Plumbing

Well I've finally found the time to make a start on the plumbing. The boiler is on the wall with the 'Gas saver' unit mounted above it and some of the pipework is done. I still have quite a bit of pipework to do and the small storage tank that completes the 'Alpha Flowsmart 25' package needs to be fitted http://www.alpha-innovation.co.uk/products/FlowSmart/FlowSmart/991603208 . Got two additional expansion vessels to fit to the 'Flowsmart' set up too, and that kitchen tower unit is getting really cramped! It will all fit but maybe not as neatly as I had hoped! Great piece of kit, the 'Alpha flowsmart'. It's a combination boiler, gas saver & small thermal store all combined. The gas saver basically preheats the mains water using waste heat from the flue gases and 'stores' the salvaged heat in the thermal store before it sends the pre-heated mains to the boiler. It can save you approx 50% on your hot water gas consumption annually. But more important than the gas saving is the hot water delivery - 18 litres a minute maintained for 40 minutes, meaning you can run two showers simultaneously on a combination boiler!
The Bathroom is now pretty much first fixed too, got the pipes & lever isolation valves in to the Thermostatic diverter, and two sets disappearing under the floor - one set of hot & cold valves will be connected to the pipes for the shower in the en-suite which will enable that shower to be shut down individually should it develop a fault in the future. Ok, you will have to take the bath panel off to get to them but that's better than having them on show or having a removable access panel in the wall of the hall! The other set will isolate the feeds to the basins & loos although these will all have additional service valves fitted just below each termination point.
Gotta sort out some work related stuff tomorrow and then go to work on Friday so can't do anymore until the weekend. Think my Lady is down for the weekend so I have an apprentice, (tea duty, tidying/cleaning, food prep & passing tools)!! However a female on site may slow progress.....
I passed the Unvented Hot water Storage Systems course last week and am now waiting on my BPEC registration card to come through. Good news that was as it opened the door to the Solar Thermal course which I'm booked on for the end of next week. Watch this space, Eco warrior Bill will have new strings in his bow soon... Hopefully I'll have somewhere to live at some point before 2011 too!