Thermostatically controlled bypass valve and water circulating system for same

Abstract

A thermostatically controlled bypass valve for bypassing water away from a hot water valve until the water temperature reaches a desired level at a fixture in use for home or industrial applications. The bypass valve has a valve body with a thermally sensitive actuator disposed between the hot water inlet and discharge ports and the cold water inlet and discharge ports that is thermally responsive to the temperature of the water. A bias spring pushes against the piston on the thermal actuator to close the actuator and open a passage between the cold and hot water sides when water needs to be bypassed. When the water from the hot water heater reaches the desired temperature level at the bypass valve, the bypass valve closes and hot water is made available to the hot water side of the fixture. Until then, the thermal actuator remains open and cold or tepid water is allowed to bypass the hot water side of the fixture. Flexible hoses attach the inlet and discharge ports on the hot and cold water sides to the hot and cold water supply systems and the hot and cold water valves on the fixture. A check valve can be placed on the cold water side to prevent the flow of cold water through the bypass valve when only the hot water side is flowing. The bypass valve can used as part of a water circulating system having a pump placed in the hot water piping system that can also include a pump check valve for bypassing high flows around the pump and a flow rate switch for turning off the pump. The bypass valve can be incorporate integrally into the fixture.