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8
or external to the building. In cold climates, it is recommended
that the discharge pipe be terminated at an adequate drain
inside the building.
• Shall not have any valve between the relief valve and tank.
When installing the temperature-pressure relief valve, use
two or three turns of teflon tape or other suitable thread
sealer around the threaded end of the valve.
Figure 2
The temperature-pressure relief valve should be manually
opened once a year. Caution should be taken to ensure that
(1) no one is in front of or around the outlet of the
temperature-pressure relief valve discharge line, and (2)
the water manually discharged will not cause any bodily
injury or property damage because the water may be
extremely hot.
If after manually operating the valve, it fails to completely
reset and continues to release water, immediately close
the cold water inlet to the water heater, follow the draining
instructions, and replace the temperature-pressure relief
valve with a new one.
If the temperature-pressure relief valve on the appliance
weeps this may be due to thermal expansion. The water
supply serving this solar water heater may have a check
valve installed. Contact the water supplier or local plumbing
contractor on how to control this situation. Do not plug the
temperature-pressure relief valve.
CLOSED SYSTEM/THERMAL EXPANSION
As water is heated, it expands (thermal expansion). In a
closed system, the volume of water will grow. As the volume
of water grows, there will be a corresponding increase
in water pressure due to thermal expansion. Thermal
expansion can cause premature tank failure (leakage). This
type of failure is not covered under the limited warranty.
Thermal expansion can also cause intermittent temperature-
pressure relief valve operation: water discharged from the
valve due to excessive pressure build up. The temperature-
pressure relief valve is not intended for the constant relief
of thermal expansion. This condition is not covered under
the limited warranty.
A properly-sized thermal expansion tank should be installed
on all closed systems to control the harmful effects of
thermal expansion. Contact a plumbing service agency or
your retail supplier regarding the installation of a thermal
expansion tank..
LOCATING THE SOLAR WATER HEATER
If you have a choice of where to install the solar water heater,
these ideas may help you decide.
Put the solar water heater indoors as close as possible 1.
to where you use the most hot water. This water heater
is not intended for outdoor installation.
It is handy to have a floor drain, tub or sink nearby. 2.
That will make it easy to drain water from the water
heater. It is also a good place to end the drain line of
the temperature-pressure relief (T & P) valve.
The solar water heater or the pipes and the connections 3.
may, in time, leak. Put the solar water heater in a place
where a water leak will not damage anything.
You must not put the water heater in an area where 4.
it might freeze You must turn off the electricity to the
water heater before you drain it, to protect the heating
elements.
Make sure that you are able to reach the drain valve 5.
and all access panels when the water heater is in place.
This will make it easy to service the water heater.
The water heater must be level before you begin the 6.
piping.
WATER HEATERS EVENTUALLY LEAK. The installation
of the water heater must be accomplished in such a manner
that if the tank or any connections should leak, the flow
of water will not cause damage to the area adjoining the
water heater or to lower floors of the structure. When such
locations can’t be avoided, a suitable metal drain pan should
be installed under the water heater. Such a pan should be
no greater than 1 1/2 inches deep, have a minimum length
and width of at least two inches greater than the heater
dimensions and must be piped to an adequate drain.
This solar water heater, as all water heaters, will eventually
leak. Do not install without adequate drainage provisions
where water flow will cause damage. Note: normal
condensation from a solar water heater may appear to be
a leaking tank.
WATER PIPING
This solar water heater is design certified to be used with a
potable water system. When connecting water piping with
solder joints use only lead free solder.
The indirect coil in this unit is a single wall and may
only be used in a closed loop - fi ll only with a mixture of
propylene glycol containing corrosion inhibitors (such as
Dowfrost™ HD) (50% by volume maximum) and distilled
or de-mineralized water. Never fi ll with a toxic liquid. Use
of any heat transfer fl uid other than that specifi ed or failure
to operate the heat exchanger in a closed loop will void the
warranty, and may result in poor performance, equipment
damage, or risk to health and safety.