Heat Recovery - Residential Info

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Save up to 40% of the heat going down the drain...

How does the ThermoDrain work?

The Residential Drain Water Heat Recovery (DWHR) system

The ThermoDrain heat recovery unit is composed of a copper drain section around which a copper pipe is molded and wound. The unit is installed vertically in your 3” wastewater pipe - as hot water drains down from the wastewater pipes ( on it’s way to the sewer or septic tank) through the central copper pipe, an important heat transfer occurs preheating the cold water circulating in the outer coil. This incoming cold water may be preheated by up to 32 degrees before entering the water heater substantially reducing the amount of heat required from natural gas or electric. It also significantly preheats the water for your solar hot water system so that it can provide you with closer to 100% of your hot water needs.

The Physics

The ThermoDrain heat exchanger works under the principle of gravity film exchange. Due to the superficial tension present in liquids, the waste water clings in a film-like fashion to the inside wall of the drain pipe as it undergoes gravity flow in the open drain. This greatly improves the effectiveness of heat transfer from the falling drain water to the water inside the copper coils that winds around the central pipe. The heat exchange is thus completed with no contamination risk to the incoming cold water.

When you save energy, you save money and lessen your impact on the environment. For every ThermoDrain unit installed, you are making the earth greener by reducing your green house gas emissions by 1 ton per year per household.

Using a ThermoDrain, the incoming water to the water heater has been preheated thereby reducing thermal stress on your tank and increasing its life expectancy.

You will also triple your hot water tank capacity by reducing the recovery time of the tank since the incoming water is preheated by up to 32F. This means that a 40 Gallon tank when combined with a ThermoDrain will give you the equivalent usage of  a 120 gallons. No more cold showers!

Advantages and Savings

The installation of a ThermoDrain is the most logical solution for a homeowner looking at reducing home energy consumption.

Drain water heat recovery technology will recover up to 50% of the heat before being drained to the sewer thereby reducing the cost of water heating for your shower by half.

For example, if the incoming cold water to your home is 50 °F, the ThermoDrain will preheat it to 75+ °F at no cost. The ThermoDrain heat exchanger is equivalent to a 10kW heater element preheating your cold water for free. For a typical residential application, the payback period on a ThermoDrain investment varies from 3 to 5 years including installation costs. 

Conventionally, most ( 90%) of the heat from domestic hot water showers is wasted down the drain. Drain Water Heat Recovery technology will capture large amounts of wasted heat energy by using it to preheat the incoming cold water thereby substantially lowering water heating costs by up to 40%. Given a typical residential application, the return on investment can be as little as 3 years.

The Thermo drain can be purchased for less than $600 and can receive up to $125 in State of Oregon Tax credits.

The ThermoDrain -

• Allows you to reduce the size of your water heater;
• Comes with a 10 year warranty;
• Triple the shower capacity of your hot water tank;
• Increase the life of your hot water heater;
• Life expectancy of over 50 years;
• Easy to install;
• Maintenance free, does not clog;
• 100% recyclable;
• Reduces Green House Gas emissions by up to 1 ton/year!
• Many financial incentives available from federal, state and local power authorities;
• Reduces Instant hot water operational costs;
• Can increase the effectiveness of your solar hot water system by providing a greater share of your hot water without the need for gas or electric contribution.
• Benefits the environment and your wallet!

 A Green Technology