 gallons

Resistance heating element

Usually the electrical water heaters have a primary
resistance heating element near the bottom , and possible
a secondary element located within the upper quarter or
third of the tank.
Minimum wattage ratings of two element heaters are based
as follows:
For the upper unit (8 watt / liter) of the tank capacity.
For the lower unit (5 watt/liter) of the tank capacity.
For fast heating of ( 30-40-50 gal ), we take (26
watt/litter) for each unit .
For one single element heater ,we take (26 watt/litter)

Resistance heating element location

12

Hot water demand

(definitions)
Demand of water supply :
is the rate of flow in pgm furnished by a water
supply system to various types of plumbing fixtures
and water outlets under normal conditions.

Maximum Demand:
is the peak value of the demand. The values Hot of
water demand

are shown

previously in table (W-2 ).

Demand factor :
is the ratio of the maximum demand of the hot water
heating system to the total connected load or the
total of the individual requirements of all the fixtures
of the system.

Water to water storage heater

A hot-water storage tank must meet code requirements that depend
on its size and pressure and the authority having jurisdiction. Its
capacity should be selected so that 60 to 80 percent of the volume of
water in the tank may be drawn off before the temperature drop
(caused by the incoming cold water) becomes unacceptable. A value
of 70 percent usually is used in design calculations.
Heated water from boiler enter the coil of the water storage vessel
where it will heat the water , and then returns to boiler at lower
temperature . Whereas the domestic Hot water leaves the top of the
water tank to the supply distribution piping upon demand for the
various fixtures and apparatus. When recalculation of the hot water
is provided, the warm water is returned to the bottom of the hot
water vessel or tank by a circulate pump.
Normally heating water from boiler enters the water tank at 180 F (
82 C ) and return to boiler at 160 F ( 70 C), T = 12-15 C.

Hot water requirement for storage

The hot water storage for Buildings & Hotels will be calculated based on unit hourly
demand rates as follows :
galon per hour
Fixture type
Building
Hotels
Lavatory
2 gph
2 gph
bathtub
20 gph
20 gph
Shower
30 gph
75 gph
Sink
10 gph
30 gph
Laundry
20 gph
28 gph
Dishwashers
15 gph
50 gph
Demand factor
0.3
0.25
Storage factor
1.25
0.8
Domestic hot water temperature will be 60 C.

Ref [2]

Table Hw-1

Table Hw-2

Ref [2]

Procedure for estimating the heating capacity

(recovery capacity) of a hot-water heating system

having a storage tank.

Step(1) Tabulate the number of fixtures of each type in the building.

Step(2) Then multiply the number of fixtures of each type by the probable
demand for each type of fixture.
Step(3) Obtain the maximum demand by taking the sum of products of
step (2)
Step(4) Then obtain the hourly heating capacity by multiplying the
maximum demand in step3 by the demand factor obtained from table 2.
Step(5) multiply the hourly heating capacity of step 4 by the storage
capacity factor given in table HW-1 for the appropriate type of building to
obtain the required capacity of the storage tank.
N.B. Not to be used for instantaneous or semi-instantaneous types of
heaters

Example
Suppose you have to calculate , the hot water storage
capacity , the boiler power of an apartment house
(building) having the following data:
60 Lavatories , 40 kitchen sinks ,and 10 laundry 60
showers, and 40 dishwasher .
Step1& 2. The probable water demand are as follows:
From table HW-1;
Lavatories =

60 x 2 gph = 120 gph

Kitchen sink = 40 x 10 gph = 400 gph .

Laundry

= 10 x 20 gph = 200 gph .

Shower

= 60 x 30 gph = 1800 gph.

Dishwasher

40 x 15 gph = 600 gph .

Step 3 :
The Maximum demand of the hot water demand is:
=((602gph)+ (6030gph)+ (4010gph) + (40 x 15 gph)
+(10x 20 gph ))= 3120 gph.
Step 4
Building demand factor = 0.3 (from table HW-1 ).
Hourly heating capacity = (31200.3) = (936 gph)= 15.6
gpm.= 0.985 liter /sec or 3546 L/hr.
Step 5
The required capacity of the storage tank is:
Usable capacity = 936 x 1.25 = 1170 gal i.e. (4429 liters)
[1.25 is the storage factor from table Hw-1]

Safety storage:
Since only 70% of the tank is usable, so the actual

tank capacity = (1170 / 0.7 gallon) = (1670 gallon) that is

(6327 liters).

Boiler power Calculation

From the basic equation

Q = m C T

In U.S.units
Boiler Power Q (BTU/h) = GPM (60min/hou r) T1 (8.3 lb/gal)
Q (boiler in BTU/h) = 500 gpm T1
Where

gpm = is the calculated water demand in gpm (flow rate ) ;

T = is the temperatur e difference between initial & Fianal [ 101 DF]

From the previous example, we have 936 gph = 15.6 gpm

of water to be heated , temperature rise T=101 F.
QT= 500 x 15.6 x 101 = 787800 BTU/hr =230 Kw.
In SI units:
Power KW =

0.985 Kg / sec . 4.2 Kj / Kg .C (55) C = 227.5 Kw

Acceptable Temperature of domestic Hot water

Ref [2]

F = 1.8 C + 32 , C = 0.55 (F - 32)

Boiler power
1 Kw = 860 Kcal/hr. = 3413 BTU/ hr.
1boiler hp = 9.81 KW.

The required gross boiler power for heating water + overcome the heat
loss from pipe and boiler + the heat needed to rise the initial water
temperature ( Pick up ) is given by:
QBoiler = QT [1+ a + b]
QT = Calculated boiler power
,a = additional heat coefficient to overcome the heat loss in the pipe
systems and boiler. [0.1]
b = additional heat coefficient to overcome the pick up period [0.1 to 0.2]
. The required gross output is then;
QBoiler = [1.2 or 1.3 ] QT
As mentioned before : for QT= 230 Kw ,

The required boiler power = 1.2 x QT = 1.2 x230 =276 Kw

T=82 C

T=10 C
T=72 C

Hot Water Pumps

Pumps used in hot water primary and secondary distribution
systems are used mainly for maintaining or increasing the rate
circulation. Pumps are constructed to withstand the high
temperature of water. They have a cast-iron body and a gunmetal impeller. Impellers made of other materials, such as
bronze , stainless steel and cast iron are also used. Each pump
has a valve on the suction and delivery side and a check valve
on the delivery side. A bypass on the lines enables the removal
of pumps for maintenance and repairs. In well-designed
systems, frictional loss in pipe-lines during recirculation is
quite low and the pump horse power is also small .Hot water
recirculation pumps should never be used as booster pumps to
increase the pressure in the hot water system, as this creates
imbalance in the pressures of hot and cold water supply.

Hot water & Boiler Circulated pumps

There are two
centrifugal circulated
pumps used in Hot water
system:
Pump1: is used to
circulate the hot water
system (Located in the
returned pipe ).
Pump2 : Is used to
circulate the hot water
from boiler to storage
tank (closed system).
Circulating pump is controlled by an immersion thermostat (in the return line) set
to start and stop the pump over a 11 C). However for continuous hot water supply
the thermostat is eliminated.

Hot water circulating pump

( inside the apartment)
If water heater is located far away from
plumbing fixtures (more than 30 m) hot water
circulator might be provided in order to have
hot water in the piping system all the time and
not to wait for a long time to have hot water.
To size the hot water circulator 1st calculate
the total hot water fixture units (as mentioned
for cold water ). Normally hot water fixture
unit is 0.75 of total fixture unit.

Suppose we have a large flat having the following

plumbing fixtures estimate the circulated pump
discharge in gpm. :

4
4
2
4
2

showers
lavatories
bath tubes
bidet
sinks

x 2 x 0.75 = 6
x 1 x 0.75 = 3
x 2 x 0.75 = 3
x 2 x 0.75 = 6
x 2 x 0.75 = 3
_________
Total = 21 FU
For every 20 FU provide 1 gpm of
circulation 21 FU/ 20 FU = 1.05 gpm .

Pump head is calculated by multiplying pipe effective length by the

pressure drop per 100 ft as discussed earlier including pipe fittings.

For hot water systems in which piping from the

heater to the fixture or appliance is short [(30
m), or less], circulating systems are not generally
used. But it is common practice to provide
circulating pump in all hot water supply systems in
which it is desirable to have hot water available
continuously at the fixtures.
Sizing of hot water circulating pump is simplified
by .

1 gpm for every 20 fixtures units in the system.

Or:
0.5 gpm (0.03161/s) for each 0.75- or 1 riser;
1 gpm (0.06311/s) for each 1.25 - or 1.5 riser;
2 gpm for each 2 riser.

Calculation of circulating pump -1 capacity

Circulating
pump 1

H.W. S
R.H.W.

H.W.Storage tank

H.W. S
R.H.W.
Circulating pump
C.W.S

Suppose we have a building containing the

following plumbing fixtures estimate the circulate
pump-1 flow rate in gpm. :
Lavatories =

60 x 1 x 0.75 = 45 Fus.

Kitchen sink = 40 x 2 x 0.75 = 60 Fus .

Laundry

= 10 x 2 x 0.75 = 15 Fus .

Shower

= 60 x 2 x 0.75 = 90 Fus.

Dishwasher

= 40 x 1 x 0.75 = 30 Fus .

Total = 240 FU
For every 20 FU provide 1 gpm of circulation 240 FU/ 20
FU = 12 gpm
This is the discharge of the circulated pump , which
circulate the water from (boiler tank) to building.

Calculation of the circulating pump-2 capacity

Pump 1

P T

P.R.V.

H.W.Storage tank

H.W. S
R.H.W.

BOILER

Boiler
Circulating pump

FUEL Supply

Expansion Vessel
Pump 2

Circulating pump
C.W.S

Estimating circulating pump 2 capacity

In U.S.units
The GPM of the system Circulating pump ;
Q (BTU/h) = GPM (60min/hour) T1 (8.3 lb/gal)
Q (gpm) = Q (boiler in BTU/h) / (8.3 T1 60min/hour )
= Q (boiler in BTU/h) /500 T1

In SI units:
Power KW = Kg/sec. 4.2Kj/Kg.C (11) C
Power Kw
227
Kg/sec =
=
= 4.9 L/s
4.2 11
4.2 11
This is the discharge of the circulated pump 2, which
circulate the water from boiler-storage tank- Boiler.

Head of the Circulated pump

As it is known that , the role of the circulated pump
is to overcome loss due to pipe friction & fittings.

h A = hL

The elevation difference is not included .

The head loss due is determined from Darcy equation
as mentioned in chap. 9

Suppose we have to estimate the head required of a

circulated pump , assuming the following : The pipe length is
600 ft. and an allowance for fittings on straight pipe of 25 %50 % is to be use.
1- Determine, the total effective length E.L that is:
The actual pipe length + Equivalent length (due to fittings and
valves etc.)
L eff . = L + L e
2- The total head loss or pressure drop hL is determined as :
The head loss per unit of length h1(5-7ftw./100ft )
multiplied by the effective length .

Le ff = L + 25% L = 600 + 150 = 750 ft

hL = Leff . 5 ft / 100 ft = 750 0.05 = 37.5 ft that is [ 11 m ]
Usually the Pump is oversized by 10 % of head & 5% flow .

Instantaneous or semi-instantaneous
types of heaters
Instantaneous Type:
The instantaneous indirect water heater is used to meet a demand for a
steady, continuous supply of hot water. In this type of unit, the water is
heated instantaneously as it flows through the tubes of the heating coil.
The heating medium (steam or hot boiler water) flows through the steel
pipe shell yielding a small ratio of hot water volume to heating medium
volume. Instantaneous water heaters are designed to provide sufficient
capacity to heat the required quantity of water (usually expressed in gpm
(l/s)) at the time the hot water draw occurs. Storage tanks are not usually
part of an instantaneous water heater, although a separate storage tank
may be used to provide hot water. Since instantaneous heaters are of the

high demand type, a circulating pump should be installed in both the

boiler water and domestic water piping circuits.

Semi-Instantaneous Type:
They are similar to instantaneous water heater except
that, Semi-instantaneous water heaters have limited
storage. Storage capacities are determined by the
manufacturer to average momentary surges of hot water.

Procedure for estimating the heating capacity for

instantaneous and semi- instantaneous water
heaters.
Step(1) Tabulate the number of plumbing fixtures of each type that use
hot water.
Step(2) Multiply the number of fixtures of each type by the number of
fixture units per fixture ( obtained from table HW-3 ) to obtain the total
number of fixture units.
Step(3) Using the total number of fixtures units obtained from step 2 ,
determine the maximum demand in gpm using the appropriate curve given in
chart HW-4 .
Step(4) To the demand of step 3 , add the demand for hot-water fixtures
( or equipment) that operate continuously ( practically 1 gpm) .
Step(5) Select a heater that will provide the required rise in temperature
T = 101 F for the total demand of step 3 & 4.

Example on the calculation of water demand using

semi-instantaneous type of heaters .
Determine the required capacity in gpm of a semiinstantaneous water heater for a high school in which
there are 6 wash fountains , 10 showers, 2 service sinks,
1 pantry sink , and 4 private lavatory basins.
Step-1& 2: Tabulate the number of plumbing fixture & Multiply

these numbers by the number of fixture units per fixture ( obtained

from table HW-3 ) to obtain the total number of fixture units.
6 circular wash fountain =

6 x 2.5 = 15 Fus.

Service sink

= 2 x 2.5 = 5 Fus .

Pantry sink

= 1 x 2.5 = 2.5 Fus .

Showers
= 30 x 1.5 = 45 Fus.
Private lavatory basins = 4 x 0.75 = 3Fus ,
Total Fixture units = 70.5 FUs

Step-3 & 4 : Using the total number of fixtures units

obtained from step 2 , determine the maximum demand in gpm
using the appropriate curve given in chart HW-4 .
Refer to figure HW-4 ( the enlarged section) for schools, and
read the corresponding value for 70.5 FUs , which is 15 gpm.
This is the hot water demand for fixtures that operate
intermittently . Now assume at least one fixture operates
continuously , and it needs a demand of 1 gpm.
The total water flow rate becomes 16 gpm ,this is the capacity
of the semi-instantaneous Boiler.
Select the desired temperature of the water leave & the
temperature of cold water enters the boiler in order to
calculate the boiler power.
Q (boiler in BTU/h) = 500 gpm T
Q (boiler ) = 500 16 101 F = 808 000 BTU/h = 236.6 Kw

HW-3

Ref [2]

HW-4

Another way to
determine gpm

HW-4
(b)

15 gpm

Ref [2]

Drawing of Water
Distribution
Systems

Boiler Selection And

Specifications

BOILER SPECIFICATIONS

Qualities of a good boiler are:

1-It should be capable of quick start-up.
2-Should meet large load fluctuations.
3-Occupy less floor space.
4- Should afford easy maintenance and inspection.
5-Should essentially possess the capacity of producing
maximum steam with minimum fuel consumption. i.e. high
thermal efficiency
6- Simple in construction.
7-Tubes should be sufficiently strong to resist wear and
corrosion.
8- Mud and other deposits should not collect on heated
plates.
9-The velocity of water and that of flue gas should be a
minimum.

Selection of a boiler
The selection criteria of a boiler depends very much on the
purpose of the boiler i.e. the load requirement. Boiler may be
either used to produce steam to a steam turbine, or for
heating process. If steam is required for power Generation
then superheated steam with the pressure of inlet to the
turbine is essential.
On the other hand, if the boiler is required for a heating
process like an industrial load other applications like hospitals,
hotels, kitchens steam or hot water boilers must be
considered.
For power generation we need essentially a water tube boiler.
On the other hand, for Heating process all types are
possible. Hot water are usually produced around 100C And
pressure from 2 ~ 8 atm, and high-temp hot water HTHW
from 121C~260C and pressure over 10.8 atm

High efficiency Cast Iron Boilers

Diesel Fuel

Cast Iron Boilers

Gas
boilers
25 to 200 horsepower
Water

Boiler for light commercial heating

Cast iron boilers (gas)

Cast iron boilers are limited to low-pressure steam or hot
water applications, and typically range in size from 25 to 200
horsepower. An example of gas cast iron boilers is the AtmoGas LN is available with an output range from 29 to 51kW. The
Atmo-Gas LN is a cast iron boiler supplied for use with
natural gas or propane.
The boiler is suitable for both central heating and indirect hot
water supply for working pressures up to 4.0 Bar. An integral
draught diverter is provided for reduced boiler height aiding
plant room access.

Diesel fuel boilers

Fire tube boilers

Scotch Marine Fire tube boilers are
available for low pressure hot water
applications, in which the product of
combustion( gases) pass through the tubes
which are surrounded by water.
Fire tube boiler has a flame inside the
furnace and the combustion gases inside
the tubes. The furnace and tubes are
within a large vessel which contains water.

 This type of boiler possesses some

characteristics that differ from other
types, because of its large quantity of
water (high stored energy) , making it
reliable to respond for load changes, if it
required an instantaneous load demand
where a large quantity of water is needed
for a short period of time , so it is
preferable to choose this type of boiler to
meet instantaneous water requirements.

Fire tube boiler

15 to 1500 horsepower

Burner

 Burner is used in order to burn fuel in

more efficient way to give a complete
combustion ,prevent the formation of
toxic contaminations (NOx, SOx, HC
.). The burner uses air in order to
atomize the fuel into small droplets
to become more easily to vaporize and
combust.

1 Kw = 960 Kcal/hr. = 3413 BTU/ hr.

1boiler hp = 9.81 KW.

References
1- Mechanical & electrical equipment for buildings by Stein/Reynolds,
Ninth edition, John Wiley, 2000.
2-Practical Plumbing Engineering, Cyril M.Harris, ASPE,1998.
3- Building Services & equipment (I/II/III), F.Hall, Third edition,
1994.
4- Upland engineering, Mechanical consulting office, Dr. Ali Hammoud.
5- Applied hydraulics Part I & II .Lecture notes." by
A. Hammoud BAU- 1995
6- Pumps with practical applications, .Lecture notes. by A. Hammoud
BAU- 1999.
7- Lowara catalogue
8- Plumbers & pipefilters , Calculations Manual by R. Dodge Woodson.
9- Plumbing Design & practice by S G Deolalikar
10-

fluidedesign Jacques Chaurette

12- Internet web sides

Expansion of Pipe material

L = L T
L =Amount of change in pipe length, mm
= Coefficient of linear expansion, mm/m. C ( for (API ) PPr =0.15 mm/m C)
T= Temperature difference , C
L = is the original length of pipe m
For example : A 6 m copper pipe is subjected to temperature difference of 50 C
Calculate the pipe expansion L :
L = 0.15 x 6 x 50 =45 mm

Calculate the length of the Arm Ls ,assuming that D= 25 mm

& L =45 mm.

Ls = 30 25 45 = 10 cm

Calculation of the Arm Length Ls

Determination of the Width between the arms B

B= 200 +2 x L =200+ 2x45 = 290 mm.

Domestic Hot Water-Return Pipe Sizing

[large systems].
Usually for small installation, a 0.5 or 0.75 in
hot water return will be satisfactory. However
for large installation, the heat loss from the
return line becomes a major consideration. The
following method is used to size the return
pipe.
A. Determine the approximate total length of
all hot water supply + return piping.
B. Multiply this total length by 30 Btu/Ft (28.8
W/m), for insulated pipe and 60 Btu/Ft (57.6
W/m) for un-insulated pipe to obtain the
approximate heat loss.

C. Divide the total heat loss by 10,000 to obtain the

total pump capacity in GPM or by 40000 to obtain the
pump capacity in L/s.
[ 1Kg water /liter x 3600 sec/hr x 11 C=40 000]
[ 1lb water /gal x 60 min/hr x 20 F=10 000]
where 11C is the allowable temperature drop.
D. Select a circulating pump to provide the total required
GPM and obtain from pump curves the head created at
this flow.
E. Multiply the head required by 100 (30.5) and divide
by the total length of the longest run of the hot water
return piping to determine the allowable friction loss per
100 feet of pipe.
F. Determine the required GPM (L/s ) in each circulating
loop and size the hot water return pipe based on this
GPM and the allowable friction loss as determined above
step E.

End of part one

73