What do you know about century-old Ruud water haaters?

[volvoguy87]

Tandem use.

By using the Ruud to pre-heat the water, my modern tank-style heater would be filled with hot water instead of cold. The modern heater would only fire if its thermostat detected a drop in its water temperature below its setting. The reason why I want to use a tandem setup, aside from redundancy, is that I have a higher demand for hot water than either water heater is likely able to satisfy alone.

My insurance agent said that it's fine so long as its reliable and water temperature at the taps is within spec for residential use. Residential water heaters can be set as high as 160 degrees, but my thermostatic mixing valve will temper whatever the output temperature is down to 120. I don't want to get scalded either. The thermostatic mixing valve type of system is frequently used in large commercial systems (hotels, apartment buildings, etc.) where a smaller tank of very hot water with a mixing valve takes up less valuable space in a mechanical room than a larger tank of cooler water without a mixing valve.

Safety is important regardless of age,
Dave

 

[whirlcool]

Yes be careful. These are the kind of heaters that when they explode they take off through the roof of even a multistory dwelling like a Saturn 5 and can land several blocks away.

Also, I think the Millers on the Lassie tv show had one of these in their kitchen.

 

[turboace]

I understand the concept of the tempering valve but wonder about the efficiency. My new Ranaii instant water heater clearly states that it is much more efficient to use only hot water heated to the temp you need, vs. heating hotter and tempering. There is a remote in my master bath that you can change the temp of the Ranaii with for a bath for example, you turn on the hot tap only and then regulate the temp with the remote. This way you are only heating the water to the temp you need and not overheating and then cooling it back off. Just curious your thoughts on this.

 

[wayupnorth]

Those Rinnai and other newer instant water heaters, just like my oil boilers tankless coil will only support one faucet open properly at a time. They are very efficient but running a dishwasher and showering at the same time is not recommended. There were some of those similar to that Rudd around here I saw as a kid, but nowhere near as nice. Most did have another storage tank to put the hot water in so you didnt run out like Dave is planning to do. As I remember, there was no thermostat to control the burner, either off or on and lit by hand, and no pressure relief valve on the ones around here.

 

[turboace]

I actually have two Ranaii water heaters hooked up in series and they communicate with each other. When the demand is more than one can handle the other kicks in. I have four bathrooms and have never had an issue with not having enough hot water even with the dishwasher and washing machine going at the same time.

 

[retro-man]

I have 2 50 gallon water heaters hooked up in series. one flows into the other along with a circulator pump for instant hot water through out the house. The only problem I have experienced with this set up is when a lot of hot water is used and both tanks are running I seem to get a higher than usual water pressure from both the cold and hot water faucets for a few moments. I had an engineer from the water company come and look at the situation. He informed me that I needed an air expansion tank to overcome this problem. It basically is the size of a 40 gallon water heater but has the expansion tank and bladder inside. This is supposed to prevent higher water pressure. I haven't had one installed as of yet but plan on having one put in. I have my pressure release valves plumbed together with a T and they go into one tube and that is over a floor drain. They used to dump water usually in the mornings after showers, but that seems have to have stopped now. Just something to inform you about if you run into this situation with your 2 tanks connected together.
Jon

 

[revvinkevin]

That is a very neat looking water heater, but.........

 

 

The only way I would use a water heater that old is for display!   I wouldn't trust it.  

 

If your hot water demand is that high, have you considered one of those on demand tankless water heaters?   It will give you all the continous hot water your heart desires!

 

 

Kevin

 

[volvoguy87]

Safety and price.

I ended up getting my Ruud for a Maytag A482 that I didn't want to have. It was a decent trade, although the Maytag was far easier to move.

Yes, I plan on adding a T&P valve. They are inexpensive and safety is a must. The Ruud, being tankless, does not have a reserve of water inside like a pot boiler. There is no tank to build up pressure and explode. If there was a rupture, it would be in a pipe and it would shoot water all over the place and make a terrible mess, but it would not explode or move.

Retro-Man, a compression tank is a good idea, and is required by code in some areas. It consists of a tank with a rubber air bladder inside (actually, it's often a diaphragm between the wet end of the tank and the air-filled dry end). When the tank is dry, the bladder is filled with air to a set pressure through a schrader valve. When water is allowed into the wet end of the tank, it fills up and presses against the rubber air bladder. Should the water pressure increase due to the water's expansion as a result of heating, water hammer, etc., the air will compress and allow more water into the tank. When a faucet opens or the water pressure is otherwise decreased, the air bladder will expand. This system provides a bit of cushion in your plumbing to reduce pressure extremes. They are easy to install.

Dave

 

[akronman]

Hi Dave

Best wishes for your health! Happy to see you posting again.

I remember you talking about finding a Ruud when you still lived in the old house with Wes, so congratulations on the new house, new Ruud, and all your projects. I have no knowledge to add here, just best wishes and happy to watch the thread---it gives me great ideas I may or may not ever put to use.

Old Mark Norge

 

[akronman]

Hey Dave

check this out

http://https//archive.org/details/InstantaneousHotWaterAtASetTemperatureAsFurnishedByTheRuud_301

 

[launderess]

Wasn't Dave But Me That Checked Out The Link

And it was grand! How much fun to read about those old Rudd heaters!

Even back in 1907 Rudd was advocating what is being pushed today for many larger NYC buildings that use steam heat. Instead of having to rely upon the side arm off the main boiler thus having to run it all year long; install a separate system for use in warmer times of the year and shut the main boilers down for the duration.

Would love to have seen the system as shown in that book installed, just have been impressive.

 

[dhman]

I have a vintage Ruud Water heater- any advice on selling?

Hi Everyone,

I have a vintage Ruud water heater that I got while helping my brother clean out an old house for an estate here in Pittsburgh. The unit is in great shape and was still in service until the homeowner was convinced by a plumber to install a new high efficiency unit a number of years ago. I have tried to research online what this might be worth, but have seen estimates that vary widely. I know it is a very cool looking item and it would be a shame to just scrap it. If I had somewhere decent to display it I would keep it myself, but I just don't have the room. Any ideas on what something like this is worth and/or where I might try to sell it? Any advice from any of you more knowledgeable than me would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for any tips you might have.

Dave

P.S. I will upload photos later today after I get home. In the meantime I have included a link to one that looks similar (although the one I have is in nicer shape)

http://s3.amazonaws.com/f01.justanswer.com/JACUSTOMERcp9ik61j/2013-02-04_192803_img_7492_resized.jpg

 

[launderess]

According to posts on plumbers forums

Those old Rudd water heaters aren't worth much unless someone wants it for parts or to actually use. Plumbers see them quite a lot in some areas it seems and when taken out of service are usually sold as scrap unless there is a demand to part out.

Given today's prices am willing to bet the copper will fetch probably more than someone wishing to purchase the whole unit.

Ruud water heater from flapper era is still cooking

If you're lucky, your old house comes with instructions. Not written ones.

www.post-gazette.com

Loading…

www.contractortalk.com

 

[dhman]

Thanks for your post

Thanks for your post Launderess. Yeah, I kind of figured that might be the case, but I really hate to scrap it (although the wife is after me from time to time about this). It is really so cool looking and has such great craftsmanship it just wouldn't seem right. Fully restored it could even be a show piece. Check out the link below to see one unique idea I've seen out there -

https://www.etsy.com/listing/117919...FJRlWoiOay_Fo3I0mNSPsz9wYZ997Ln94eHDzWK_D_BwE

If I can't find it a good home soon though, might not have a choice. With 5 kids space is at a premium around here.

P.S. I have uploaded some photos as promised.

 

[dhman]

Thanks for your post

Thanks for your post Launderess. Yeah, I kind of figured that might be the case, but I really hate to scrap it (although the wife is after me from time to time about this). It is really so cool looking and has such great craftsmanship it just wouldn't seem right. Fully restored it could even be a show piece. Check out the link below to see one unique idea I've seen out there -

https://www.etsy.com/listing/117919...FJRlWoiOay_Fo3I0mNSPsz9wYZ997Ln94eHDzWK_D_BwE

If I can't find it a good home soon though, might not have a choice. With 5 kids space is at a premium around here.

P.S. I have uploaded some photos as promised.

 

[dhman]

Thanks for your post

Thanks for your post Launderess. Yeah, I kind of figured that might be the case, but I really hate to scrap it (although the wife is after me from time to time about this). It is really so cool looking and has such great craftsmanship it just wouldn't seem right. Fully restored it could even be a show piece. Check out the link below to see one unique idea I've seen out there -

https://www.etsy.com/listing/117919...FJRlWoiOay_Fo3I0mNSPsz9wYZ997Ln94eHDzWK_D_BwE

If I can't find it a good home soon though, might not have a choice. With 5 kids space is at a premium around here.

P.S. I have uploaded some photos as promised.

 

[dhman]

Sorry for the duplicate posts

Sorry for the duplicate posts, but each time I tried posting after previewing my message, I got an error message (which I forwarded to your webmaster as requested). When I discovered my message had in fact posted several times though, I was unable to delete the duplicates.