Tempering Valves....

[pulsator]

I've been thinking about getting a tempering valve installed in my laundry room to ensure that the cold water which usually hovers around 40-45 degrees F during the winter stays at 85-90 degrees F. I've heard of tempering valves that cool down hot water, but can the same valve be used to heat up cold water? I know someone on here (can't remember who) did this recently and was hoping for some input! Thanks!

 

[toggleswitch2]

Looks very possible to me.........

I had one to temper my tap water to a lower temp when my steam boiler was heating the house. The domestic hot water for the taps was generated by a tankless (copper/brass) coil within the boiler.

http://www.watts.com/pro/_productsFull.asp?catId=64&parCat=311&pid=841&ref=2

 

[pulsator]

These are for lowering hot water temperature though, will they work to raise cold water temperature?

 

[toggleswitch2]

I believe this will work.

Tap cold + tap hot to get something in between. You can have the effluent (water out, or in this case tempered water out) go into your "specialty" cold pipe instead of your hot pipe.

One just needs to be sure that minimum setting is low enough for one's needs, if this is supposed to be (thought of as) "cold".

Of course you can always put a "Y" behind the machine and use the dial on this device to get all temps from tempered "cold" to mega-hot for washes AND rinses...............

 

[jeff_adelphi]

A thermostatic tempering valve mixes hot and cold water to give a controlled output temp. I had a hard time finding one that would give me the 70F temp I wanted. I found one from a darkroom supply company that had the temp I wanted, but was expensive. I found many that had a higher output temp around 90F from plumbing supply outlets, they were a lot less expensive.

 

[hydralique]

I don't see why a thermostatic shower control valve wouldn't work. What you would want is one that provides only the thermostatic function, not water volume - in most high-end installations these are seperate valves anyway. Good flow would be a prerequisite, but some of these valves can flow lots of water since they're intended to be hooked up to a rain-head system mounted in the shower ceiling, or to multiple shower heads. Check the Kohler website and also Hans Grohe, and remember that the trims (front bezel and control lever) are sold seperately and that trim pricing varies hugely according to finish and style - you'll want a fancy high volume valve with the simplest possible trim kit. A good plumbing supply house should be able to help you sort this out.

 

[surgilator_68]

It will work. The valve I have only went to 80, but I removed the cap and turned the stem a little more and got it down to 70. Works perfectly.