CE0065

Engineering Utilities 2
 MODULE 3
Domestic Water Heating
3.1 Introduction to Water Heating
3.2 Water Heating System
3.3 Common Water Heaters
3.4 Hot water demands
Domestic water heating
- Refers to the process of warming water for personal use
and this consumes a large amount of energy

- Careful planning always ensures adequate supply of water

at the desired temperature to each fixture

- The design of hot water supply depends on the location and

age of the building
▪ There are different ways of heating domestic hot water
but the types domestic water heating can be divided
into two categories:

o Hot water stored in a cylinder

o Cold water is heated on demand
➢ Direct Boiler System
- Hot water is stored in a
galvanized tank
- Cold water is fed to the boiler
then the boiler heats up the
water and returns the water
to the tank
- Either by immersion or boiler
➢ Indirect Boiler System
- Water cylinder contains coil of
pipe that is attached to the
boiler
- The heat from the boiler
indirectly heats up the water in
the cylinder
➢ Unvented system
- Uses stainless steel pressure vessel
- Consists of safety devices built in the system due to
pressure and expansion caused by hot water
- Maintains good flow rate
➢ Unvented system
➢ Thermal storage system
- Boiler heats the water and
sends it to a cylinder then
on the central heating
- Expansion tank is
incorporated on top of the
main tank
- Must be installed in the
highest possible level in
the house
➢ Single point
- Water heater is
placed next to the
point they serve
- The heater must be
wired directly to the
fusebox
➢ Multipoint
- Most common is the
combination boiler
- The heater is placed
on the point it serve
but can supply many
fixtures
Main Types of Water Heater:
• Conventional Storage Tank - Features a tank that holds water to be
heated

PROS
✓Cost effective
✓Ready supply of hot water
✓Low maintenance
✓Long-lasting
CONS
x Large bulk units
x You pay hot water 24/7
x Water availability depends
on the tank size
Main Types of Water Heater:
• Point-of-use - Small water heaters installed near the plumbing
fixture
- Available in both conventional and tankless
- Common is single-point electric
PROS CONS
✓Relatively cheap x inefficient
✓Easy to provide hot water
to one fixture
Main Types of Water Heater:
• Solar powered - Uses solar energy to heat up water Have a large
insulated tank
- Comes with either electric or gas back-up

PROS CONS
✓Environmentally friendly x Too expensive to purchase
✓Less expensive in the long and install
run x Suited to areas with hot
✓Extremely energy efficient climate
Main Types of Water Heater:
• Heat pump/ - heat is captured form the air or
hybrid ground and pumped through the
system to heat the water

PROS
✓Environmentally friendly
✓Extremely energy efficient
CONS
x Expensive to purchase
x Requires warm climate
x Requires large amount of space
x Regular cleanup
Main Types of Water Heater:
• Condensing - uses home’s waste gase fumes
- Suited to homes that use natural gas
- Most common to areas in cooler climate

PROS CONS
✓Environmentally friendly x Available in large units
✓energy efficient x Suited to homes with year-
✓Low running cost round heating
Main Types of Water Heater:
• Combination - Water-heating system and central-heating
boiler system

PROS
✓Low running cost
✓Small space-saving units
CONS
x Expensive to purchase
x Suited to homes located in
areas that require year-round
heating