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Rinnai Lp Gas Water Heaters Providing Hot Water at East Sussex Campers’ Demand

Chestnut Meadow Campsite in East Sussex has installed seven Rinnai lpg-fired on demand water heaters to provide hot water for campers and staff.

When Andy and Ulenah Skilton bought the site for the Chestnut Meadow Campsite in Bexhill on sea from the St John’s Ambulance service in 2009, it had been used as a training base for St John’s members and was in poor condition.

With today’s campers and caravanners demanding better facilities than ever, Andy and Ulenah knew that, in order to attract customers, the seven-acre site was in need of some serious work. They gutted the original toilet block and transformed it into a modern WC, shower and washroom facility. Two old drying rooms were also converted into a disabled bathroom and a family room with walk in shower and infant changing facility. To complete the transformation, six sinks were installed on the outside wall protected by a veranda-style canopy to provide campers with somewhere to wash dishes.

An old cast-iron open flue boiler linked to two 400-litre hot water storage tanks had provided hot water for the original toilet block, but this was both inefficient and expensive to run, and would have been incapable of supplying the hot water needs of the new facility. Andy chose Rinnai lpg gas water heaters to replace the boiler on the recommendation of his brother Gerry, who runs a similar campsite in Cornwall, where eight Rinnai water heaters have been in use for almost two years.

Five Rinnai lpg on demand water heaters now provide a dedicated hot water system, and Andy also specified Rinnai’s frost protected weatherproof water heaters for the external installation. The water heaters are fed by two 2,000-litre vessels, supplied by Calor Gas Ltd. Andy said: “Although we have five lpg water heaters providing hot water for the shower block, the fifth heater in the run is very rarely needed, even in peak times. All the campers have commented on the showers and washing facilities and the fact that they never run out of hot water. They have also been very economical on lp gas consumption and their energy efficiency fits in perfectly with the whole site’s eco-friendly theme. At the end of July, the lpg gas tanks were still 70 per cent full, so we are delighted with their efficiency.”

Local firm Abacus Flame Ltd designed the system and installed the units on the back wall of the block, linking the five lpg water heaters together and fitting individual blending valves. All pipework was suitably lagged to meet water regulations, and each lp gas water heater is encased in a protective wire cage, making them tamper and vandal proof.

Two linked Rinnai on demand lpg gas water heaters have also been installed outside the commercial kitchen that serves the campsite’s restaurant café, which has also been totally refurbished. A further Rinnai lpg-fired on demand water heater has been installed outside the staff block, providing hot water for a staff kitchen, cloakroom and shower.

Noel McNeill of Abacus Flame said: “We have four vans on the road and undertake both domestic and commercial work, both natural gas and lpg, but have not fitted Rinnai units before. However, we found them extremely easy and straightforward to install, and think they are fantastic, particularly the flow rate.

“In the past, we would have installed high rated combination boilers in this kind of application, probably one for the outside taps, one for showers and one for the basin taps for the shower block, and separate combis for the restaurant kitchen and staff block. However, we have been so impressed with the Rinnai units that we have been converted. “The controllability is very good, and the units are very user friendly. The five units on the shower block are all preset and cannot be tampered with because they are safely housed in the wire cages.

“The temperature of each unit has been set at 55°C, and then blended through a thermostatic blending valve for safety. They can be adjusted, but only by a qualified engineer. This is an additional safety feature, as these lpg units are installed in a public area, unlike the other three units that are in an area not open to the public and visiting campers. The lp gas water heaters for the staff kitchen and bathroom and the commercial kitchen have control units installed inside so that they can be adjusted by the owner if necessary.”

Contact Rinnai UK Ltd on 01928 531870 www.rinnaiuk.com

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