Lochinvar Lock-Temp Tanks
December 22, 2021
A simple-looking tank contains a lot more engineering than meets the eye. Take the Lochinvar Lock-TempR series of tanks used in their Better Approachr to potable water heating. Beyond the ability to simply hold a volume of water, these tanks are designed to maximize their effectiveness in a system.
The Better Approachr separates the heat source and storage functions to provide design flexibility and maintain long-term efficiency. Getting the most USEABLE volume from the tank is a key component. As a system uses hot water from the storage tank, it is replaced with cold water reducing the overall energy remaining and potentially the stored water temperature. The trick is to keep the cold water separated from the hot water for as long as possible. This maximizes the actual amount of hot water available; i.e, maximizes drawdown. The engineers at Lochinvar have developed a hot water storage tank that allows for 80% of the volume to be drawn down without sacrificing supply water temperature.
The Lock-TempR series of tanks are available in a variety of sizes and insulation types suitable for both indoor and outdoor applications. All the tanks come standard with fused-glass lining and can be configured horizontally or vertically.
As you can see, a lot goes into these not-so-simple tanks. Overall, it would be hard to find a better tank for potable water systems than a Lochinvar Lock-TempR.
Storage tank without baffle, unable to load the tank evenly.
Storage tank with baffle, able to load the tank evenly.