ddenny
Joined on October 13, 2004
Last Post on November 3, 2010
Recent Posts
little problem with water heater
@ November 3, 2010 9:45 AM in little problem with water heater
helloI went on a call for a dripping tp valve on a kenmore water heater. got the usual tp valve from the plumbing supply removed the old one but couldn't get the new one to screw in. tried another one with the same result then tried a couple of 3/4 inch nipples. same result. so I thought maybe the threads were damaged or cross threaded when the original tp valve was installed. the threads on the old valve and the female part in the water heater look fine. I looked a little closer and it seems that the threads on the original tp valve are ever so slightly tapered. In other words the diameter of the threads at the beginning is slightly smaller than the threads are as you screw it into the water heater. so I was suspicious that maybe sears made "custom" threads in the water heater so you would be forced buy a tp valve from them at 21/2 times the price of the one in the plumbing supply. so the customer had sears mail him one. but that didn't fit either. has anyone has this sort of thing happen to him (her)?
dennis
dirty condensers
@ July 1, 2010 11:36 AM in dirty condensers
hellocan anyone recommend a product for cleaning A/C split system air cooled condenser coils. I've tried a few products but not any good results. on a warm day the head pressures are very high (over 400 psi) the condenser doesn't look obviously dirty except maybe for being discolored. when I find this problem at someones home it can be alleviated by a little spinning type lawn sprinkler but of course that's not a real fix. does anyone know of any good cleaning agent?
commercial reach in refrigerator
@ June 17, 2010 5:41 PM in commercial reach in refrigerator
helloIs it feasible to move the condensing unit of a free standing reach in box from the top of the unit where the manufacturer put it from the unit itself and into a basement. I guess all I have to do is drill a core hole in the floor and extend the refrigerant lines and the wires through the hole into the basement correct? It's an R 22 system and maybe I can add a drier and sight glass. any reason why this can't work?
thanks
dennis
superheat
@ May 7, 2010 9:59 AM in superheat
helloseveral times on ac systems with cap tubes or piston metering devices I need to add freon to raise the evap pressure to 60#. but in so doing I get too low a superheat reading. normally I expect the suction line to be slightly cool to the touch. but when the suction line gets very cold I think its because of the freon I added in order to raise the suction pressure to a point high enough to keep the evaporator from freezing. the system will work this way but I don't like that cold suction line. any suggestions of insights?
thankyou
dennis
conversion burners
@ May 3, 2010 10:10 AM in conversion burners
helloI've seen oil to gas conversion burners on boilers but never on a forced warm air system. a customer is switching from oil to gas and is considering a conversion burner as an option. he has a rheem oil fired furnace that's only 6 years old. but I heard there are issues with putting a conversion burner in a furnace that are not a problem with installing one in a boiler. I'm going to do a heat load on the house but can see right away the current oil furnace is way oversized has anyone installed these in furnaces or is it not advisable?
thankyou
dennis
replacing old clunker boiler
@ January 28, 2010 9:11 PM in replacing old oil clunker boiler
the boiler replacement I have in mind is forced hot water, no tankless coil, indirect water heater. a small 3 section boiler. dennisreplacing old oil clunker boiler
@ January 27, 2010 1:31 PM in replacing old oil clunker boiler
what do you guys have for a favorite boiler replacement for an old clunker. If someone wants to replace an old oil fired boiler in a non emergency situation,; what would you choose. and how much less oil would you expect to use. my guess would be a little less than 10% or at best maybe 15%.Ocasionally I'll do a boiler replacement and I've always gone with a buderus with a riello burner. what are your favorites. thankyou
dennis
pilot light keeps going out
@ October 15, 2009 1:38 PM in pilot light keeps going out
helloI take care of some 35 year old gas fedders furnaces in an apartment complex. pilot light keeps going out in one apartment. I changed the thermocuple and pilot assembly. It works afine through a couple cycles but I'll get called back in a day or two. I've changed the heat exchanges on other units several times because of pilot lights blowing out but when the heat exchanger has a hole in it you can watch it blow the pilot light as soon as the thermostat is satisfied. this isn't the case with this apartment, the pilot flame doesn't seem to be affected by blowing air. so for that reason I think the heat exchanger is probably ok. could something be wrong with the gas valve not opening in response to a good thermocouple? If the thermocouple is good and it's sending a strong enough signal to the gas valve but it drops out after a day, should I suspect the gas valve is borderline defective? how can I check that other than by changing the valve and see what happens? thank you
lime deposits
@ October 13, 2009 8:59 PM in lime deposits
someone has an old boiler and wants to sell his house. doesn't want to buy a new boiler . but there are lime deposits and rust around the copper fittings going in and out of the tankless coil. any sugestions on how to dress it up and maybe scrape the buildup off or would I be risking a leak. any kind of rust inhibitor I can brush on? It's a ford. I never replaced a tankless coil but this one doesn't look as difficult as others to remove but you never know. thank you.pex question please
@ September 25, 2009 7:00 AM in pex question please
Is "A" pex really better than B or C pex? how sothank you
new floor radiant heating material?
@ September 22, 2009 12:26 PM in new floor radiant heating material?
..hellohas anyone heard about pex al pex? not sure of spelling. I want to put some tubes in the floor and was thinking about regular pex tubing but the parts store wants to sell me this other stuff I never heard of. he said it's aluminum with some kind of covering over it and is suppsed to be easier to install. I want to put the tubing on a slab. then pour some gypsum based concrete on top which of course raise the floor up a few inches. has anyone used this product. does it have a vapor barrier. will it hold up in a concrete floor? thank you
condensing units that feel like radiators
@ July 15, 2009 10:30 PM in condensing units that feel like radiators
once and a while I'll get a no a/c call where I'll find nothing wrong mechanically but the condenser just isn't giving up it's heat. the coils don't look dirty. the heat being blown by the condenser fan doesn't seem hot but the condensing unit itself is too warm like a radiator. the liquid line is too warm. obviously not subcooling. on the last unit I had to overcharge the unit in order to get the suction pressure up to around 60#. In the past I tried chemical cleaners on the condensing coil to no avail. the unit would work a lot better for 15 or 20 minutes after rinsing it off but the pressure and amperage would soon get too high again. I even tried taking the refrigerant out and replacing it in case there were noncondesables. on the most recent one the guy had a pressure washer but that didn't work either. what's the best way to clean a condenser? do I have to get a steam cleaner? thank youchanging metering device
@ June 16, 2009 8:12 PM in airconditioning metering device
hello again. ok I'll try what you suggested. one thing I didn't make clear is that condensing unit with what I thought had the better pressures (60# and 160#) is using the bottom half of the same evaporator. It's a 2 stage system. you know how that works. It's really two separate systems with the evaporators and condensers stacked on top of each other. I also forgot to mention it's an r-22 system but I know you figured out that by yourself. I gave the evaporator a visual check and it looked ok. I also figured that if the bottom half of the condenser was clean enough to get decent pressures, the top should be about the same. filters are fresh. I was still wondering, if I do determine the problem is a partial plug in the evaporator orifices, can I replace it with a TX valve? I've heard that expression "the evaporator is boss". what does that mean. thanks dennischanging metering device
@ June 16, 2009 1:43 AM in airconditioning metering device
hello I replaced a compressor in a bryant rooftop. it also had a badly plugged liquid line filter drier. I replaced the filter drier, added the freon but the pressures weren't correct. only about 45# on low side with about 160# head pressure. it was a cool day under 70 degrees. the compressor right next to it had 60# back pressure and 160 head, I added more freon to get the head pressure up to 200# but could only get the back pressure up to 55#. I called up carrier and tech support told me I probably have a blockage at the entrance to the evaporator. there are no capilliary tubes and it doesn't have a tx valve. the liquid line connects to a manifold, then from the manifold 4 smaller lines lines enter the evaporator at different points. the tech assistance guy said there is an orifice in each of those lines and that's where my blockage is.he said I should change the manifold and the orifices. question is; can I get rid of the manifold with the orifices and replace it with a TXV? I could connect the liquid line to the entrance of the TX valve. then at the outlet of the TX valve I could make my own little manifold without the orifices and connect a 1/8 inch line from my new home made manifold into each of the entrances to the evaporator where the orifices were. I think doing it that way would save money and work better. think it will work? thank you denniscompressor replacement
@ May 13, 2009 1:48 PM in compressor replacement
yes the fittings trane usually has are rotolock but this unit doesn't have rotolock. the suction and discharge are brazed on as most other manufacturers do it. so the only problem I'll have is mounting and some piping. so I'll go with the copeland instead of the original one trane used. It's about $350 cheaper. professor silberstein said a any 5 hp scroll would be fine. I think he meant 5 ton. thank you@ May 12, 2009 3:05 PM in Baseboard Help
hello if you have air space above the ceiling with R-19 insullation above the ceiling R-13 insullation in the walls and a 5x3 window on each wall, my software tells me the heat loss will be 5,678 btuh which can be handled by 11 feet of base board. that should give you 70 degrees temperature on a 15 degree day. seems hard to believe because the heat loss comes out to less than 20 btuh per square foot. some guys I know guestimate 60 btuh per square foot. so instead of 3 feet of baseboard under each window, 60 btuh per square foot would require 9 feet of baseboard under each window. if only 12 feet scares you I think 20 would be plenty. for the extra acessories you need a circulator with a flo check valve, a switching relay for the extra zone and piping from and back to the boiler. also a thermostat and wiring. little more than a do it yourselfer jobcompressor replacement
@ May 12, 2009 2:08 PM in compressor replacement
I have a trane rooftop a/c unit with a grounded 3 phase scroll compressor. the suction and discharge lines are brazed on; those unique conections you see on a lot of tranes are not used on this one. trane told me it was a 4.8 ton compresor. can I replace it with a 5 ton copeland scroll? is a 4.8 the same as or close enough to a 5 ton copeland. I forgot the manufacturer's name (of the grounded compressor). thank youdecomissioning underground 275 oil tank
@ March 1, 2009 1:18 PM in decomissioning underground 275 oil tank
what's the best way / ways of doing this. I pumped the oil out of an underground 275 tank. I was thinking of digging down to the top of the tank, cutting a big hole in it, pumping out what little oil is left, then filling it with sand. is that ok?boiler circuit keeps tripping
@ March 1, 2009 11:09 AM in Boiler circuit keeps tripping HELP!
If you amperage is close to or exceeding the rating of the breaker when the boiler starts up, you have a short somewhere. if you don't own a tool that measures amperage, switch out that breaker with another one of the same amperage rating in the panel. my guess is it will be 15 amps. If the boiler stays on and the breaker you moved somewhere else still trips, you have a defective breaker (one that trips when notheing is wrong with the load). breakers rarely fail but it is a possibility. a clamp on amp meter is an excellent tool for helping diagnose this type of problem. I think lowe's and home depot carry them.new world order
@ February 26, 2009 9:23 AM in Stimulus Package
I sincerely believe it is to some people's best interest to cause the economy to implode and deliberatly cause america to become a 3rd world country. and I think they're well on their way to doing just that. who ,why and how and what to do about it? I understand the gist of what's going but am not smart enough to explain it to you. for answers to those questions I would suggest taking a good look at www.infowars.com.too much government
@ February 24, 2009 9:49 AM in Stimulus Package
for you politically minded small and very closly watched limited government guys; have you heard of alex jones of infowars.com? I think he's on the cutting edge of explaining, exposing and resisting the new world order. he's on 4 hours a day and rebroadcasts 24 hours 7 days a week.the watcher
@ December 1, 2008 12:46 PM in Toyotomi 180 bleeding air from oil line
if you have an underground tank, you may have an air leak in the supply line. or line may be partially plugged. there's a tool that used to be called "the watcher". it's a gauge that measures the suction pressure in the oil line. you connect it between the pump and the oil supply line. when you turn the burner on you can see the oil flow through a clear plastic tube. bubbles indicates an air leak and a suction pressure over a few psi indicates a partial restriction. a restriction can be blown out with a CO2 gun. if you have an air leak you may need to dig down to the top of the tank (usually less than 2 feet) and replace the part of the copper line that goes into the tank. I would replace both lines right up to the burner. I had an air leak last year in an oil line where it went through a concrete slab. I don't thnk copper and concrete get along too well. if it is an air leak and you can't replace the lines, try reversing the supply and return lines. maybe only one line has an air leak. another option is a tiger loop. a heating supply will explain how that works.
