Heater bypass problems or woes of an amateur

[coilerman]

I'm trying to plumb a heater by-pass and I've run into a problem. My initial idea was to insert a 3 way valve between the input and output pipes of the heater but they are way too close together. So I came up with the solution of sending the bypass up in a loop.

Now I realize my 3 way valve doesn't support either of these ideas. As you can see in the attached photo, the valve inlet is in the wrong place. I need the water to come in from the right port and I need to be able to shut off the upper and left ports. I'm looking at Jandy's website and I don't see a valve that does this.

Or, do I have the plumbing wrong? I can't see how I can use this valve without plumbing in a lot of elbows.

See photo below. Everything is dry fit and I realize I don't have the bypass loop lined up. I had to make adjustments after realizing the SWG cell is much bigger than I thought.

 

[mknauss]

I believe you just need to connect the two pipes you show. When you shut off the flow into the heater, the flow goes through that loop to the outlet side of the heater. The check valve you have keeps the water from impacting the heater. Is that why you installed that check valve? I see a SWCG, and a check valve is not needed between a heater and SWCG.

 

[Jimrahbe]

C-Man,

The valves you have will work just fine.. Look at the valve in the front of the pic.. If you turn the paddle part of the handle up, it will turn the by pass off.. If you turn the paddle toward the heater, it will turn the by pas off.. You would turn both valves of course.. You can take the top off and rotate it to where you want..

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[coilerman]

First, thanks for the quick responses. This forum is awesome.

I am confused. I have the two positions of the valve in the photos below. In the first photo, I have the flow shut off to the heater which is what I want. But, in the second photo, the inlet is shut off and the water is going nowhere.

Jimrahbe, I thought about opening it up and rotating but I don't see how I can have the two shut off ports be at 90 degrees. Wouldn't they always be at 180?

I must be missing something really obvious.

 

[coilerman]

Here's the third position. Do I open it up and just flip the top around so that the "INLET" label is at the bottom? That would then close off the top port in the current position of the handle.

 

[Jimrahbe]

C-man,

You only need to rotate it 90 degrees.. In your last pic the heater is shut off and water from the pump/filter will go trhough your by pass... If you rotate the paddle up (90 degrees) the water will be able to go through the heater.. I am assuming you have two of these valves.. One on the input side of the heater and one on the output of the heater..

Jim R.

 

[Jimrahbe]

Yes, just position the word "Inlet" so that you can turn the valve handle where you need it..

Jim R.

 

[JamesW]

The handle has a little nub that hits the stops. Just cut that off so that you can rotate the valve in any direction.

Using the last photo as a guide, the two positions that you would need are rotated 90 degrees clockwise and 180 degrees clockwise.

 

[coilerman]

C-man,

You only need to rotate it 90 degrees.. In your last pic the heater is shut off and water from the pump/filter will go trhough your by pass... If you rotate the paddle up (90 degrees) the water will be able to go through the heater.. I am assuming you have two of these valves.. One on the input side of the heater and one on the output of the heater..

Jim R.

I think I can figure this out. Cutting off the stops is also a good idea.

Regarding the output side, I installed only a T and a check valve prevents the water from flowing back into the heater. I hope that's right.

 

[JamesW]

Note, don't cut off the stops on the valve.

Remove the handle by unscrewing the thumbscrew and cut down the protrusion that hits the stops.

What you have looks good.

Be careful not to leave the heater on with no flow because it doesn't have a flow switch, it has a pressure switch, which will be activated when the pump is on even when the valve going to the heater is closed.

 

[Jimrahbe]

C-Man,

Never mind... I confused your input and output sides...

You also have the increased pressure needed to overcome check valve..

You could just replace the check valve with a 2-way Jandy valve..


Jim R.

 

[coilerman]

Thanks everyone. I started gluing. Wish me luck.

Pro tip: don't forget your gloves when you apply PVC primer. The stuff stains everything it touches purple. I look like I just voted in Iraq.

 

[jimmythegreek]

use clear primer and glue on the equip pad unless your painting your pipes. to be honest the heater bypass isnt worth the trouble. to utilize it fully you have to open the drain plug and drain the water out of the manifold. nobody does that, and the water just sits in the heater stagnant.

 

[proavia]

Do not cut the stops off the valve and do not cut the protrusion off of the underside of the handle. Look at the valve cover and find the word "INLET". Remove the handle. Remove the 8 screws holding the cover on the valve, carefully pop the cover loose. Rotate the cover so the word "INLET" is facing to the right in your picture (pipe coming from filter). Reset the cover, install the 8 screws and replace the handle.

If you've done it correctly, the valve will only rotate from OFF at the 6 o'clock position to OFF at the 12 o'clock position in a clockwise direction - and counter clockwise from 12 to 6.

Filing off the stops or the protrusion allows the valve to rotate 360 degrees - and will allow the you to fully close off the input from the pump/filter (deadheading the pump). This is never a good solution. Someone mis-setting that valve could cause issues.

If in bypass mode, cycle the bypass valve at least once weekly to flush stagnant water through the heater.

 

[JamesW]

I can agree somewhat, but if someone doesn't know what they're doing, they should not be moving the valves.

 

[proavia]

I hear what you're saying Jim - but if they don't know what they are doing, they should find someone who does to do it for them.

Removing stops on the Jandy valve can lead to problems dead heading the pump. And once the stops are removed they can't be replaced without replacing the cover or the handle. Do it correctly the first time and there is no chance to set the valve to dead head the pump.

Determining where "INLET" needs to be is easy.... On the pressure side of the pump, "INLET" points toward the pump. On the suction side of the pump, "INLET" points toward the pump. Learning how to open the cover will also help a DIYer down the road if the valve starts to leak past the o-ring seals - for when they need to rebuild the valve.

 

[JamesW]

I typically avoid disassembling new equipment unless it's necessary.

In any case, it's the OP's choice to do it the way they feel most comfortable.

 

[coilerman]

8 screws and a few o-rings, I think I can handle it. I vaguely recall doing this once for one of my other valves but that was probably 10 years ago.

Anyways the job is done. I definitely should have used clear primer and glue. Lots of purple and blue drips on the pipe. It went about as well as I could expect. I only had to pull and reglue one fitting. I had to cut and repair one pipe with a coupling.

Thanks everyone. Fingers crossed for the pressure test.