On 1/4/2014 11:29 PM, Larry W wrote:
In article ,
nestork wrote:
...snipped...
However, long story short, an inanimate object will never cool down to a
temperature below the ambient temperature because of the wind. Lack of
any wind will just mean that it will take longer for that inanimate
object to cool down to ambient temperatures.


I would disagree with that somewhat. I believe that an inanimate object,
say a cinder block for instance, if soaked in water and exposed to
wind in low humidity, will reach a temperature somewhat below
ambient until all the water evaporates.


Well, you're making up different conditions.
Pipes don't have humidity, unless they're very leaky.

And that's the whole point of this ****ing contest.
Wind chill is a made up number based on empirical experiments
on humans using measurements at the airport, looked up in a table,
and posted on your TV screen.

The other way to get it is to calculate it directly from
your own measurements inside your walls and that table lookup.
But if you have those measurements, use 'em.
Don't make up another number you don't need.

You can certainly imagine cases where wind blows directly on the pipes.
If you live in a cold climate that's a no-no.

Right now it's 31F outside. My crawl space is at 54F.
And it will be close to 55F next week and in June.
And that's not by accident. The ground temp is very stable,
and I don't let the wind blow under there.

Changing the subject...
There's an experiment you can do.
Turn off the water and wait several hours for it to
stabilize.
The water at different points in the system may be
at different temperatures.

Take a small container, like the lid of a spray can
and stick a thermometer in it.
Turn on the water into the container.
You can see the temperature change as water from
different parts of the pipe reaches the spigot.
There's a tradeoff. You want it to flow fast,
so the temperature changes little along the way,
but not so fast that the thermometer can't keep up.
The further the distance, the less the accuracy.

I did the experiment a few weeks ago when we had record
low temps around 15F. Water never got below 50F.
And that happened just where it should have where the
pipe goes thru an area closest to an outside wall.

When you want an answer, make a direct measurement on the
thing you're measuring.
Conditions at the airport aren't very direct when you have
rivers and hills in between.

'Nother change of subject.
My neighbor had his water meter changed.
I got there late, so didn't see the start, but they
put a collar around the pipe, pumped something cold into
it to freeze the water so they could remove the meter.
Way cool...