Heating Help

@ June 13, 2006 11:54 AM in Go to Home Depot?

I'll give you an idea of their buying power. I know a guy that invented a pencil sharpener for square pencils, not the one that HD sells, but a different style that works much better. I asked him if he would be selling them at HD. He said it takes a year just to get them on the shelves. Home Depot dictates everything from display to production quotas. They even dictate the price, which is why he didn't follow through with them. If you do make it through the presale process and get them on the shelves, HD takes 6 months to pay. 180 day terms. Imagine if your customers took 6 months to pay (I know, some of them do)

@ June 9, 2006 8:33 AM in Missing Refrigerant

No, it's not you. Maybe they are redoing their site or something.

@ June 9, 2006 7:45 AM in NE licenses

In CT you need a contractors licence, Like an S-1, S-3, B-1 or B-3. Depends on what you're doing. I think any of these would cover the work you mentioned in a residence. Don't need a plumbing permit, just an HVAC permit. And no fire permit.

I did

@ June 9, 2006 7:41 AM in Lost And Found

But I have only received one issue. I put my email back in.

Oh

@ June 7, 2006 1:14 PM in Comm'l Steam - DF

So if you can't get the height you need from the water line to the header, a drop header might give you what you need. Right?

Nice

@ June 7, 2006 10:07 AM in Comm'l Steam - DF

Very impressive. I'm not familiar with the drop header. Is there info on HeatingHelp about the design and theory?

@ June 5, 2006 8:44 AM in swamp cooler

We installed one a few years ago for a kitchen in a private golf club. THere was one in place but it hadn't worked in years. I asked the club manager how the new unit was working. He said it's not air conditioning, but then again who wants to pay to air condition a kitchen. Way too much heat gain. He said on the really bad days it is more comfortable in the kitchen with the unit on than it would be without.

@ May 31, 2006 2:05 PM in Filter changing

When I worked for a LINC contractor (all commercial) the sales people used a presentation that put a dollar figure on potential savings. Very powerful when talking to the building owner who is always looking to cut costs.

@ May 31, 2006 2:00 PM in Prepping boilers for the summer?

Brush out and vacuum the flue passages in the unit. Soot that is left in a cold boiler will absorb moisture and become very corrosive.

@ May 30, 2006 4:15 PM in ISO CERTIFICATION (Dan H.)

Personally, I don't care. If I know what it really means. As I understand it, ISO includes safety standards, documentation procedures, quality control, etc. When I did commercial work I know there were corporations that only wanted to do work with ISO rated companies. I suppose there may be some merit to the statement that ISO rated Co's are more exacting, more demanding as far as quality. I've been told that getting ISO is a real pain and a lot of work for a company. To me that means that if they put in a ton of manpower and resources to get get the ISO, they must have to jack up prices to pay for it. I'm sure this is simplistic and I could be way off base. In other words, I don't care and I hope I'm right.

@ May 26, 2006 7:34 AM in Puffback/

In the most basic sense it's like a car back firing. When fuel is pumped into the furnace/boiler it should ignite instantly. If it doesn't there is a build up of fuel. When it does ignite it's basically an explosion, everthing ignites at once. The unit isn't designed to handle that much expanding vapor, so it pushes exhaust out of any place that it can, i.e. the cleanouts, the flue pipe or the smoke hood. Usually you'll just get a "bang" when it lights off. If it's bad enough it can push out soot which makes a mess in the mechanical room at best, or the whole house if it's really bad.

As a 25 year oilman...

@ May 25, 2006 3:54 PM in Flue pipe and foil tape on oil fired boiler

I've got to tell you I hate that tape. It may have it's place on ductwork, but not on flue pipe, IMHO. The sections should be secured with sheetmetal screws and that's it. If you see soot marks where the pipes meet it most likely means that the unit is not not igniting properly. Could be adjustments, could be an improper nozzle. It is also possible that it could be a draft issue, but I'd put my money on the flame. If I ran into this with one of our customers I'd check the nozzle type and replace it, check the electrodes, check the pump pressure, check the air, draft and nozzle assembly adjustment, using proper test instruments. And I don't care weather it was just cleaned or not.

As a 25 year oilman...

@ May 25, 2006 3:48 PM in Flue pipe and foil tape on oil fired boiler

> Yeah, I hear ya about the soot. It was cleaned
> in October. Something is obviously not right.
> The unit is just over 12 years old. I plan on
> having a new system installed this summer,
> something that will get better "fuel mileage"
> like a 3-pass MPO.
>
> Funny thing about the foil
> tape, there's been foil tape on the flue seams
> since installed, never had the glue liquify and
> smell like that. I guess I got the wrong type of
> foil.

@ May 25, 2006 12:48 PM in Charging methods

What is this book?

ps

@ May 25, 2006 12:44 PM in Suggestions for Digital Cameras

I just saw the Sony S-90 online for $205.00

Check out

@ May 25, 2006 8:39 AM in Suggestions for Digital Cameras

The Sony Cyber-Shot. Specifically the S-90. Seach the web for it. What's nice about this one is that it comes with 2 recargable AA'a and the charger. The only thing you need is the case. I got mine last December and love it. Hopefully it's still available. I don't think you can get from Sony. May be an older model, but well worth the look. 4.1 M Pixels. Nice big screen too.

Hey

@ May 25, 2006 7:29 AM in Found Object

Maybe the procedes should go to Dan for the oil heat charity.

Woh!

@ May 19, 2006 1:23 PM in replace oil boiler with an electric boiler?

I'm paying at least .15 a KW here in CT. Lots of delivery charge in there. I just remember seeing the stickers on new washing machines comparing hot water costs. Electric was always 4 time more than gas.

@ May 19, 2006 12:20 PM in replace oil boiler with an electric boiler?

Yes, you wouldn't bury a new tank. In the basement works best, or out side next to the house. You would have to remove the old tank one way or another. Hopefully it's not leaking now and you want it out before it does. Electric heat is VERY expensive.

Yes, JCA

@ May 19, 2006 8:00 AM in Circulator flanges and paint on the threads

Boy do I get wierd looks when I put #5 on first, then teflon. But in all the years I've been doing this, no problems. A thin coat of #5 too, not gobs. I haven't needed the extra layer of dope, though I could see the need in an older or damaged thread.

@ May 19, 2006 7:51 AM in Why?

ROI in the northeast is pretty long. SEER, as important as it is, is not as big a consideration here as it is in more southern areas. If we take the affect on SEER out of the equation we're back to the basic question; Can it be done, will it work, will it hold up for 10 years, 20 years? We are in a very transient area. A lot of people expect to move within 5 years, so ROI is not as much a factor as having a system that will cool the house when they go to sell it.

@ May 19, 2006 7:43 AM in Counterflow A/C

The other thing I was thinking about was the flow of air. We would have to use an A-Coil. The air would have to flow through backwards. I would think the velocity would increase going through due to the decreasing area at the drain pan. I'd think that would knock water off the coil and into the blower area. A roof top usually has a flat, upright coil so there would be less chance of that happening. Our sales guy decided to quote an attic unit instead. Doesn't want to risk possible problems down the road. Still, does that mean you can't have A/C with a downflow furnace?