Geysers

[david2677]

Regulation 6.16.2.2 SANS 10142-1:2013

Dedicated circuits shall be provided for water heaters and there may be more than one water heater on each circuit.

- Does this apply to geysers, taking in to consideration wire size and circuit breaker rated current i.e having 2 geysers of 100l capacity on 1 circuit

[irneb]

I'd think that this regulation is not trying to refer to capacity. It's part of the "green initiative" (or rather to allow Eskom / City Power to turn off geysers instead of all power). So the main intent is to have the geyser(s) on a separate circuit from the rest of the appliances so it can be switched off separately.

The allowance to add more than one "heater" to the circuit does not mean you suddenly don't need to worry about the rating of the wire and breaker, you'd still need to size them to suit the maximum load, and if not possible you'd still need to place them on separate circuits.

In any case this does not mean you can share multiple geysers on the same wire from one single isolator, it means you see the geysers power circuit as a totally separate power supply than the rest of the circuits. As if you have 2 entire houses, one where your plugs & lights are wired, the other where your geyser(s) are wired.

[bergie]

i dont think it has anything to do with eskom's green initiative as that rule has been there for years. when they still wanted us to use electricity. it just means if you have for example 2 geysers of 2 kw each. wired on 1 x 30 amp circuit ,4mm wire throughout. loop from the supply side of the isolator at the geyser to the next isolator of the 2nd geyser. or 3 x 1kw geysers.

it can be done with ovens,distribution boards ,machines etc.

[ELECT 1]

Whats the difference between a hot water heater and a geyser (Hot water Cylinder)?
I see no difference, both are fixed appliances, and connected and wired up accordingly

[AndyD]

It's tomaytoes/tomartoes as far as I know, SA terminology is geyser, the rest of the world would call it a HWC.

[irneb]

The trouble with the wording is that it might also refer to kettles, some types of air-conditioners / heaters, instant boilers, steamers, any other device which heats up water (especially those which have the sole purpose of producing warm/hot water). So according to "law" you're not allowed to plug your kettle into the same circuit your food processor uses - it needs a "dedicated" circuit (think similar to the "clean-power" circuits used in some offices for PC's).

Obviously this is over the top and not adhered to in practice - probably it wasn't even the intention of the original law. Though because of the wording it becomes a blurred area. I wonder if it has some form of clarification to specifically state what it means by "water heater" or what "water heaters" are excluded from this provision.

[Justloadit]

I would assume that any permanent type installation would require the isolator.
Any item which has a chord and a plug on the end would not be deemed to be a permanent installation, as in the case of kettles or any item which boils water, however I have seen this also abused.

[desA]

Hot-water heater? Could this perhaps be referring to a hot-water heat-pump device, connected to the geyser?

The law would then make provision for both the element & hot-water heat-pump?