sticky pressure relief valves at seaterra

booby


Joined: 09/05/2008
Posts: 2

Message Posted:
09/05/2008 12:05

Apparently the hot water tanks at the seaterra developments have to be checked every three months or else there is a risk of explosion .



As many owners are not there too often does anybody have a potential solution to the problem



regards and thanks for any advice



booby

Geoff1131


Joined: 12/07/2007
Posts: 276

Message Posted:
09/05/2008 12:14

Hi booby, if the property is vacant, turn the water off at the stop tap and leave one hot tap and one cold tap open, this will releive any expanded water in the tank as the temperature rises. Geoff

andre 514


Joined: 31/03/2008
Posts: 1163

Message Posted:
09/05/2008 13:26

hello booby,



have had a number of terse exchanges with the site team about these valves



ours tends to drip water about one day in three, that's at st bay tho...



assured this is a safety feature as the valve stops the tank overheating



check that yours occasionaly drips then it should be doing its job



any reader knows anything about how these valves are supposed to work



please advise?



also geoff many thanks your comments



andre

jock1



Joined: 06/01/2008
Posts: 3786

Message Posted:
09/05/2008 13:36

No valve shoud ever drip !!!!

andre 514


Joined: 31/03/2008
Posts: 1163

Message Posted:
09/05/2008 13:46

hi jock,



am told "this is a pressure relief valve and it is designed to"



my suspiciion is they probably should be adjusted not to drip



but that means there could conceivably be a rupture at some point



n'est ce pas?



once stayed at a bungalow out in the karpaz mountains



and the tank dripped non-stop



suppose these are common problems



andre

jock1



Joined: 06/01/2008
Posts: 3786

Message Posted:
09/05/2008 13:52

Geof1311 is right, but it may be a differnt matter if you are staying permanant.

Geoff1131


Joined: 12/07/2007
Posts: 276

Message Posted:
09/05/2008 15:44

Hi again, a pressure relief valve, does what it says on the tin. On a combi boiler in uk they are set to release at 3bar, not sure of the setting for other systems without looking, but as jock says they should not leak, once the valve has been breached it may never seat again and would need to be replaced. The best thing to do if you are resident would be to fit an expansion vessel on the pipework which would accomodate the extra pressure until a tap was turned on, cost would be in the region of £30 to £40 I would think. Geoff

McSteviet



Joined: 11/05/2007
Posts: 1089

Message Posted:
09/05/2008 16:05

Sounds to me like a design fault at Seaterrs's end and should be fixed under whatever warranty you all have with them.



Mc

JamesB


Joined: 07/02/2007
Posts: 450

Message Posted:
09/05/2008 16:34

Geoff I thought about this too, but the temperature in a solar hot water cylinder can far excede the temperature on a combi or stored hot water system in the uk. So I don't know if the diagphram or any o rings could cope, I suppose if it was far enough downline , but even then, not sure. You could probably put a 3/4 inch pipe from the hot water cylinder up over and into the cold tank like a conventional vent over.



JB

Geoff1131


Joined: 12/07/2007
Posts: 276

Message Posted:
09/05/2008 17:36

No need to put the expasion vessel near the hot water tank, anywhere on the hot water pipeline would do.

millzer


Joined: 12/04/2007
Posts: 978

Message Posted:
09/05/2008 19:19

Surely most Solar/hot water systems in Cyprus are similar...aren't they??



What happened was, the end of the shower pipe (within the shower cubicle) blew off (whilst someone was in it!!!!), The bathroom was full of steam and the force of the hot water had blown the shower hose from it's connection. Shortly afterwards, what sounded like an explosion on the roof - the connection from the hot water tank to the pipe leading to the bathrooms had blown apart and there was hot water and steam pouring out from the tank.



The explanation has been put down to limescale affecting the operation of a pressure relief valve. Now, whilst this sounds plausible due to heat and hot water expanding.............exactly how common is this??

the butler


Joined: 22/06/2007
Posts: 1958

Message Posted:
09/05/2008 19:32

Hi you Seaterra owners,



We own a bungalow on the Medview site at Esentepe and our valve drips when the water heater has been on approx. 15 minutes. I have spoken to 3 different engineers, including Cyprus solutions. They all tell me that this is normal and a safety device and on no account should be tampered with. It is a nuisance but I am going to put a small plastic tube onto the valve and place the other end in the wash basin. Not ideal but it is better than it dripping on the floor.



The butlers wife.

norths4me


Joined: 19/04/2007
Posts: 269

Message Posted:
09/05/2008 20:23

Hi All



Obviously the system installed is a pressurised system connected to the solar panels.



You can not have an expansion pipe on a pressurised system.



It is acceptable and should be fitted as standard an expansion vessel and this should be fitted as close to the unit as possible and not as stated anywhere on the hot supply this advice is completely wrong.



On a pressurised system whether connected to a solar system or not if the PRV is dripping then the expansion in the system is not been accommodated and this needs addressed. You cannot completely depend on the PRV and nothing else.

Geoff1131


Joined: 12/07/2007
Posts: 276

Message Posted:
09/05/2008 20:50

Yes norths4me is quite right, the prv should be fitted close too the appliance, what I meant was it did not have to be fixed on top of the solar panels, but thats what being in a rush does for you.

norths4me


Joined: 19/04/2007
Posts: 269

Message Posted:
09/05/2008 20:50

Millzer



If your shower pipe blew of then the PRV had failed, this could be down to lime scale on the valve although I do not no how common lime scale is in the water supply in NC.



The norm in Cyprus as a whole is to fit pressurised units without vessels and depend solely on the PRV.



Worth every once in a while testing the PRV to make sure its working

andre 514


Joined: 31/03/2008
Posts: 1163

Message Posted:
09/05/2008 22:54

seaterra have worked hard to bring everything up to spec

they are even getting me a fridge that is narrower by a whisker

because the one originally supplied was just too tight in the alcove



yes I realise they are a business and not bleedin' albert schweitzer



but without knowing anything at all about plumbing, (obviously)

I suspect this valve thing is a design shortcut typical of north cyprus



three more local examples I've seen on the island are:

no u-bends in the kitchen to trap smells

no proper guttering sytems to collect rainwater

narrow soil drains in the loo system encourages blockages



andre

JamesB


Joined: 07/02/2007
Posts: 450

Message Posted:
09/05/2008 23:13

Norths4me, I find once a PRV has been activated you might as well replace it because it will continue to drip.



Yes I was assuming it was not a sealed system like a megaflo etc it this what is fitted as standard at seaterra, because I have only seen 1 before on the Island?



Jb

andre 514


Joined: 31/03/2008
Posts: 1163

Message Posted:
09/05/2008 23:56

dumb question but do all the experts realise we are on about

the solar panel hot water system and er... the sun can get fierce in cyprus

still don't see why the prv should have blown in the first place,

as the most likely the reason for the slight leak

the water supplied looks extremely hard,

difficult to get a lather up when staying at the flat

(as opposed to lagered up obviously)

and any residue on the roof tiles dries to a very calcified deposit,

in answer to norths4me's query



would ask them to change the prv but what would stop it popping again?



andre



andre

JamesB


Joined: 07/02/2007
Posts: 450

Message Posted:
10/05/2008 10:38

Thank you Andre for pointing out that the sun can get hot! I did mention this in post 9. If the system is pressurised then the expansion vessel should cope with the expansion from the body of water held in the system.

cruggs


Joined: 06/04/2008
Posts: 498

Message Posted:
11/05/2008 15:30

hi all hope im not treading on anybodys toes ,but the pressure reducing valve

should only be considered as a safety valve.when pressure in the system,

exceeds, that of the pre/set safety valve,the safety valve will then open and there by reduce the pressure in the system.as it is intended to do.as has already been stated they are factory, set to 3 bar and should not ever leak,but if they do this could be due to a build up of pressure,or perhaps dirt on the

seating,if the former, then the cause should be investigated further,pressure reducing, valves, are normally fitted on the rising main into the property if mains, pressure is excessive,some people think that by turning down the stop cock in the kitchen they are reducing the mains ,pressure.not true this only

reduces the volume of water coming out of the tap or going into the boiler.

the mains pressure, still remains the same,going in to the property.

as said earlier, hope i havent trod on anybody"s toes.

have a nice day.