Dickinson Stove to heat Hot Water Tank

[ncapener]

Ahhh- nothing like a long hot shower.
I removed the old 6 gallon water tank and installed a new 12 gallon tank in a new location a foot away from the stove. Plumbed with copper pipe and compression fittings.
So far it is working great. The water reaches 140 deg overnight and I can shower and wash the dishes and still have hot water left.


How do I plumb/connect the heating coil in my Dickinson Alaskan stove to heat the water in the hot water tank?

I tried flexible hose made for hot water. Distance from stove to tank is about 10 feet. I installed a 12 V pump to circulate the water and all is well until I shut the pump off. Without the circulating water the coil gets hot, melts the hose at the connection and leaks.

I replaced two feet of hose where it connects to the heating coil with hi-temp hose, but the taste and smell of the hose is not acceptable.

I tried another type of hose that also got soft and leaked.

Running the pump continuously is also not acceptable since it drains the battery and is noisy (I did soft mount the pump).

I have considered copper pipe and I am concerned about the pressure build-up (high pressure steam) and a possible explosion. To counter that I could add a couple of shut off valves in the lines and a third valve and drain.
After I shut down the circulating pump, I close both inline valves and using a third valve to drain the water in the heating coil into the bilge.
Getting a bit complicated now.

Another possibility that seems more and more attractive is to run the Honda generator for 30 minutes and heat the water tank with 110 V.

I sure would like to hear how other sailors made the heating coil work.

[Deadeye]

Instead of running the potable water through the coil, why not plumb it into the coolant loop ? Then you can use exhaust hose. (I'm assuming your h/w tank has a coil as well as the element ?)

The surplus heat will be transferred to the h/w tank, which has (or ought to have...) a T&P valve already.

My .02...

[erps]

We have our hot water tank plumbed to the Antarctic stove with copper pipe and no pump. The coil in the stove is enough to circulate the water. The water heater is an 18 gallon tank mounted just a couple feet from the stove though. Start the stove during the day and we have hot water the next morning.

[ncapener]

Originally Posted by Deadeye

Instead of running the potable water through the coil, why not plumb it into the coolant loop ? Then you can use exhaust hose. (I'm assuming your h/w tank has a coil as well as the element ?)

The surplus heat will be transferred to the h/w tank, which has (or ought to have...) a T&P valve already.

My .02...

Thanks for the reply.
The engine is using that loop already.

[patrickrea]

Use a copper coil. Add an accumulator to the h/w side of your plumbing. That in combination with the T&P valve will keep the pressures managable in the system.

[ncapener]

Thanks for the replies.
I will plumb with copper, leave the pump out and see if I get enough circulation.

Neal

[ncapener]

Plumbed with copper and now I have plenty of hot water.