Using a recirculation pump to prevent freeze up of a supply line.

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NoBeard

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Hi,
Did a search but didn't find any threads with this particular issue.
I have a garage that is supplied by 1 inch hdpe pipe from the house which is buried 4 feet deep, however it goes through boxes outside the house and garage that are insulated and have heat tapes from both ends to keep them from freezing, but it's failing when it's very cold and the wind is blowing, so the cold is getting in somewhere. No time to fix this winter now, so I'm searching for a solution.

Inside the house and the garage the 1" is stepped down to 3/4 inch pex.

In addition to the 1" line there is a 1/2 inch unused pex line in the trench along side the 1" line that I put in to carry an ethernet cable.

Is it feasible to use the 1/2 line as a return line and keep a recirculation pump running to keep water flowing through the 1" line all the time without involving hot water?

I was thinking about a pump at one end and check valve along the way that would likely close as soon as a tap is opened in the garage, or a hot water recirc system modified in some way to keep the water flowing in a closed circuit.

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated, thanks.

NB
 

Jadnashua

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That will probably work. But, the piping would have to be going through some heated space to prevent things from still eventually freezing up. If the 4' level is truly below the frost line, it should work.
 
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