‘Water Quality Consideration of Domestic Hot Water Systems for Commercial Applications’, is the latest water treatment guide published by the Industrial and Commercial Energy Association (ICOM). It has been produced in response to industry concerns about the lack of clear guidance on aspects of water quality in these systems that impact their performance and longevity.
ICOM Director Ross Anderson explained: “The regulations governing the supply and quality of water are concerned with its condition in regard to health and safety issues (“wholesomeness”) rather than the engineering aspects of water quality, such as hardness and potential for scale formation.
“Engineers and installers know that they should add an inhibitor to a heating system, but they are used to thinking that water from the cold tap is OK, and tend not to think that the hot tap is any different. Deposits of scale in a domestic hot water (DHW) system will reduce efficiency, cause premature failure of the water heater and be a breeding ground for bio-hazards,” he continued.
The new guide has been written by ICOM experts from the heating, hot water and water treatment industries in a style that is easily accessible for non-experts with little or no knowledge of water chemistry. It was launched at an event sponsored by ICOM members Lochinvar and Sentinel Performance Solutions at the Urban Innovation Centre in London in September.
Publication of the DHW water treatment guide follows the release of ICOM’s Water Treatment and Conditioning of Commercial Heating Systems Guide in March 2017. ICOM has also co-authored a water treatment guide for industrial heating systems, which is available from the Combustion Engineering Association.
“I have no doubt that if those people responsible for the quality of DHW read this guide and follow its advice they will be able to ensure their hot water systems should operate reliably, safely and more efficiently,” Ross Anderson concluded.
Both the ICOM water treatment guides for DHW systems and commercial heating systems are available as free downloads from www.icom.org.uk.