Hot water tank safety valve

Hello
More questions on my new construction ;
Ok so I am installing my hot water tank in the basement centrally located..pretty much in the middle of the area. I can not figure out how to plumb the overflow pipe for the safety blo off valve so it will exit the basement above grade. The only part of the basement that is near grade is 25' from the tank. This basement has no under slab plumbing since it started out as a very tall crawl space and then I poured a floor after the fact. I don't think code will let me just direct to a drain pan because then the pan will require and exit drain. Stumped again..thanks

it can drain into a floor drain, if no floor drain is available, move the heater

Thanks but there is virtually no other place to locate the tank because our open floor plan prevents optional venting except the central location. So to ask my first question again: can the blo off pipe be routed 15,-20' feet sloping to an exterior wall? Thanks for your help.
Jim

Jimongee said:

Hello
More questions on my new construction ;
Ok so I am installing my hot water tank in the basement centrally located..pretty much in the middle of the area. I can not figure out how to plumb the overflow pipe for the safety blo off valve so it will exit the basement above grade. The only part of the basement that is near grade is 25' from the tank. This basement has no under slab plumbing since it started out as a very tall crawl space and then I poured a floor after the fact. I don't think code will let me just direct to a drain pan because then the pan will require and exit drain. Stumped again..thanks

Click to expand...

you can run the pipe horizontal,with slope, but you can NOT go UP

it is a drain, under no circumstances can it be piped UP

the pan drain must also be piped to a floor drain or outside

Just curious, but could he use a catch basin with a pump to the upper floor?

the pan drain yes, the pop off no


left me rephrase that, an approved catch basin yes ;;your talking 2 grand , installed''

i small little pump like thing like for an icemaker or such no

He can use a condensate drain can't he?

The TPRV discharge cannot go to the drain pan, but it can go to a separate receptacle..

no, it can go to a floor drain.

his problem is he did not foresee needing a drain in the basement for his mechanical equipment

all condensate lines must drain seperate to a floor drain or outside, you can not tie condensate lines and pop off lines togather

what he MIGHT, be able to do, is lift the water heater itself up. but i do not know his layout of the basement


in the good old days. we installed water heaters half in half out of the attic, in a closet

Relief valves here just dump onto the floor

Same here 4-6 inches from the floor

Ideally, there should be a floor drain/sump @ the WH install. Ideally, there should also be a floor drain/sump to catch condensate at the air handler.

I do not see in code where this drainage must be supplied. I guess common sense comes into play here. In lieu (Fr.) of a floor drain, why cannot a condensate pump be used to remove any leakage from the WH catch pan/overflow from the TPRV discharge line?

Thank you. Since I posted this I talked to my building Dept inspection folks. He is familiar with my situation. He said it could go on the floor terminating 6" above. Instead i am putting the tank on a pedestal, core drilling my concrete wall and installing a sloping line from the tank relief out the hole in into the building perimeter (French) drain. Since I'm currently in plumbing mode I hand to core drill some other areas anyway. What do you think?
Thanks,
Jim
P.S. The reason there are no floor drains is because this makeshift basement started out as a very tall crawl space and then I poured the slab later. I didn't want to go the red tape of changing my overall plan to a basement. I had to stay at or above the footings with this design after thought. Still worth it since I have plenty of nice dry storage.

do not do that,

lets say you did.
and the french drain gets clogged up or a heavy rain causes it to become water logged.

hen, your T&P valve pops off, but the pressure can not be released because the french drain is cllogged.

your water heater WILL blow your house off the foundation and into your neighbors yard with you in it

the T&P valve must not be capped, or tied into the sewer or storm drain.

just do as your building official suggests, terminate the pipe 6'' above the floor

here is a picture of a capped t&p valved water heater