Water Heater Thermal Expansion Tank Required

Expansion tanks aka thermal expansion tanks are essentially safety devices to help you minimize the risk of damage to your hot water tank they are an add on to your existing hot water heater and are often installed on the water supply pipe to the water heater normally this is on the wall next to or very close by your hot water tank.

Water heater thermal expansion tank required.

You can usually get an expansion tank for under 50. What size expansion tank do i need. You need a thermal expansion solution that is adequately sized for your plumbing system. The water heater expansion tank serves as an overflow receptacle by absorbing excess water volume that occurs when water is heated as well as absorbing fluctuations in the incoming water supply pressure.

The expansion tank serves as a backup system to prevent overworking your plumbing. One 50 gallon water heater for instance can be served by a 2 gallon expansion tank. If you have a closed system then you ll likely be required to install an expansion tank. That extra water volumeraises the pressurein your water heater to dangerous levels.

That said it may still be a requirement of the owner s insurance carrier or the standard specification of the engineer. This ultimately protects it from damage. A thermal expansion tank used on a water heater that is not covered by the code should not be required to carry the asme label. Here s what we mean.

Even if you do not have a closed system asking about a water heater expansion tank is still a great idea. Local inspectors or local code requirements may still require the label. When water is heated inside your water heater it expands. This is called thermal expansion.

For example the cold water in a standard 50 gallon water heater expands to 52 gallons when heated to 120 f.