Stainless steel hot water storage tanks

[marula]

Someone told me that stainless steel storage tanks are not suitable for domestic hot water supply systems.
Is there any truth in this statement?

 

[thermcool]

I think the stainless steel hot water storage tanks are invariably used as in domestic as well as industrial purpose. They are corrosion resistant that is the main positive aspect of using these tanks.

 

[MintJulep]

Who is "someone", what are his or her credentials and what is it about stainless tanks that he or she believes unsuitable for domestic hot water?

Why would you be willing to believe anonymous sources from the web preferentially to "someone"?

Stainless steel is used for cooking pots, tea kettles, flatware, sinks and dishwashers. It is used in breweries, distillaries, and almost all food processing.

There are a variety of domestic water heaters (mostly instantanious) made from stainless, and many marine potable water systems use stainless.

So, what do you think?

 

[marula]

We offered one of our customers a stainless steel storage
tank. The customer was told by another supplier that stainless steel tanks were not suitable for the purpose.

I agree with your responses.
I was just checking to make sure.

 

[panduru]

@marula: what was "the purpose"?

Should users determine the suitability or otherwise, on the advise of suppliers alone? In fact, is it not the previlege of the end-user to give the specs to the supplier(s)?

(I say this, while aware of the fact that many of the suppliers themselves often have highly qualified and experienced engineers, and provide valuable inputs to users.)

 

[Latexman]

We have many 304 SS tanks in hot water service in our chemical plants. The oldest are around 45 years old and show no problems.

Good luck,
Latexman

 

[weeeds]

The one thing that people in industry are concerned about is using stainless steel with hot water, under pressure, and the presence of chlorides. Under the right conditions this combination can lead to stress corrosion cracking and ultimate failure. This is a common problem and concern. You have to understand your application in order to be certain about the applicability of material. Stainless steel is NOT always the best material for hot water.

 

[metengr]

I would agree with wilda that you need to know your water chemistry. However, there are various grades of stainless steel (like Type 316L versus 304 or 304L) and even ferritic and duplex stainless steels that would work just fine for potable water systems. I would not make blanket statements regarding stainless steel.