Rinnai goes wild for Countryfile with Prestek

Rinnai, manufacturer of the energy efficient range of Infinity continuous flow water heaters, recently stepped in to ensure a recent BBC Countryfile event in the grounds of historic Blenheim Palace had a plentiful supply of hot water for its catering outlets.

Managing director for Prestek Services in Derbyshire, John Webster, no stranger to providing water for Blenheim Palace outdoor events, was called in to supply the means to provide hot water to the various catering operations dotted around the grounds.

Originally a kitchen and bathroom fitter, John has built a business providing water for events since first supplying a festival in 2001 and feels he has found his niche. “By its nature the events market is a small community so most of my work comes though word of mouth from relationships that have sometimes been 20 years building.” He believes the backbone to that trust is in providing reliable systems that work.

“I have used Rinnai hot water heating units for some time,” he says, “and believe they are the only ones suitable for this kind of work. They are a tried and tested solution. I first came across Rinnai units at an equestrian event around 10 years ago where they were being used for the mobile shower units. The customers loved them. Having seen the units in action I decided to purchase Rinnai for my own business.”

He explains that he has a fleet of hot water units that he can roll out whenever needed. “I have six Rinnai units running on LPG gas which are configured on to a T-stand, linked to the cold water supply and then linked to a sink in the wash-up area. It is an ideal arrangement for a temporary potwash area.”

At Blenheim Palace he was able to site individual wash up areas around the show area by linking them to a temporary system of pipework several kilometres long. “We simply had to build the network, link pipework and gas cylinders to the boilers, add a sink, and the caterers all had instant hot water.”

“All went well with no complaints from the caterers who had as much hot water as they desired. Which, let’s face it, is exactly what was required.”

The Rinnai units will never run out of temperature safe hot water all the time they are connected to a water supply. The burner lights automatically when the hot water tap is opened, and extinguishes when the tap is closed. Ignition is electronic so there is no pilot light. When the hot water tap is off, no gas is used.

As far as John is concerned for his kind of work he needs a product that is reliable, quick to set up and gets going with no worries. “Which is why we use Rinnai. You could say, they do what it says on the tin.”