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  1. #1
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    Default Expected water loss from hot water system

    Got a quick question..

    Went out today and before I left I had a look at the water meter. 12 hours later I returned and checked it again.

    Over a 12 hour period I lost around 20ml water. It's not a major water leak, but not a good thing if it is, say, going into the wall.

    Question is, what amount of water would be expected to be consumed/lost by the hot water system? Is 20ml a reasonable loss considering we were using the hot water about 20 minutes prior to leaving?

  2. #2
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    You shouldnt lose anything from a HWS unless the TPR valve is leaking.
    Call your plumber to come out and do a pressure test for you. 20ml inb 12hrs is hardly significant and you may find it could be one of your taps or a cistern leaking slowly.
    Plumbers were around long before Jesus was a carpenter

  3. #3
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    Well, when my hot water system goes into a heating cycle, it emits a significant amount of steam. I am wondering if the amount of steam would equal around 20ml.

    I just can't see where else I would be losing water. I know 20ml in 10 hours is stuff all...much less than a very slow leakign tap....but it is still 20ml that is unaccounted for.

  4. #4
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    Default leak

    20ml is a tablespoon full. These meters must be accurate. I suggest it is evaporation in the cisterns.

    Cheers
    Juan


    "If the enemy is in range, so are you."

  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by juan View Post
    These meters must be accurate.
    They seem to be. The meters in Melbourne read to 0.01 litre but I don't know exactly how accurate they are.

    I have read the meter one night and checked it again in the morning (while using no water overnight) - it hadn't budged (less than 10ml). I have filled a 10 litre bucket to check the meter, and it seems to read surprising accurately - well, as accurate as you can expect using plastic buckets for measuring!

    I've got no idea why the water supplier would measure down to 10ml when they bill by the kilolitre

  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by chrisp View Post
    .....................I've got no idea why the water supplier would measure down to 10ml when they bill by the kilolitre
    Give 'em time, when water gets expensive enough there's every chance they will bill in 10ml increments.

    Mick
    "If you need a machine today and don't buy it,

    tomorrow you will have paid for it and not have it."

    - Henry Ford 1938

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by chrisp View Post
    I've got no idea why the water supplier would measure down to 10ml when they bill by the kilolitre
    Important to check for water leaks. Also it has to measure (tick over) in small increments anyway (its a small meter) so why not show a counter for it.

    I will track down my missing 20ml I will run another test overnight and see if it is a consistant 20ml per 10 hours.

  8. #8
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    Default missing water

    I agree it is worth investigating. 17520ml per year infact. Nearly enough for a home brew.
    Juan


    "If the enemy is in range, so are you."

  9. #9
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    I agree its worth investigating, Im curious as to what type of heater you have that makes steam when heating, but bear in mind it could be a soft soldered joint in the ground thats weeping ever so slightly, or an outlet rubber on the cistern etc.
    Plumbers were around long before Jesus was a carpenter

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by wonderplumb View Post
    I agree its worth investigating, Im curious as to what type of heater you have that makes steam when heating...
    It's one of those AquaMax units that I've seen selling at Bunnings. Seems to have a good energy rating. The manual says it is normal for the unit to emit steam during a heating cycle. On a cold night you would think something is on fire.

  11. #11
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    Gooner, the steam you are seeing is from the water vapour in the air. When the burner fires, it needs air to provide the oxygen for combustion, It will exhaust the combustion byproducts from the gas, plus the non oxidising components in the air, water vapour heated to steam and condensing on exposure to cool exterior air (the cloud you see) plus the nitrogen etc in the mix that we call air, from memory about 70% nitrogen, 20% oxygen, balance other gasses.

  12. #12
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    What Malb said, products of combustion contain carbon dioxide, nitrogen and water vapour.
    Plumbers were around long before Jesus was a carpenter

  13. #13
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    Hobart
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    Quote Originally Posted by Gooner View Post

    Over a 12 hour period I lost around 20ml water. It's not a major water leak, but not a good thing if it is, say, going into the wall.

    Lets put things in perspective.

    A schooner of beer is 425 millilitres, so 20 ml is not even a decent sip.

    Also, where can one get a flowmeter that can accurately measure to that degree of accuracy. I think the scientific term is "not statistically significant".

    Cheers

    Graeme

  14. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by GraemeCook View Post
    A schooner of beer is 425 millilitres, so 20 ml is not even a decent sip.
    I hear ya.... but again, my only concern was that even a small 20ml leak over 10 hours is just under 50ml per day. Big deal... but even 50ml a day leak within a wall can cause damage over an extended period of time.

  15. #15
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    Oct 2005
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    Did you check the barometer at each reading?

    Maybe the barometric pressure fell, allowing the various pipes and seals in your water system to expand ever so slightly, and take on the extra 20ml.

    On the other hand, maybe a butterfly flapped it's wings in a remote Brazilian jungle...

    If you are concerned about water leaks in your walls, go check them out, but worrying about a 2ml/hr loss over the whole plumbing system is a little bit obsessive...

    woodbe.

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