Question
I’ve just started reading “Out of this Furnace” by Thomas Bell.  I will
be making a brief presentation about it for my book club, but its too
early to determine what angle I’ll be takng on it.

Has anyone read it?  What did you think about it?  Do you have any
suggestions as to what I should emphasize about it?

Answers
I’m 37 years old Jarda.  And I’ve been out of school for a long time.
My intention was to get some insight on the book from Slovaks and/or
Slovak-Americans as *part* of my research. I am Cuban-American and
therefore cannot possibly judge the veracity of the book in its
descriptions of Slovak-American life as well as some of you could.

I do, however, know enough about Slovaks and Slovak-Americans to know
that people as rude and ungracious as you are in the definite minority.

Associated Out Of This Furnace Question: Why is there sand in the bottom of my house furnace ?
Every year i check the furnace out at my house before the winter season,change the air filter and check for cracks inside the heat exchanger. This year there is sand laying inside and on the bottom of the furnace where is this coming from and is the furnace still ok to use ? I have the windows and doors open now and everything seems ok while i am test running it.What to do ?

• Answer: This Question has not been answered yet! Send us Your best out of this furnace Answer!

Associated Out Of This Furnace Question:Can you help explain this unusual series of events which took place this morning?
I got out of bed and turned on the faucet to take a shower an out of the shower head came Coca Cola Classic. I got in the shower and let the soda run down my body and into every crevice and corner of my skin. Then all of a sudden it changed to motor oil, and somehow I knew it was 5W30 Quaker State Supreme brand. It gushed all over my face, hair, chest, and so forth. Oh God, no, now it is changing to flames from a blowtorch. The shower head was set on “pulsate” so the flames alternated slow and low to high and scorching. My hair burned off to about a half inch of my scalp. Oh god no, now little needles are coming out of the faucet head, rapid firng at my skin. Ouch, ouch, yahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh it is so painful. I jumped out of the shower but the floor was glowing red hot like coals in a backyard barbecue cooking prime t-bone steaks. “AHHHHHHHHHH NO NO NO!” I screamed. Now the floor in my bathroom gave way and I fell down hitting beams, with splinters going into my head, shoulders, knees and toes; knees and toes. Head, shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toe oh oh oh. Finally I broke my arm on the basement furnace I went crashin in to. “Yahhhhhhhhh” I yelled, because the hot water tank burst and I was met with a torrent of gushing scorching hot water which rolled onto my private area. “E-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-” I screamed because I was, well excited and it made it so much worse to experience the torrid burning. I got on my hands and knees and the washing machine fell over on top of my torso. I was able to dislodge myself from under the machine but I fractured both rotator cuffs in my shoulders. “Umph” I sucked air in because I realized six ribs were cracked. I crawled up the basement stairs but just before I got to the top they gave way and I fell through into the tool room, right on top of a hacksaw that was upside down on the tool table. I cut off one of my wrists. I am afraid to move. I am writing this from my Blackberry which is on low battery. Can you help me explain this owwww, ouch.

• Answer: This Question has not been answered yet! Send us Your best out of this furnace Answer!

Associated Out Of This Furnace Question:The things that run on 220 plugs goes out but does not trip breakers. What causes it?
Ok. The power to my stove, dishwasher, washer, dryer, and my heater furnace goes out for awhile but then comes back on. I thought these were power surges but none of the breakers are thrown. Plus, some of my outlets do the same thing when this happens.

• Answer: This Question has not been answered yet! Send us Your best out of this furnace Answer!

Associated Out Of This Furnace Question:Furnace has hot air coming out of the side of it?
It isn’t going down a pipe to any room, just blasting out of the side and heating the tiny furnace room up. Can I cover this vent? It is cut right into the side of the furnace and a little vent has been screwed in there.

• Answer:Two possible reasons come to mind (I have no way of knowing if they are really true of course). 1) The mechanical (furnace) room wasn’t that small originally. Maybe an unfinished basement? The vent was cut in the side to supply heating air to that space. 2) The furnace gets its combustion air from inside, but there isn’t any make-up air in the small mechanical room. Light-bulb! Let’s put a supply vent in the side of the furnace to for make-up air. #1 would be slightly redneck, but not necessarily all that bad. #2 however, would be in the “Un-Cool” category. How many vent pipes are on your furnace? If there is only one, then the combustion air is coming from inside. The mechanical room needs adequate venting to allow air to enter the space for combustion, and I’m pretty sure (even though I don’t have a copy handy to back me up) the mechanical code would frown on using supply vents for this requirement. If #2 is indeed the case, I would solve the combustion air problem before I did anything else. G’luck!

Associated Out Of This Furnace Question:What causes soot to build up in the wall furnace chimney that goes out through the attic.?
through the summer small bit,s of black soot came down through the furnace, and landed on the living room floor. we went through the process of tapping the pipe,s but only got black dust, no chunk,s but now after a week of furnace being lit , small chunks are coming out again. is this a danger of a fire starting?

• Answer:Soot and tar are carried up into the chimney by the smoke and rising hot air. The further from thefire, the cooler they become, and become attached to the sides of the chimney wall itself. Creosite is a dangerous deposit which can cause “flue” fires. A good reputable chimney sweep can take care of this in one visit.

Associated Out Of This Furnace Question:Furnace has water in it, pilot constantly going out?
We’re renting this place, and when the heater wasn’t working we were told the pilot light was probably out. Well we’ve had to relight it 3 times already, and just noticed there is a puddle of water INSIDE the furnace, under where the pilot light would normally be lit. what do we do? Yes, actually we were switching back and forth! Didn’t think that would cause an issue. And while it has been raining, it hasn’t been the times the pilot went out.

• Answer:Check your flue pipe vent on the roof and see if its covered. Does it happen every time it rains? Are you switching back and forth from a/c to heat? Its more then likely the vent cover is bad.

Associated Out Of This Furnace Question:The pilot light on my ancient furnace keeps going out?
This is the 2nd winter in my 1941 one-story home, and my gas furnace is ancient. I had no trouble with it last year, but this year I have not been able to keep the pilot light lit for very long. It will sometimes stay on all day and sometimes go out after just one cycle. I have to turn off the heater and re-light it. The heater is located in my finished basement and does not seem to be in a drafty area. I am worried that this is a hazard, and I am wondering what type of repairs I may be facing. Thanks!

• Answer:The most common culprit in old furnaces like this, is the thermocouple. Its a sensor that sticks out into the pilot light flame itself. When it no longer feels the heat from the pilot light, it shuts off the gas – its a safety device. The problem arises when these thermocouples fail – the gas valve thinks the pilot light is off, and therefore shuts off the gas – then your pilot light really does go out, hehehe. This part is usually about $10, and they’re fairly easy to find – most hardware stores for example, will carry a few different types in stock. If you can find the data plate on the furnace unit, it will tell you what brand and model it is, and you can do a parts search to find the exact thermocouple you need. Most homeowners can do this simple repair themselves. Here are some links you may find helpful – http://homerepair.about.com/od/heatingcoolingrepair/ss/pilot_light_2.htm http://www.ehow.com/how_2074294_replace-furnace-thermocouple.html?ref=fuel&utm_source=yahoo&utm_medium=ssp&utm_campaign=yssp_art http://home.howstuffworks.com/how-to-repair-gas-furnaces3.htm Now, on a rare occasion, you can get a back draft down the exhaust vent, which will blow out the pilot light. Again, when the pilot light goes out (or the thermocouple thinks it has) the gas valve will shut off the gas. Unless you had to replace the vent stack on top of the roof, for some reason, since last year, this is not very likely to be the problem. (The most common cause for a back draft down the exhaust vent is the vent stack being too short, so, if its the same stack as you had last year, this isn’t the problem) I doubt your furnace is an original unit installed when the house was built – homes that old often had passive heat furnaces, with huge vents, sometimes called ‘gravity fed’ furnaces. But, if your furnace is old, say 20 years or more, you’ll be wanting to begin shopping around for a new unit. Furnaces made in recent years are much more energy efficient, and cost less to operate. Ideally, look to install a new heating unit during the ‘off season’ for installers, and you’ll find it will cost you less to purchase and install the new unit – plan ahead for best savings. Have Fun

Associated Out Of This Furnace Question:Why does my oil furnace have to be reset when it gets colder out?
I have an oil boiler type furnace with a Beckett burner, dont use it to heat water though .. Twice so far this year, after I get an oil delivery, (I let it get down to 1/4 tank then put in 100 gallons) or like today, when it gets real cold out, I have to start the furnace with the reset button.. So far today furnace is running after the first reset.. Temp in the house is going up slower than usual, but pipes in cellar are hot.. I need to find out what is causing this as we are in for a real cold night,and do not want my pipes to freeze.. I use a blower to keep dryer lint, dust, dirt and cat fur away from furnace so sensor stays cleaner and other stuff doesnt clog..Cat does sleep on top of furnace when its really cold though, he’s there for mice.. Could it be sludge? We replaced the oil line from tank to furnace last year, and have the furnace cleaned yearly.. I dont think we did the nozzle yet this year though..

• Answer:If you had sludge in your line, there’s sludge in your tank. Each fall I stick a length of 1/4″ copper tubing down to the bottom of the tank and use a hand pump to pull out the crap and sludge. It’s usually black or bown, while my fuel oil is normally a nice clear red color. Your filter and nozzle probably need to be replaced again, even if you’ve already had that done a couple months ago. Reason is that with the deliveries to the close to empty tank, it stirred up all that sludge. If you call for the oil, add a can of anti-sludge treatment, or have your fuel people add it upon request (for a charge of course). If this sludge has been going through your system long enough, it is likely the filter screen inside your oil pump (on your Beckett burner) may also need replacing. This part is like $2 plus a gasket. You may also safely add Kerosene to your tank when the temperature outside is going to get in the teens or below. It is a better grade fuel and will help prevent gelling and sludge and it burns really clean. I have a blue 5 gallon can and my local gas station has this. 5% to 10% Kerosene to Fuel Oil will work nice. This is something you can do tonight! You can also get a heat tape, suitable for a fuel line from your local plumbing supply. Get one with a thermostat and that can also be enclosed in a foam sleeve. You can email me if something doesn’t make sense or needs clarification.

Associated Out Of This Furnace Question:My furnace humidifier has water coming out of the drain constantly, is this normal?
I just purchased a new rental furnace and humidifier but since they installed it today there is water constantly coming out of the drain it does this even when it is off it is a generalAire model 1042LH flow throuhg bypass humidifier I figured it out ..the problem was that the humidistat was set to high therefore keeping the solenoid valve open and keeping constant flow of water going

• Answer:It depends on the make and model of the actual humidifier. I know that doesnt help you a whole lot, but, for instance, some models have a feature where if it is actually desighned to supply so much humidity, then excess runs out of the drain. It would be the same concept as the drain on your evaporator coil, pretty much. Nothing to worry about, though. I assure you.

Associated Out Of This Furnace Question:Why does furnace pilot light keep going out?
The last two winters I have had my furnace serviced because of weak pilot light issues. They cleaned things out and got the furnace working again. This year I have similar issues. Each day I have to re-light the pilot light, and then it goes out again, usually overnight. Is there anything I can do to increase the force of my pilot light, or do I need to have it serviced again for the third year in a row?

• Answer:burning natural gas will create a white powdery build-up over time. this needs to be kept cleaned off. usually there is an adjustment for the amount of gas used for the pilot too, ask the serviceman to verify if it should have more gas going to the flame this time. ours kept going out with the slightest draft until they turned it up a bit to get a little bigger pilot flame.

Question

I’m looking for a reputable company to replace my old gas furnace with a
new
one. If you’ve used any and are happy with the service and the cost of
the
furnace and installation, please let me know.
I need information on the type of furnace, and the name of the company
that
installed it as well as any other info related to maintenance, energy
efficiency or heating cost savings, etc.
The house was built in late 70’s located in downtown Toronto.
Thank you.

Answers
Here’s the story behind all this. I had my furnace serviced by a well-known
company and the service guy said the heat exchange is cracked and there is a
leak. I was told that to repair the heat exchange would cost around $1,200,
much of the cost would be for labour. He also said that it’s against the law
to turn the furnace on if there is a leak and that they are required to turn
the heat off. He mentioned too that a new gas furnace would cost around
$1,700 plus labour.

I know that it’s not an insulation problem or not being able to keep the
heat in but a safety issue.

I wanna make sure that I’m not being ripped off so I’m looking for another
opinion to find out whether the crack is really there and can be repaired,
if not then I’d have to get a new one.

Associated Out Of Furnace Question: How do I get something out of furnace exhaust out pipe outside?
My kids today when we were doing a easter egg hunt, put one of the plastic easter eggs down the furnace exhaust pipe. How do I get it out? Will it wreck my furnace? I have two white PVC pipes that come out of the basement walls. One is curved and one is not. The one that the egg went down is the straight one.

• Answer:You could try using a shop vac on it. Shut off furnace …..using duct tape, seal the vac hose around the end of the pipe and turn it on …..being a plastic egg, there is a good chance you may get it.

Associated Out Of Furnace QuestionFurnace has hot air coming out of the side of it?
It isn’t going down a pipe to any room, just blasting out of the side and heating the tiny furnace room up. Can I cover this vent? It is cut right into the side of the furnace and a little vent has been screwed in there.

• Answer:Two possible reasons come to mind (I have no way of knowing if they are really true of course). 1) The mechanical (furnace) room wasn’t that small originally. Maybe an unfinished basement? The vent was cut in the side to supply heating air to that space. 2) The furnace gets its combustion air from inside, but there isn’t any make-up air in the small mechanical room. Light-bulb! Let’s put a supply vent in the side of the furnace to for make-up air. #1 would be slightly redneck, but not necessarily all that bad. #2 however, would be in the “Un-Cool” category. How many vent pipes are on your furnace? If there is only one, then the combustion air is coming from inside. The mechanical room needs adequate venting to allow air to enter the space for combustion, and I’m pretty sure (even though I don’t have a copy handy to back me up) the mechanical code would frown on using supply vents for this requirement. If #2 is indeed the case, I would solve the combustion air problem before I did anything else. G’luck!

Associated Out Of Furnace QuestionWhat happens when the furnace runs out of diesel?
New to the whole diesel furnace. What happens when it runs out of oil? Will the furnace continue to kick on and try to heat? Is it dangerous? No opinions, factual information, please.

• Answer:The furnace will not fire up although it will try to. So it will not produce heat. Some furnaces require a technician to bleed the line of air once there is fuel to burn, and possibly re-set the circuitry on it. cheers

Associated Out Of Furnace Questionwhy is smoke coming out of my blower that attaches to my furnace?
my furnace fuel pump has been replaced just yesterday, and there is disgusting smoke coming out of the blower that attaches to the furnace. it’s burning , you can hear the firing go on, but the smoke doesn’t make sense. anyone out there who knows furnaces?

• Answer:CALL THE REPAIRMAN BACK TO CHECK YOUR HEATER AGAIN. SOMETHING ISN’T RIGHT… GOOD LUCK…

Associated Out Of Furnace QuestionCan you vent a high efficiency furnace out the side of the house?
I just purchased a house and would like to put in a wood furnace. The chimney is already being used to vent a high efficiency propane 135000 btu furnace. I was wondering if its possible to vent the propane furnace out the side of the house, into just some kind of exterior vent.

• Answer:Yes.High efficiency gas furnace is vented with PVC tubing.Follow instructions in the furnace instruction book.

Associated Out Of Furnace QuestionHow would I figure out how much power my electric forced air furnace uses?
Trying to figure out if it might be cheaper to use an oil-filled radiator to take the chill off when it isn’t really cold outside, or let the furnace do its thing. I really only need about half of my small house to be warmish.

• Answer:If your furnace is 100% electric (not gas fired) look for a name plate that shows the voltage and current ratings (such as 240v or 240 volts, current is measured in amps it may say 30FLA which means full load amps). It may have a number value in Watts or “VA” also, if not, multiply the volts by the amps to give you the power rating in Watts. Then you can use this to compare the power rating of a portable heater or your oil filled radiator.

Associated Out Of Furnace QuestionHow do I drain the water out of my high efficiency furnace?
I have a Gibson high efficiency furnace in my shop and want to shut it down for a few weeks. How do I drain all the water out to keep it from freezing?

• Answer:Not sure what type of condensate trap the Gibson furnaces use but you can follow any drain tubing you see and it should lead to the trap. Some furnaces just have a loop in the pipe for a trap. Remove the trap and drain it. This will not guarantee that all water is removed and some water may still be in the combustion blower area where it may lock up the fan blade when trying to start it back up. Maybe you should disconnect any tubing to verify there is no water anywhere.

Associated Out Of Furnace Questioncan water leaking into the furnace cause it to short out and catch on fire?
My furnace is leaking water from the top and it is running down inside of the furnace. I know that I need to have it fixed asap, but my immediate concern is that it may short out and catch on fire. Is that likely, or even possible?

• Answer: This Question has not been answered yet! Send us Your best out of furnace Answer!

Associated Out Of Furnace QuestionWhat causes soot to build up in the wall furnace chimney that goes out through the attic.?
through the summer small bit,s of black soot came down through the furnace, and landed on the living room floor. we went through the process of tapping the pipe,s but only got black dust, no chunk,s but now after a week of furnace being lit , small chunks are coming out again. is this a danger of a fire starting?

• Answer:Soot and tar are carried up into the chimney by the smoke and rising hot air. The further from thefire, the cooler they become, and become attached to the sides of the chimney wall itself. Creosite is a dangerous deposit which can cause “flue” fires. A good reputable chimney sweep can take care of this in one visit.

Associated Out Of Furnace QuestionFurnace has water in it, pilot constantly going out?
We’re renting this place, and when the heater wasn’t working we were told the pilot light was probably out. Well we’ve had to relight it 3 times already, and just noticed there is a puddle of water INSIDE the furnace, under where the pilot light would normally be lit. what do we do? Yes, actually we were switching back and forth! Didn’t think that would cause an issue. And while it has been raining, it hasn’t been the times the pilot went out.

• Answer:Check your flue pipe vent on the roof and see if its covered. Does it happen every time it rains? Are you switching back and forth from a/c to heat? Its more then likely the vent cover is bad.

Question
I’m just curious if about 6 years is a good lifetime for an ignitor,
and if there is anything much I can do to lengthen this interval.
I did vacuum the cobwebs and dust out of the furnace at the start
of the season, and I was careful not to hit the ignitor with the
vacuum.

Answers
Matt- 6 years is damn good. Don’t be disappointed if you don’t get
that much life outta the new one…  They are noted for having the
same lifespan as a lightbulb, so, have a spare on hand at all times,
and put it somewhere safe where it cannot fall or become the latest
victim of raging children, etc.

Associated Ignitor Furnace Question: My furnace Ignitor lights up three times, before it starts working. what might be the problem?
i have to turn it off and on before working..the ignitor lights up three times before working. And it never stays on, it keeps shutting off after a few minutes.

• Answer:Your furnace has what is called a hot surface igniter. The igniter usually is energized for about 30 seconds before the gas valve is opened. By that time it should be glowing yellow to white hot and that should be sufficient to ignite the gas that flows over it. Within less than 1 second of ignition, the flame sensor rod should be enveloped in the gases of combustion. The flame sensor rod has 115 volts of ac power supplied to it. When the ionized gases of combustion surround the rod, a process known as rectification occurs and a dc current measurable in milliamps is established to ground. If the milliamp current is not detected by the ignition control board, the gas valve is de-energized and the unit cysles through the ignition process again. It will cycle through that process 3 or more times, depending on the manufacturer, and then go into what is called a lockout condition. The lockout condition can be reset by turning power off for about 30 seconds and then restoring it. If the flame sensor rod is dirty, it will not be able to perform the flame rectification and the ignition control board will not know that there is a flame. The rod can be cleaned off with gentle strokes of a scotch brite pad, some steel wool, even a dollar bill. Be sure power is turned off while doing this. The rod can be removed from its mount for the cleaning. It is typically held in place with a small sheet metal screw that uses either a 5/16ths inch hex head nut driver or a 1/4 inch hex head nutdriver. The electrical wire from the ignition control board typically attaches to the rod by a push on terminal. Gently pull on the terminal to remove it from the rod before you take the rod out. The wire can be reattached with a gentle push after you remount the rod. The wire normally attaches to the ignition control board with a push on fitting. It is possible that the wire is not making good contact at the board. It is also possible that the rod has failed. There is a ceramic insulator on the rod. If it is cracked or broken, the dc milliamp current will not flow through the ionized gases and no flame will be detected. The flame sensor rod will need to be replaced if that is the case. Hope this helps.

Associated Ignitor Furnace Question:Possible short in electric ignitor on gas furnace?My husband and I just recently purchased a home and have been having some trouble with our furnace. It is a Heil condensing gas furnace and was installed in 1995. The problem is that sometimes the ignitor is not working. When you push on what looks like the electrical input for the ignitor it will kick on though. Sometimes it won’t ignite on it’s own, but other times it will. One time we had to physically push on the igniter for two days in a row to get it to light the burner, then after that it worked on its own for a whole month. Now it is acting up again. I am wondering if there could possibly be a short in one of the wires there, because it always ignites if we push on the little plastic connection with our finger. It’s just confusing that it doesn’t do it all the time. What we are pushing on that makes it work is a little plastic connector with three wires coming out of the top. You have to push it to the left. Any ideas?

• Answer:Sounds like you have a bad connection with the quick disconnect on the ignitor… Best thing to do is simply cut the wires and splice them together with wire nuts… This is very simple and has no effect on how the furnace will run… It also doesn’t have any safety issues with it either…

Associated Ignitor Furnace Question:Mid-eddificiency furnace makes 2-3 clicks of ignitor before it gets flame. Is this normal?
Hi, we have moved into an older home this past April. The furnace is a mid-efficiency model which is approx. 7 years old. The units ignitor makes a clicking noise which is to be expected when it is lighting however I have noticed that it clicks 2-3 sometimes even 4 times before it ignites. Is this normal? What could cause this and is there anything I could do to correct this if this is not normal? Thanks.

• Answer:it is normal to click several times for ignition. No big deal

Associated Ignitor Furnace Question:my ruud furnace ignitor only clicks three times then stops after it stops the gas valve will open and close so?
i just put in a new blower motor it turned on once after i had everything installed went to put the doors on and then when i noticed it was just clickin a few times . Is there a timer? or is my ignitor just going bad?

• Answer:Some will not run with the doors off.

Associated Ignitor Furnace Question:My Trane XE90 furnace ignitor will glow but then you hear a click and the main burners will not light?
The fan blows cold air. Eventually the burns will light after several tries or switching the furnace off and then back on.

• Answer:Something is dirty. Replace the filter and blow everything out with an aircompressor or whatever.

Associated Ignitor Furnace Question:Where can I purchase a Hot Surface Ignitor for my Bryant furnace in Indianapolis or Greenwood,IN ?
Can I buy a Hot Surface Ignitor at Lowes, Menards, or Home Depot??? Where can I go in Indiana to buy one? This seems like an easy part to replace rather than pay someone to do it.

• Answer:go to grainger.com and see if they carry them, probably not going to get one on a sunday.

Associated Ignitor Furnace Question:I have a Rheem furnace with hot surface ignitor. The furnace lites the burner then a minute later it goes out.?
I do not have a flame sensor. My ignitor looks like the letter m. Can the ignitor sense flame after lite up or is its job finished when burners are lit? The robertshaw control was just changed 2-16-2010.

• Answer:the flame sensor is not sensing a flame and shutting the gas valve off…sometimes the flame sensor is built into the ignitor..and sometimes it is seperate if it is built in to the ignitor u will need to replace it when u replace it DO not touch the ceramic…oils from ur fingers will cause it to crack when heated

Associated Ignitor Furnace Question:trane [xe80] furnace ignitor not heating up?
has 1 bar in ceramic block which glows when current feeds it. 24v? i tried hooking ignitor to battery charger [12v] & got nothing, not even a spark when touching poles. i tested power feed lines to ignitor,on furnace, & got power but i dont know if enough to warm ignitor at all. 3v continuity tester also coulnt flow thru ignitor . furnace codeflash indicates: ignitor failure, low voltage, bad ground. ignitor looks like new!

• Answer:These ignitors fail quite frequently, and it’s usually visable – look very closely at the metal and you will see a fracture, it’ll have dust on the edges of the crack, this interupts the circuit. You need a new one, price 12.00 to 30.00 depending on model there are a dozen different ones, try a local appliance repair store. NOTE: these are extremely fragile and shatter easy so handle with care. DO NOT touch the metal-the oils from your finger can lessen the life expectancy. 30 year HVAC contractor

Associated Ignitor Furnace Question:I have a coleman propane furnace in my house the ignitor lights the furnace but it go’s right back out again.?
what could it be? i’m cold i live in michigan. is the flame sencing rod next to the ignitor? is that what needs to be cleaned?

• Answer:The most likely cause is the flame sensing rod is oxidized. This is a small steel rod usually about the size of an 8 penny finish nail and is located in front of one of the burner orifices. If you can find it clean it carefully with a scotch brite pad or #0 steel wool and that should take care of it.

Associated Ignitor Furnace Question:How do I change the ignitor on my oil furnace? I dont even know where t is located at.?

• Answer:it is not an ignitor on oil. You mean your transformer and it is the black box like thing on top of the oil burner itself in the center. How do you know its bad if you don’t even know where it is? Call a pro

Question

I believe we have run out of oil.  It says there is < 5 gallons in the
thank.
I refilled the water in the glass tube and that did not restart the furnace.
It is 8 degrees out.
We need to get oil delivered.
Please let us know what oil company we use and/or phone number for them.

Answers
Sorry, this is so expensive but we got our oil tank filled already by
Hayes this morning, and it comes to $163.68 per person.
Andres paid for it, I’ll just write him a check for the full amount, and
you guys can just write checks to me.
From now on, we should check the gauge and when it’s 1/4 full and we
should get Arlington Energy to deliver oil.

Associated How To Restart Furnace That Has Run Out Of Oil Question: Trouble bleeding the lines to an oil furnace due to a rounded nut.?
My furnace ran out of oil and I just refilled it today. Normally I bleed the oil from the bleeder valve and then restart it. Today, however, the nut that tightens the bleeder valve is rounded and my wrench wont catch. The next smallest wrench size is too small and I’m stuck with a rounded nut on an oil furnace. If you have any ideas or suggestions on how to remove said nut it would be much appreciated. Thanks

• Answer:Try a pair of vice grips, just be sure to replace the nut once you get it off, get one the same size and with the same thread count.

Associated How To Restart Furnace That Has Run Out Of Oil Question: Trouble bleeding an Oil Furnace due to a rounded nut?
My furnace ran out of oil and I just refilled it today. Normally I bleed the oil from the bleeder valve and then restart it. Today, however, the nut that tightens the bleeder valve is rounded and my wrench wont catch. The next smallest wrench size is too small and I’m stuck with a rounded nut on an oil furnace. If you have any ideas or suggestions on how to remove said nut it would be much appreciated. Thanks

• Answer:channel locks…. a must tool for any tool box, a 420 or 430 series and can be found at any hardware store http://www.channellock.com/acb/stores/1/… EDIT: jl must have never used channel locks, or he has the grip of a 10 year old

Associated How To Restart Furnace That Has Run Out Of Oil Question: Got my hot water oil burner furnace running, but think pressure is reason that the baseboards are not warming.?
I pressed the red starter reset button more time than I should have. The furnace would start then stop. I’d pressed the black plastic bubble button (like when you prime a buzz saw) a few times. I unscrewed the little bleeder valve and let it drain for about 2 or 3 seconds, then closed it back up. The furnace finally went on after that. Problem is, that I’m still not getting heat throughout my house. I have two zones, 1 upstairs and1 down. Heating guys are all booked up for the next week at least, and it is almost 0 degrees outside. I cannot wait for one to come. (I know that will be the first suggestion-to call the heating people. Did it already.) I drained some water from the two pipes that go back into the furnace (I beleive they are the return pipes). I also drained a bunch of water from the bottom of the furnace itself. I’d gotten the pressure up for a short period of time. I gave up this morning and went to work. Left the heat ON. (I have an electric heater plugged in, but it’s not heating up the house too well) The furnace was hot when I arrived back from work this evening, but there was no pressure at all. The pipes are hot going INTO the furnace (I think that one comes from the hot water heater though). The bottom of the pipes that returns the water back to the furnace were hot,but only for about 1 foot up – then they got cold. What do I do. I don’t know much about this stuff. I looked up how to restart the furnace online and have a small diagram of the spot with the reset button and the bleeder valve. I don’t know what to look for as far as the pressure thing. I assume it’s a pressure issue, but I am not sure. Long storey short, the furnace works, but the baseboards are not warming up. I have a Peerless oil burner/furnace (I don’t know if there’s a difference). I have 500 gallons of oil. Baseboard heaters. Hot water heat. Please help me… Did I bleed the boiler/furnace by pressing the reset button? did I do something by pressing what I refer to as the “primer” button (the black plastic bubble button on the side of the black box (transformer?)? Did I really mess things up by letting water out? Now there is no water coming out of the two vertical pipes that I beleive are the return pipes,but I do occasionally hear a slight hissing for a few seconds. On the two vertical “return” pipes are what look like water faucets. One on each pipe, a little below each of the faucets is a green long thin handle. Should this long handle be going WITH the pipe – up and down- or against the pipe – sideways? Should the faucets be on or off? Should the faucetless handle for the water pipe that leads from the hot water heater to the furnace be on or off? I don’t beleive that the oil filter needs to be bled, because I’d already gotten the furnace running. I am sure that it’s some kind of pressure problem. Please be detailed in your answers. Use laymens terms. Thank you. to Flying Dragon: Your answers so far are great. I however don’t understand all of it. The water is NOT circulating the baseboards. I don’t know if there is a pump for the water. I also didn’t know that there would be a power supply to any valves. I’m not sure about which valves you are referring (in your 2nd paragraph). I don’t know where I would find the fill valve. Is that the pipe that leads fromthe hot water heater to the furnace? It has the on/off turning handle like a garden faucet. To be clear, my system was still ON for a good 12 hours AFTEr running out of oil. I don’t know if that effects anything. (I didn’t realize I was that low on oil. New home owner. don’t know much except for what I’ve looked up on internet today). The vent valves that you refer to for purging the water, is that the faucet thingy near the floor ON the furnace, &would it be the faucet thingies on the two pipes that I beleive are the RETURN pipes? (Please excuse me if my terminology is way off)

• Answer:If the water in the furnace is hot, the furnace is probably OK, but the water is not circulting to the baseboards. I presume the system has some kind of pump to force the water through the system although you didn’t menion it. Since you have 2 zones and neither is getting heat, it is probably not a bad zone valve as it is unlikely that both would go bad at once. Although you might want to check that the power supply to open the valves is OK. Most of these valves have a manuel over ride to open it, if you want to try that. If you system seems to have no pressure, it is possible that the pump is trying to run but there is not enough water in the system and the pump is just spining around in air. See if it has a manuel or automatic fill valve. If manual, open it and try letting some water in to pressurize to the normal pressure (ours is 15 psi, yours might be different). If it is an automatic fill valve, (looks like a regulator) it might be clogged with minerals or maybe there was a shut off valve in series that is turned off. If clogged, sometimes banging it with a hammer will break it free, but don’t go hog-wild and bust the pipes. Some of them have a little lever on the top which is an over ride to open if not working. In conjunction with getting water into the system, you need to find the vent valves and purge out any air in the lines. (Usually, they are at the highest point in the line and there might be more than one). There is usually one at or near the furnace too. It might take a few iterations of adding water and venting to get it full. Aslo make sure the circulating pump is getting power. If pump has a coupling between motor and pump unit make sure it is not busted or come loose. Added: In order for the heated water to get out of the furnace and go through the baseboards and return to the fuirnace, there needs to be a pump somewhere in the loop of pipe. Usually the pump is located in the return leg (where the water from the baseboards comes back to the furnace for re-heating. Most of the newer systems have the pump mounted right in series with the pipe ad it is usually right next to the furnace, although I suppose, in some cases, the pump might be inside the furnace cabinet. Apparantly, your furnace also heats the hot water, if you are getting hot water, the furnace and the circulator for sending furnace-heated water through the loop into the hot water storage tank are working. This pump MAY be the same pump that sends hot water through the baseboards, or there might be a second pump specifically for the baseboards. If you find the pump(s) and they seem to be working, next try to find the zone valves. these are located in series with the pipes that go out to the baseboard heaters, and will typically be withing a few feet of the furnace. These valves don’t have a handle, there is a electric coil that operates them usually the top part is green. Most of the time there is a small lever somewhere on the assembly that serves as a manual over ride to open the valve. If it has one, try opening the valve and see if hot water starts going down the pipe, (it should heat up fairly quickly). The bleed valves I mentioned before are to let trapped air out of the pipe so water can get in. They are usually tiny little chrome-plated or brass valves you open with a screwdriver or small square drive “key” you can get at any hardware store. The valves are in the highest point in the system because that is where the air tends to collect. The valves may be located on or next to the baseboard units, or any where along the pipe. Sometimes there is a small cover on the baseboard unit that needs to be opened or removed to find them. If/when you find them, try cracking one open a bit (have a small container under the little hole as you might get a spray of muddy-looking water. If you hear hissing, air is coming out and water is filling the system. if you open it and nothing comes out, the system has no pressure and probably has a plugged, defective or shut-off fill valve. if water comes out the system has no air at that point. Usually, if the system has so much air in it that the pump doesn’t circulate the water it will be obvious, because air will be hissing out for quite a while. If the system has pressure, eventually, you will get water out the bleed valve. You will need to check all the valves, and once the water starts circulating, you may need to drain once more because more air may have been pushed through the pipe with the floing water. If you can’t get any pressure (no air or water comes out when you open the bleed valve). You will need to check the fill valve at the furnace. Usually, you will find a 1/2 inch copper pipe feeding cold water to the furnace (the baseboard pipes are usually larger like 3/4 or 1 inch). somewhere near the furnace there will either be a manuel shut off valve, or a thing that looks like a gas regulator in line with this pipe. If it is a fairly new one, look to see if there is a small lever on the top, this bypasses the regulator and lets you manually let water go through. If it has a lever lift it upwards, you should hear the sound of water going into the system, check the pressure gauge and stop at 15 psi or whatever your system is supposed to run at. Then go do the bleed valve procedure. You may have to do this several times to get all the air out of the system. Also the automatic fill valve may be plugged with minerals and would need to be fixed/replaced. One other thing, since your hot water is produced by your furnace, your furnace may only be “on” because the hot water tank needs it, perhaps there is a problem with your house thermostat (which is a different unit than the one for the hot water tank). I hope this helps, and does not further muddy the water!

Question

I recently purchased home that’s about 20 years old, built in
the good old days when no-one had heard of insulation.  Currently,
our house is being heated with an 80% efficient hot-air system.
Since, the furnace isn’t the most efficient, I’d like to squeeze
every drop of performance out of it I can.
One of the things I noticed was that the basement stayed
fairly warm.  Much warmer than the 55 degrees I would have expected.
I’m assuming that this is due in large part to all of the
uninsulated duct work running across the attic ceiling.  So, does
I suppose you mean the basement ceiling?
anyone have an idea of how much it would cost to have someone
insulate the ducts?  Or is it a do-it-yourself job?  And I guess is,
it worth it?

Whether it’s worth it or not depends on whether you intend to actually
*use* your basement, and how well you tolerate cool temperatures. For
me, 55 degrees in a basement that I intended to use would be totally
unacceptable. 65 degrees, OK, but 55 in a living space — or even in
a workshop — just isn’t enough. My opinion is to leave it alone, and
let the ducts warm your basement by being uninsulated.
Now if your basement is being heated to 72 degrees, that’s another
story. In that case, you probably have an undiscovered leak in one
of the ducts. Basements shouldn’t be *that* warm. But they shouldn’t
be as cool as 55, either, when your furnace is running.

Does anyone have other ideas of how to get more out of our
furnace?  I think I remember hearing that running an outside air
supply line to the furnace return could help eliminate drafts.
something to do about not pulling outside air through leaks in the
room.  Does this make sense?
No, it does not. Running an outside supply to the furnace return is
pretty much equivalent to opening a window, as this permits a
continuous stream of outside (read: COLD) air to enter your heating
system.

What *does* make sense is to run an outside supply to the furnace’s
combustion chamber. In this way, you are not using indoor air to
supply combustion, and you minimize air infiltration from outdoors.
Not all furnaces are designed so as to make this easy or possible.

Answers

I would add that, in many jurisdictions, it is a legal requirement
that you have a combustion air supply to the furnace from outside.
They normally specify how many square inches of cross-section area
duct is to be provided.  This is all aimed at avoiding negative
pressure inside the house pulling carbon monoxide down the stack into
the house.

On the question of cold air into the return air duct to the furnace,
this is done but it is much better if this air passes through an
ait-to-air heat exchanger first to recover heat from stale air being
vented to the outside.

Question
There is no way on this planet to answer your question.  What
you need is to have a competent contractor come out and do a heat loss
calculation on the house.  Expect to pay for this valuable service.
Then and only then will your question be answered.  Anyone who says
otherwise to you is full of shit.

I’m hoping someone can give me a ballpark idea on what size furnace I would
need for a 1750 sq. foot house.  It’s one level on an insulated crawlspace.
The wall have r-19, the ceilings have r-38.  all the windows are double pane
insulated.  and it is in the middle of Missouri.

Answers
About 140ft^2/R2 = 70 Btu/h-F of windows, 1600ft^2/R19 = 70 for the walls,
46 for the ceiling and 1ACHx8×1750 = 254 for air infiltration, if it’s
reasonably new and airtight, vs old and draughty, for a total
thermal conductance of 440 Btu/h-F.

NREL’s record low temp for Columbia, MO is -20 F, so you’d need about
(70F-(-20F))440 = 40K Btu per hour of peak heat transfer capacity,
something like an automobile radiator, aka “fan-coil unit” in
HVAC criminal terms.

No furnace is needed, just a concentrating solar attic to collect about
730 Btu/ft^2-day of available direct beam sun from the south in December,
when the average daytime temp is about 35 F. You could store 150 F
rainwater in a few $420 1500 gallon poly tanks in the crawlspace.

Some ASHRAE-standard 5.41 pound 58.53 Btu/h bunnies or
6.61 pound 68.02 Btu/h cats could help as well.

…In fact, there was once a newspaper report in Oregon where the
grower used rabbits in great numbers to provide most of the heat
for the greenhouse.

Associated Heat More Furnace Question: House can I make my small gas furnace heat better? Or make my house more energy efficient?
I live in a smaller two bedroom apartment, and the only source of heat is from a small gas furnace in the livingroom. We are having a baby in August and will be living here for the winter once they are born. Its really not very warm in other rooms in the apartment, such as the baby’s room. What can I do to either make the apartment more energy efficient such as putting plastic on the windows? Which are single glass, and we do not own the place so we will not be replacing them. Anything else? Also if all else fails what is a safe cost efficient and energy efficient space heater?

• Answer:Any electric heater would be the same in how efficient it is. The safest kind of eclectic heaters are the ones filled with oil. Any cracks in the house should be filled in. Air infiltration is your biggest heat loss. So caulk any holes in the windows etc.

Associated Heat More Furnace Question: Does furnace (with Heat pump) use more energy heating or cooling?
We have a new furnace with heat pump and compressor. In winter, it heats up the house. In summer, it cools the house. Does it consume more energy heating up or cooling the house? PS: I don’t need any rude response.

• Answer:the larger the difference between the house temp and the outside temp,the more energy is needed to maintain that difference….because the difference is much greater in the winter [example,,70deg house,,10 deg outside temp] than the summer [ 75 deg house,95 deg outside] you will use more energy in the winter all things being equal…there is a humidity variable in the summer,,if humidity is high,it uses more energy than if it is low,but that doesnt negate the temp difference disparity between winter and summer…..how you heat the home matters too…if using typical central ac in summer,,but heat with natural gas in the winter,,,you have used more energy to heat than to cool [ added more btu's in winter with heat than you had to remove with ac ],,but since natural gas is cheaper per btu than the electricity cost of running ac,your utility bill in the winter wont necessarily be higher..where you live matters too,far north uses a lot of heat,not much ac,,far south uses a lot of ac,not much heat….a lot depends on the tstat setting too..some people like it cool all the time..the heat doesnt run too much but ac runs a lot in summer,or some like it warm [esp elderly],,use a lot of heat but not too much ac…but again,,all things being equal,,more energy used in winter than summer for average people,average climate conditions, average hvac system,average house……..dan

Associated Heat More Furnace Question: Anything more efficient to heat home than Gas Furnace?
I have a gas furnace and i was wondering what there is out there to lower my heating bill more? is there a website i can get more info on radiant heat

• Answer:I have a geo-thermal open loop . It uses well water for heat. When I was starting to think about building my house I researched it. What I found was geo-thermals are said to be 115 to 125% efficient. Compare to a gas furnace at 93 to 97% . It is expensive, when I did it it was $3000.00 more then a furnace . I love it but to try to add it on to a house not sure what it would cost.

Associated Heat More Furnace Question: Is shutting off the furnace a few hours a day a good way to save heat?
I’m really trying to conserve on oil consumption in my house. I turn down the thermostat, my tenant does so as well. But the furnace still kicks in when the temp drops to what we’ve set them to. What I’ve tried doing is just to shut off the furnace on weekdays. I’m alone, so it’s no big deal for me. I turn it back on as soon as the tenant gets back from work. I’m wondering, does this really help or am I actually using more heat when the furnace restarts after being shut off for 6 hours? It also has to heat the hot water tank (30 gallons). Thanks for your input!

• Answer:I would not turn off the furnace completely for many reasons. It is very hard on your furnace when you do turn it on it has to work that much harder. Also it is very hard on your house. You are cooling and heating cooling and heating, there isn’t a set temp this way. Keep your temp at 64 or so. If your heat goes on it won’t be that often. It is not a good thing for your water tank either. You could create weakness in the lining from constantly up and down heating. It does however take a long time for a hot water tank to cool down. Better to keep you furnace on though!!

Associated Heat More Furnace Question: I need help getting more heat from my Vogelzang wood furnace. Any suggestions?
House is 1400 sq ft have Vogelzang model#2500. I’m in upstate NY and using for first time this year.

• Answer:Move more air around. Warm air collects at the ceiling level – try some ceiling fans. You could also try a harder very dry seasoned hardwood in the stove – hickory, oak, eucalyptus, walnut, black oak. Upping the humidity a bit might help make it feel warmer. If your furnace documentation mentions it as an option, you could try hard anthracite coal. It leaves alot of cinders, but it packs alot of heat.

Associated Heat More Furnace Question: Is electric space heaters more cost effecient versus heat pumps powered by furnace in a smaller space?
I live in a small 900 sq. ft. home. My heat pump quit working and now I am using small space heaters which seem to heat my home better than the heat pump. I am using a total of 3 1500 watt electric space heaters that cut on and off according to degree of temperature in my home. I don’t want to make my electric bill sky rocket, so I am trying to decide whether to go ahead and get my heat pump serviced or to wait and keep using the small heaters. Any help is greatly appreciated!!!!

• Answer:No, space heaters are extremely unefficient.

Associated Heat More Furnace Question: I have a gas furnace that I have to once a day or more, flip the switch to turn it off to get heat to work?
Thermostat is held at 72 degrees, and it holds heat most of the time, but once a day or in the middle of the night, I have to go in the basement and flip the on off switch on the furnace to get the heat back on. It usually drops a few degrees, and I can feel the chill. I recently had someone come out to look at cleaning my vents, and thats when it started happening. Please advise what it might be.

• Answer:throw them away and start new

Associated Heat More Furnace Question: Which is more efficient, propane furnace & water heat, or electric water heat and dual fuel heating?
:My house was built in 1994, when the average price of propane was 88.8 CENTS a gallon. I’m currently paying about $2.84/gallon after taxes and delivery costs. With my current consumption, I am paying approximately $21.15 per day for propane, which I find hard to stomach. My power company offers a program where I am given an electric water heater free of charge for switching from gas, and a rebate of $1000.00-$1200.00 for switching from gas furnace to dual fuel heating. I’ve already started washing ALL my laundry in cold water, plus usually putting my 3 yr old in the shower with me to save money on water heat, plus my thermostat is generally set no higher than 70 but more often between 65 & 68 degrees. I *do* use a dish washer once a day, but this still does not seem to be just cause for $21.00 per day, considering my other conservation efforts. Also, I just had the gas company test for leaks, they found none. We have double pane insulated windows and insulated doors, I don’t know what else to do. Is it simply the high price of propane that is making my energy bill so high? Would I be better of taking advantage of the offer I described above from my electric company? I cannot afford my energy bill at it’s current rate. I pay .050980 PER KWH, but am not sure about what size unit I have. I know my water heater holds 40 gallons, but that’s about all I know of that. I’ve only lived in this house for about 45 days now. I have a 250 gallon tank, which had 20% when I moved in 9/30/08, I purchased 100 gallons a few weeks later, and then today (11/13) I purchased 100 more gallons, and my tank was down to 5%. You say my consumption sounds about right for the the northern U.S. or Canada, but I’m in the central portion of Alabama, a far cry from the regions you mentioned. I don’t even have to run my heater constantly, and it has yet to go below 32 degrees here this year, and only made it that low once.

• Answer:I did some quick calculations on your gas consumption…You don’t say what size furnace or if it’s high efficiency or not, but I based my calculations on a 70,000 btu high efficiency propane furnace and a 40,000 btu direct vent water heater… The numbers come out pretty close, so If those appliance sizes are close to what you actually have, then I would say your consumption is reasonable if you are in the northern US or Canada. The only question that remains is, are you better off using electricity! Let us know what you pay per kWhr in your area and roughly what your yearly propane consumption is in gallons and I can tell you whether it is worth changing… Edit: You’ve got cheap electricity there! I don’t know if you included transmission charges or anything in that price, but for every dollar you are spending on propane, you would spend $0.67 on electricity to do the same job! I would switch to electric!…and I’m a propane salesman!

Associated Heat More Furnace Question: which uses more energy a swamp cooler or a furnace that uses propane to heat a house?
I have a furnace that uses propane the fan on it looks like it’s about as big as my swamp cooler so I just wondered.

• Answer:As far as overall energy, the furnace uses a lot more since it’s using both electricity for the fan, and the propane’s BTU/CF value. As far as electricity use, it depends on the amp ratings for the motor, but generally the swamp cooler will be more efficent because of the fan type.

Associated Heat More Furnace Question: Which heat is more efficient in terms of price?
Both the furnace and the portable oil filled radiator use electrictity. The furnace heats a larger space and the radiator heats only one big room. Is the radiator costing me more for the small space? Help me figure this out please?

• Answer:As long as you keep your radiator thermostat a degree or two above you furnace thermostat, you will get the added benefit of the radiator without costing too much more. If you are using it in a cold and drafty room, you maybe can keep it at the same temperature.

Question
How to do for reycle the little piece of gold or silver???? I tried and the
structure wasn’t well homogeneous! How to do for recycle the gold or silver?
but not the filings of course…
cedric

Answers
The first step is to be sure you’ve kept the different types of metal seperate.
Any little bits of metal you can difinately identify as to karat and color,
should be kept apart.  These, when you’ve collected enough, can be directly
remelted and reused without additional processing.  When you remelt the metal,
be sure to use a slightly reducing flame, a clean crucible, and a proper melting
flux.  A good one is a mix of half borax and half boric acid.  If you fear
contaminated metal, such as traces of solder, you can add a little bit of
ammonium chloride to the flux.  Just a little.  this makes nasty fumes (chlorine
gas), so do this only if you’ve got good ventilation.  Melting on a charcoal
block will also remove some impurities, and even the addition of a little table
salt to the flux will also remove traces of impurities (iron, in particular), in
the same manner as does ammonium chloride, but with fewer fumes.

I don’t recommend melting filings/dust this way, as filing usually have too much
contamination from iron (saw blade and file teeth) and various abrasives and
dirt.

When you melt the metal, don’t expect to just let it cool in the crucible into a
usable ingot.  In that method, it’s cooling too slowly, and the structure won’t
be homogeneous. Also, the “blob” shape is hard to roll without getting cracking
at the edges of the ingot.

Instead, pour the metal into a proper ingot mold.  I don’t mean the open type
that gives you a brick shaped ingot either.  Use an adjustable sliding plate
mold, the type that gives you a thinner, sheet shaped ingot, usually 4-6 mm
thick.  Or use the “wire” type, which is usually the same mold, except the
plates are reversed, so you’re pouring into a round hole.  These ingot molds
must be preheated, prior to pouring.  Oil the mold lightly, then heat until the
oil smokes before pouring.

Torch melting gold works quite well.  With sterling silver, there is more
oxidation, and it can sometimes be difficult to get an ingot that will give good
sheet metal, as when you roll it and then anneal it, you often then find
blisters in the metal.  Silver works better if you’ve got a melting furnace,
such as an electromelt, or some other type where the silver is melted in a
closed graphite crucible.  It then works quite well.  If you’re torch melting
silver, I recommend you only try to produce wire.  With a wire type ingot,
though there can be imperfections, when you roll and draw the wire, the
imperfections tend to remain only as thin threads down the centerline of the
wire, which doesn’t impair it’s use, or if they are more serious, they result in
the wire breaking as your draw it down, so then you find where the bad spots are
and can avoid them in use.

The above methods work quite well so long as you restrict your reuse to metal
you know is clean.  For me, I only remelt the pieces big enough for me to pick
up and select and inspect easily  with a pair of tweezers.  Smaller bits than
that get put in the filings, as do any bits with solder, or those who’s karat I
don’t know.

While you CAN process the filings, doing it reliably requires you to refine the
metal, in order to obtain pure gold and eliminate all impurities, which you then
can realloy to the desired karat.  This process is MUCH more tedious, and for a
small shop, will usually cost somewhat more, with poorer returns, than you’d get
if you sent it to a refiner.  But the method, if you wish to do it just for fun,
is roughly this:

Use a magnet (a strong one) to remove all iron contamination).  If you use
platinum in your work, be aware that cobalt based platinum alloys are magnetic,
so in that case, be sure to save the material your magnet picks up.  It can be
sent to the platinum refiners.  Then, the remaining filings, after picking out
manually, any obvious bits of trash, are “burned” in an open container (I use a
small cast iron fry pan!), to burn off waxes and other organic contaminants.  I
do this just over a gas burner, just like letting your dinner burn on the stove.
You can do it with a torch too, but the flame tends to blow the filings around.
The remainder, once thoroughly burned, is then ready to refine.  conventional
wisdom says the metal should then be melted down in a melting furnace into an
ingot, but I skip this step.

The metal now needs to be dissolved in acid.  Melting the metal into an ingot
results in needing less acid, but it’s difficult to do, so I prefer to directly
dissolve the filings.  You need a LARGE pyrex beaker to do this, and very good
strong ventilation (or work outside) as the fumes from this acid are dangerous.
The acid is a mix of three parts hydrochloric acid, and one part nitric.  You
can use ordinary industrial grade.  Reagent grade acid isn’t needed, and costs
more.  Add the filings slowly.  As the filings dissolve, they generate heat, and
bubble up.  If you add too much, the mix can easily boil over, making a very
expensive mess.  Not all the powder will dissolve, since some is abrasive and
dirt.  Also, silver will not completely dissolve either, as silver forms a
protective silver chloride coating on the bits that slows or stops dissolving.
When the acid container shows no more sign of activity, even when stirred (this
can take several hours), you then pour the acid through a filter, in order to
seperate the liquid from the remaining undissolved dirt (and silver).  What you
now have is a transparent, but dark green or greenish brown liquid, with most or
all of your gold dissolved, as well as copper and other alloying metals, but not
the silver, which mostly stays in the powder.

To extract the gold from the liquid, one now needs to precipitate the gold.  At
first, one is merely using up remaining acid, and then you get the gold.  For
that reason, with practice, you learn now much acid to use for your filings, so
as not to end up with too much active acid in the mix to neutralize first, which
just uses additional chemicals (and money).

The gold can be precipitated by the addition of ferrous sulphate (dissolve it in
water first, to a saturated solution.  There are other ways too, including just
adding steel wool, which cements out the gold, but then you have to additionally
remove remaining steel wool from the gold sponge, so the ferrous sulphate works
better.  When the addition of more ferrous sulphate solution no longer
precipitates out more gold, the whole thing is again filtered, with the gold
remaining as a brown spongy powder in the filter.  This is carefully washed,
mixed with a bit of boric acid powder, and melted in a clean crucible.

It’s important to note, too, that if you work with platinum, the platinum
filings should be carefully kept seperate from the gold and silver, since in the
above described process, the platinum remains with the gold, giving you impure
gold.  It can be precipitated from the solution before you precipitate the gold,
using oxalic acid, but the procedure is tricky to do, and not reliable for
beginners.

Depending on the types of metal you started with, the resulting gold can be
quite pure, but usually, especially if your filings included bits of various
white metals, the result is more often more like .995, which is still pretty
good, but which can still give you less satisfactory alloyed metal if you use it
as is, since some of the contaminants can be things like iron, tin, or lead,
even though only in traces.  When you first remelt this gold, add some ammonium
chloride to the mix, which will remove some of the remaining contaminants.

You’ll note that I have not described refining silver here.  The above process
is for gold.  Silver is somewhat easier to refine, but usually not practical.
it’s so cheap, that the cost of refining it in small lots far exceeds the cost
of the metal itself.  But if you insist, the process is fairly simple.  The
scrap metal is simply dissolved in nitric acid.  Gold doesn’t dissolve in this,
so only the silver, and unalloyed copper and base metals are dissolved in this
step.  The acid is filtered, as above, to remove remaining undissolved stuff,
and a solution of ordinary table salt (or hydrochloric acid, but that’s more
costly) is used to precipitate the silver as silver chloride.  The silver
chloride can be mixed, while still wet from washing after the filtering
operation, with some metallic zinc or iron, which causes it to convert, slowly,
into metallic silver.  The remaining zinc or iron is then dissolved with
hydrochloric acid.   You can also melt the silver chloride with reducing fluxes,
to convert it to silver, but frankly, this process is a mess, produces vast
amounts of noxious chlorine fumes, and is a lot harder to do than the chemical
method.  All in all, I strongly recommend that if you do this, you stop after
recovering the silver chloride, and sell the chloride to a refiner rather than
bothering to try to reduce it.

Industrially, silver is not refined this way, but the scrap is melted into
ingots, and is then refined electrolytically.  That’s economical, but it’s not
practical to do for small amounts, and requires the silver to first be in an
ingot, rather than filings.

If you wish more details on refining, I’d suggest getting one of the several
books out there on the subject.  There’s a lot of material I haven’t even begun
to touch on, and it’s a complex subject.

Hope this helps.

Associated Gold Melting Furnace Question: Where can i buy a gas furnace/electric melting pot for melting gold for under £200?
Content:: tried making my own blast furance but no joy

• Answer:Pure gold melts at1063C and it’s main alloys with copper melt at between that temperature and 880C at 81% Au.No alloy would need more than 1083C.So all you need is a vitreous silica crucible wound with Ni chrome(bright ray)wire and coated with alumina cement which you then insulate by boxing it in a fireBrickk box filled with alumina powder.You could also avoid the electrics by putting your crucible into a homemade muffle furnace made out of firebrick which you could heat with charcoal,coke or a gas oxygen flameMademade dozens of such things and you could do something along these lines today.Generally purification should only need that the crucible atmosphere is oxidising.Good luck and go to it!Contact for further if needed.

Associated Gold Melting Furnace Question:how do I build a propane furnace to melt gold?
I need to melt down concentrates to get the gold out of them.

• Answer:If you’re handy with tools, this is a fun project. It can release a whole bunch of creativity. The link below has plans for a backyard foundry, totally homemade. Have fun and be safe!

Associated Gold Melting Furnace Question:Would a burning car be hot enough to melt/deform gold?
I know that it takes a really high temperature to melt gold, usually necessitating a furnace. …But would the trunk of a burning car suffice? If a gold ring was left inside the trunk of a burning car, would it melt? Would it at least show any telltale signs like blackening or deformities? Thanks.

• Answer:Gold has a melting point of about 1064 degrees C. Even a candle flame can get hotter than that. Gold exposed to the flame would certainly melt. Gold more protected might not.

Associated Gold Melting Furnace Question:How can i seperate gold/silver jewelry that is melted together?
My sisters house burned and all her jewelry, which was in a drawer basically melted into one glob. If i melt it (her late husband left a glass furnace) and let it cool gradually, will the gold sink to the bottom? Also,what happened to the diamonds. are they retrievable? thanks

• Answer:seperate gold and silver after they are melted together: you could not do it by yourself. you’d better send it to a jeweler and ask them to do it for you. they will do it for you on a certain charge. diamonds: i do not think it is a problem if the diamonds stick the the mixed metal of gold & silver. you will get the diamonds back after they remelt the mixture. how to seperate the mixture of gold & silver : as far as i know they do not melt the mixture of gold & silver to refine the gold: they use kind of acid the seperate the gold and silver, meanwhile, the diamonds will come out safely. maybe, your diamonds is ” burned”( looks like cloudy ) since the gold is burned. you can ask some diamond re-cut factory or, the jeweler knows how do deal with it. of course, ask them how much does it cost first, then you can take decision which is better. i m diamond jewelery manfucturer from china. u r welcome to contact me if u need any help about jewelery.

Associated Gold Melting Furnace Question:how is the best way to melt gold plated items cpu cards plated fingers etc. to seperate the gold from metal?
I have a propane furnace. and I need to know how to seperate the gold from the plated matael , computer gold plated fingers cpu cards etc.. help..

• Answer:There’s a lot of useful info on this site: http://www.finishing.com/188/89.shtml You’ll soon see what you can do and what you can’t. Whatever process you decide on, it will have to be very economic: Quote: “One ton (2000 lbs) of “average” circuit board from modern computers and electronics generally yields (in a very good system) between 8 and 11 troy ounces of 24k gold.”

Associated Gold Melting Furnace Question:how can i seperate Gold/silver jewelry that has been melted together?
My sisters house burned and, though all made it out ok,several thousand dollars worth of jewelry is now melted into a black glob. She has a glass furnace in the storage building (not damaged) left by her late husband, if i re-melt it and allow it to cool gradually, will the diamonds,gold and silver seperate with the gold on the bottom? also, are the diamonds history?

• Answer:Hi: When I first read your question I thought this is bad! But it is even worse as diamonds are involved. Diamond burns in air at ~600 deg C to give CO2 (I think Lavoisier did it with a magnifying glass). So I’m afraid your diamonds are probably gone. Ag/Au: you won’t separate these by the method you indicate: the mixture will form an inseparable alloy if it hasn’t already. Here’s what N. N. Greenwood, A. Earnshaw, Chemistry of the Elements 2nd ed., p 1179 has to say: “Cu and Ag dissolve in hot conc H2SO4 and in both dil and conc HNO3 ….. Au dissolves in aqua regia , a 3:1 mixture of conc HCl and conc HNO3.” But you shouldn’t be doing this unless you’re a trained chemist. So google precious metals recycling and send the mass off to the company nearest you. Oh dear! drp

Associated Gold Melting Furnace Question:Gold burns outside?
” When Moses approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, his anger burned and he threw the tablets out of his hands, breaking them to pieces at the foot of the mountain. And he took the calf they had made and burned it in the fire; then he ground it to powder, scattered it on the water and made the Israelites drink it.” Did you know gold melts at 1947 degrees and the best you could get from an outside fire is 1500 degrees? Neither did the writers of this story,I feel.Or did Moses hastily construct a furnace? Or is this yet another parable or metaphor we are not supposed to take seriously?

• Answer:PSA 35:5 Let them be as chaff before the wind: and let the angel of the LORD chase them. 1947? 1947?! is that the year Israel was created?!

Associated Gold Melting Furnace Question:is it a chemical or physical reaction?
1-bile in your stomach breaking down fats 2-turning on a flashlight 3-a piece of chalk is smashed into dust 4-gold being melted in a furnace into a bracelet 5-burning logs on a fire 6-heating food in a microwave 7-water appearing on the outside of a can of cold soda 8-ice melting in your drink

• Answer:1- chemical reaction 2- chemical reaction 3-physical reaction 4- physical reaction 5- chemical reaction 6- chemical reaction 7- physical reaction 8- physical reaction uhh.. do i need to answer why? in chemical reactions there are changes in the chemical properties.. or there is convertion of energy like the one on number 2.. the light energy from the flashlight came from the chemical energy of the battery.. ^^.

Associated Gold Melting Furnace Question:Do you like this poem? author unknown… He sat by a furnace of sevenfold heat, As He watched by the precious?
ore, And closer he bent with a searching gaze, As He heated it more and more. He knew He had ore that could stand the test and He wanted the finest gold, To mold as a crown for the king to wear, set with gems with price untold. So He laid our gold in the burning fire, tho’ He fain would say Him “Nay”; and He watched the dross that we had not seen as it melted and passed away. And the gold grew brighter and yet more bright, but our eyes were dim with tears, We saw but the fire-not the masters hand and questioned with anxious fears. Yet our gold shone out with a richer glow and it mirrored a form above,that bent over the fire though unseen by us,with a look of ineffable love.Can we think it pleases His loving heart to cause us a moments pain? Ah no! but He sees through the present cross the bliss of eternal gain.So He waited there with a watchful eye,with a love that is strong and sure,And his gold did not suffer a bit more heat than was needed to make it pure.

• Answer:A quick google (sorry, yahoo!) named the poem/song as The Refiner’s fire, and attributed it to Irene Lyndsay. Here’s verse 2 In the Fires of our affliction, All predestined for our good, We can see the fourth man walking, Forming now a son of God. Lest our souls fall in that furnace, Be consumed by sorrow sore, He has sent the Holy Spirit, Our deliverance to insure. He knows what will purify us, Knows the way, has gone before, And He planned this fiery furnace, Not an end – but as the DOOR. For our body, soul, and spirit, As a substance to refine, From these fiery trials and sorrows, Shall emerge, with glory shine. Not a golden, evil image, As some heathen king did mold, But a precious Holy Image, A reflected son of God. So wait my soul, wait on His workings, Wait my spirit, patiently, Wait my body, for the changing, Rising up triumphantly. In the ages yet unrolling, We shall still His glories share, For the plan of God is ceaseless, His salvation making bare. Mortal minds cannot receive it, This supernal plan so great, One that covers all the ages, Ending sin, and fear, and hate. So we give Him all the glory, Knowing fiery trials now, Will present us in His likeness, All is well, that He allows. – Irene Lindsay

Associated Gold Melting Furnace Question:Does anyone know all of this poem by Rumi?
I think the poem is called “Strange Business”, but I’m not sure. I’ve looked everywhere on the internet and all I’m getting is this: …”You sit here for days saying, ‘This is strange business.’ You’re the strange business. You have the energy of the sun in you, But you keep knotting it up at the base of your spine. You’re some weird kind of gold that wants to stay melted in the furnace, so you won’t have to become coins….. You’ve gotten drunk on so many kinds of wine. Taste this. It won’t make you wild. It’s fire. Give up, if you don’t understand by this time that your living is firewood….” I know for sure that it’s not the whole poem, I’ve seen the full poem before but I don’t remember where or what the first few lines were. Please help! This it killing me!

• Answer:You sit here for days saying, This is strange business. You’re the strange business. You have the energy of the sun in you, but you keep knotting it up at the base of your spine. You’re some weird kind of gold that wants to stay melted in the furnace, so you won’t have to become coins. Say ONE in your lonesome house. Loving all the rest is hiding inside a lie. You’ve gotten drunk on so many kinds of wine. Taste this. It won’t make you wild. It’s fire. Give up, if you don’t understand by this time that your living is firewood. This wave of talking builds. Better we should not speak, but let it grow within. — Rumi Read more: http://www.phoenixcentre.com/articles/archive/20000504.htm#ixzz0NWeUnkWs I’ve only read a few poems by Rumi – btw, they look beautiful as art in his native language. Another thing to note about Rumi is that he never spoke of love or his “beloved” as a woman. It was always about God (Allah).

Question
I live in Ohio. I have a duel-fuel system, heat-pump and gas furnace.
I want to know how to get the best energy-efficiency out of the system.
Do I turn off the heat pump and only use gas furnace when the
temperature falls below a certain degree? Is is best to leave the
thermostat at a constant temperature or should I buy a programmable
thermostat to turn down the heat at night? Are there any specific ways
to use the system for the best performance? I have heard many
differing opinions and just need some clarification.
Answers
Minimum efficient temperature of the heat pump depends on its design,
but generally they don’t work so well when the coils start to ice up and
the pump has to run through a defrost cycle. That’s usually slightly
below 40 degrees. Up until then, the heat pump is about 300% efficient.
The actual cost savings would depend on the cost of electricity and
natural gas in your area. It is a certainty that when things start to
ice up, it’s time to shut down the heat pump.

If you are using a setback thermostat with a heat pump that kicks in
natural gas heat instead of electric heating strips, go for it. Heat
pumps with electric heating strips require very expensive setback
thermostats that step the temperature up slowly, to avoid kicking in the
resistive heating. However, timed thermostats can save you some money
in the summer by allowing the house to warm up during the day while you
are at work, then chilling it off just before you come home.
Associated Gas Furnace Heat Question:What will cause gas furnace heat exchanger fail before it is life expectancy?
we are looking at a 7 year old foreclosure home, there is black soot from furnace in all the room. People suggested the house gas furnace heat exchanger might be broken, I wonder what is causing it to be broken in such a short time. Any hidden problem?

• Answer:Water dripping off the AC coil onto the heat exchanger will rot it out quickly

Associated Gas Furnace Heat Question:House can I make my small gas furnace heat better? Or make my house more energy efficient?
I live in a smaller two bedroom apartment, and the only source of heat is from a small gas furnace in the livingroom. We are having a baby in August and will be living here for the winter once they are born. Its really not very warm in other rooms in the apartment, such as the baby’s room. What can I do to either make the apartment more energy efficient such as putting plastic on the windows? Which are single glass, and we do not own the place so we will not be replacing them. Anything else? Also if all else fails what is a safe cost efficient and energy efficient space heater?

• Answer:Any electric heater would be the same in how efficient it is. The safest kind of eclectic heaters are the ones filled with oil. Any cracks in the house should be filled in. Air infiltration is your biggest heat loss. So caulk any holes in the windows etc.

Associated Gas Furnace Heat Question:Gas Furnace to Heat Pump Converstion Cost?
I am currently have a 1090 sq.ft home and it has an A.C. unit and Forced Air Gas Heating. Of course, its central heat with all the duct work in it. I am wanting to convert it to a Heat Pump ( cheaper down the road). I have no idea how much the initial expense is going to be or how the procedure works. If you can give me a detailed description, I would appreciate it. Thanks.

• Answer:a heat pump is nothing more than a a/c in reverse…. no where near as efficient as a gas heater…. nor is it any cheaper??? i would spend the money on energy efficient windows and adding insulation where needed and possible…

Associated Gas Furnace Heat Question:Should the gas furnace heat up before the blower comes on?

• Answer:The burner should run for about a minute so you don’t get that initial blast of cold air.

Associated Gas Furnace Heat Question:I have radiators for heating with a gas furnace how much will it cost to convert to forced gas heat with vents
I just need an estimate. The home is approximately 1900 square ftand 2.5 stories.

• Answer:Someone would actually have to come into your home to give you anything resembling an estimate. Don’t forget estimates are usually free…so take advantage.

Associated Gas Furnace Heat Question:Price comparison of traditional gas furnace vs. baseboard heat?
I like the idea of a healthier form of heat instead of forced air. I also would rather have an electric system. Is it any more expensive to install baseboard heating instead of replacing an old f/a gas furnace?

• Answer:Electric baseboard heat is considerably more expensive than a traditional gas furnace. For starters you will need 2-3 heaters installed into each room… this will run you about $100-$200 each. If you have 3 bed rooms, a living room , kitchen, dining room, and two bathrooms… you are looking at close to $4,000 to install the system… a high efficiency gas furnace will cost about half of that. The problem with electric heat is that it rises directly off of the base board and goes up to the cieling… whereas with forced air, the warm air is circulated through out the room which is much more efficient… which is also better for the environment. Operating costs are also a no-brainer… you will easily spend double on electric basboard heat than on a gas furnace.

Associated Gas Furnace Heat Question:I want to know the most efficient way to use my gas furnace to heat my home.?
Is it better to turn the heat all the way off when we are not home and then heat to 70 degrees when we are home. Or is it better to keep the heat on a lower degree while we are gone. i

• Answer:Since your furnace is most efficient when the run times are long, it is more efficient to just turn it off when you are gone although i dont recommend it because you may cause damage to your home .This argument has raged on for years, but the bottom line is the lower the setting, the lower your heat bill.

Associated Gas Furnace Heat Question:I live in southern California. Should I buy an air conditioner and a gas furnace or should I buy a heat pump?
I live in southern California. I am buying a central heating and cooling system for my house which is a single family two-story house built in the 70s with no air conditioner and heating provided by a gas furnace. Should I buy 1) an air conditioner and a gas furnace OR 2) a heat pump and eliminate the need of a furnace? Thank you for your help.

• Answer:Without question, the heat pump. What you save in energy costs will pay for the new unit in time. Make sure you get the highest energy rating you can afford. I am in the process of having a heat pump/air condition unit installed in my home in Florida. Heat pumps don’t work well in cold climates, but S. Cal should be great!

Associated Gas Furnace Heat Question:Would a 25,000btu gas wall furnace heat an 1100sq ft home?

• Answer:It depends on how well insulated the house is, the amount and type of windows/doors and how air tight the building is. The climate you live in is also a big factor.

Associated Gas Furnace Heat Question:How can I tell if heat exchanger on my gas furnace is broken?
I have a high efficency gas furnace that runs good. But after it shuts off a little water leaks from underneath it. The pcv vent, drain and pump are fine. Does this mean my heat exchanger is broken or could there be a loose hose connection inside the furnace?

• Answer:most likely you have a loose hose. pop off the cover and take a look. there will be a drain hose from the induced draft blower and one from the secondary heat exchanger. both of these hoses will hook to a trap of some sort.. on rheem ruud and weather king itll be a round black box.. on trane and most others the trap will be rectangular and white…..what ever the brand, the trap will be hooked into a drain, or condensate removal pump. if you are in serious doubt, get a carbon monoxide detector. there cheap, and they could save your life. if you call a service man, dont act panicky…..a good service man can find a leak in a brand new unit….no lie…they all leak a little, but they suck in fresh air rather than blow out fumes unless there is a serious hole or crack. rheem imperial drum units were a peice of junk and should be deep sixed as a matter of habit. hope this helps, Possum,hvac guy

Question
I have a four year old Bryant Plus 90i gas furnace (replacing the
original gas furnace) and just recently had the same company add A/C.
Part of the A/C install included a furnace tune up because there was
some slight rattling and the thermostat would occasionally shut off
completely. The installers tuned up the furnace but couldn’t diagnose
the exact cause of the thermostat/furnace shut off problem. But during
the troubleshooting we caught the error code that was briefly flashed
on the thermostat (E2) and then determined the error code from the
furnace’s LEDs (33). The E2 is a byproduct of the 33 code at the
furnace as far as I can tell.

33 according to the manual is LIMIT OR FLAME ROOL-OUT SWITCH IS OPEN –
Indicates the limit, rollout switch or auxiliary limit switch is open
or the unit is operating in high heat only mode due to two successive
low heat limit trips. Check for – Improper or misaligned limit and/or
limit shield, Improper low heat gas input adjustment – Stuck high heat
solenoid in gas valve.

They sent a service technician out to do further troubleshooting and he
tried a new limit switch but it didn’t help. He was able to determine
that the limit switch was tripping when the furnace cycled from High
mode to low speed mode. His assessment was that there was inadequate
air flow across the heat exchanger that is causing it to overheat.

Next week the original installer and the install manager are coming out
to see what can be done to provide more air flow. My questions to any
furnace installers out there are:

Should the installers have increased the size of the duct work in the
garage that leads to the down stairs and upstairs registers and/or cold
air return?

Is this something that is expected of reputable installers or do they
just marry the new furnace to the existing duct work and assume all is
well?

Is there are way to determine which part of the duct work is not
providing enough CFM? My understanding is that it could be that the
furnace is not getting enough cold air through the return or it cannot
push out enough heat air to the registers. Can I determine which on is
the problem?

What would you do to address this problem?

Thank you for any help you can provide.
Answers
Converting air flow velocity “V” to cubic feet per minute “CFM” is not
difficult.

You will need a Wind Speed instrument set to indicate air speed in Feet per
Minute (FPM).

Additionally, you must determine the size of the Area (A) of the opening
through which the air is flowing. For example, the inlet on a suction
duct/hose, open area of a funnel or hood, or the opening in the air
discharge of the blower, if measuring discharge air flow.

A. Determine the Area (A) of the opening and convert it to square feet
(sq.ft.).

Finding the CFM of a room’s Supply Air duct:
Area for Square or Rectangular openings: Area (A) = Height x Width

A. Determine the area of the opening by measuring the Height and Width in
inches and multiplying them (HxW) to get Area.
B. Convert the opening size to square feet by dividing the Area by 144.
(144 is the area of 1 square foot in inches)

Example:
A. Height 12″ x Width 12″ = (12 x 12)=144 square inches.
B. Convert the opening area to square feet: 144″ / 144 = 1.0 sq.ft.

Converting a Round Duct to square inches
Duct of a 6″ Diameter: 6″ x 6″ = 36 x .7854 = 28.3 / 144 = .19635 Sq. ft.
X’s Recorded vel. V 500-fpm = 98-CFM

Then you need to know what the Diffuser will flow and its pressure loss.
Hart & Cooley and others have “Engineering Data” that you can get.
Sidewall/Ceiling Diffuser 4-Way Deflection 500-fpm 6×6 70-cfm pressure loss
.016.
Associated Gas Furnace Air Question:How to get my forced air gas furnace to burn?
My forced air gas furnace is blowing only cold air when I need heat. I believe the limit switch is bad – it won’t reset. Does the limit switch cause the pilot to not light? There is no manual pilot. How can I get the automatic pilot to re-light?

• Answer:Usually when the fan runs constantly and no heating takes place a limit switch has tripped usually due to overheating or flame roll out. Some limit switches have a manual reset button on them that you would push in to reset. Running the furnace with a dirty or plugged filter will increase the air temperature of the furnace and can trip the high limit switch.These typically reset themselves when the temperature comes back down and do not have a reset button.They can be weakened due to constant cycling and not reset. Your furnace may have a control board with a diagnostic light on it that may be blinking a fault code. This would narrow the problem down to whatever the code chart says. This should be on a panel somewhere. Your furnace may not have this feature as there are many different models and brands that use different controls. Without details we would be just guessing. I would suggest getting a tech out there to diagnose it properly.

Associated Gas Furnace Air Question:How do I re-set a forced air gas furnace with no pilot to light?
All of a sudden my Payne (Carrier) model PG9MAA048080 forced air gas furnace is blowing only cold air when I need heat. Can the “pilot” go out? If so is there a way I can reset or reignite the heater? Can I find an online manual for this model. Thank you for your help.

• Answer:nope you cannot reset it. It sounds like the glow plate has gone out. If you are handy they are easy to replace (if thats the problem), it coould also be one of the circuit boards thats toast. look online at carrier.com and see if you can find a manual or call a HVAC tech

Associated Gas Furnace Air Question:Is a forced air gas furnace placed outside efficient?
I live in a condo and the forced air gas furnace is placed outside, does this effect the efficiency, it seems to me to not make much sense.

• Answer:If it is in a vented enclosure, like in a closet on a back porch, or balcony it is okay. They are installed in this manner all over the country, no real negatives. they are usually a foot or two outside the exterior wall,with the duct wrapped for heat loss. Unless you have a totally different scenario it should be fine. It is usually done this way to save space. hope this is helpful.

Associated Gas Furnace Air Question:How much would it cost to get a heat pump or gas furnace/central air installed with ducting?
I am buying a house that has baseboard heat. How much would it cost to have a heat pump or furnace/air unit installed including duct installation? There is a crawl space and an attic, so there is room for the ducts.

• Answer:Somewhere between 15,000 and 40,000 USD. Make sure you get a **real** contractor,not just some guy with a blank white van.

Associated Gas Furnace Air Question:How many square feet does a gas furnace/air conditioning unit usually heat or cool?
I have a large home with high ceilings on the first flloor.

• Answer:It depends on how hot or cold it gets where you live. Like scanjet said, it also depends on the BTU rating of the furnace or ac unit. Try a google search at http://www.google.com , you might find something online that will calculate how many BTU’s are required for your region and your house size. Or call a local heating/ac company. edit added: Found this info by googling on: BTU “square feet” http://caraudiovideosystems.com/btuguide.html It doesn’t say anything about climate or ceiling height, but you can match your square footage with the table to get a ballpark figure.

Associated Gas Furnace Air Question:How much would it cost to replace an entire central air and gas furnace system?
I would like to replace the outside unit, gas furnace and central air system. The house is about 2400 sq ft and is a 2 story. Something highly efficient and including labor.

• Answer:We recently replaced ours. We have over 2800 sq. Ft. and two stories as well. It cost a little over $14,000.00. It was Top of the line High efficiency unit. You should be able to do it for less. It just depends on what you buy.

Associated Gas Furnace Air Question:How long does a natural gas forced air furnace last?
We are looking at a house and the furnace is from 1975. All I really know about it is that it is still functional (was coming on when looking at the home), it’s natural gas, and also forced air. How long do these normally last with proper care and maintenance?

• Answer:The one in my house (in the basement) is about 40 years old and going strong. I did replace the 5 burners in it about 5 years ago. Let the pilot light burn year round because it keeps moisture from rusting out the furnace…

Associated Gas Furnace Air Question:Can I take any kind of a tax credit for my new gas furnace, central air conditioner, and the duct work.?
The furnace is only 80% efficient and the air conditioner is rated at a 13 seer. I’m pretty sure I already know the answer to this question, but want to double check just to make sure. From what I’ve found the furnace has to be 95% and the air conditioner has to have a seer rating of 15. My other question though is would the duct work qualify for the insulation credit? Any suggestions would be appreciated.

• Answer:You don’t qualify. End of story.

Associated Gas Furnace Air Question:Should I buy a heat pump or a gas furnace and central air conditioner unit?
We currently live in a home with ceiling radiant heat and no air conditioning. It is horrible. We want to change to either a heat pump or to a gas furnace and central air system. We have no idea which to do in terms of cost and efficiencies.

• Answer:It would depend on which area of the country which you live. If you live in an area with very cold winters… say the upper half of the U.S., you would be better served with a very efficient furnace (90%+)and air-conditioner. If you lived in more of a southern area your best bet would probably be a high efficient heat pump(14 or 15 SEER). Equipment prices have gone up drastically this year because of EPA efficiency requirements on the air-conditioners, but even with the higher prices you will want to look for the highest efficiencies you can afford… you will be paid back by lower utility bills. Pricing would also be determined by the size of the house being conditioned. You will also need new duct work installed, so don’t be surprised if you are spending in excess of 6 to 8 thousand dollars for a quality job with quality equipment. Of course your area of the country will dictate the price you will pay. Be sure to get at least three estimates from three contractors that you can trust. Ask neighbors and friends for the names of good contractors. This is always the best way to find someone honest who does quality work.

Associated Gas Furnace Air Question:Can you change a forced-air gas furnace to a heat pump?
This is for a house that is 2980 square feet.

• Answer:sort of – you will have to replace the whole unit though – the new internal unit will fit nicely where the old furnace goes and plum it into the existing pipes for heating and cooling

Question
I have a small, 15,000 btu wood stove. It’s in great shape and I would
like to place it in my furnace room of a split-level home. The walls
are all block. Problem: Venting it!

Can I add a “T” or “Y” pipe to my existing oil fired furnace stove
pipe just before it exits into the chimney? This would allow me to
vent the small wood stove up the same chimney flue the furnace and
H2O heater use.

What are your thoughts on this.

We’re cold on the lower level

Thanks for your ideas
Answers
When I installed my woodstove, everything was driven by my insurance
company. To have my house covered in case of a fire caused by the woodstove,
I had to do all work to building codes and to the woodstove manufacturer’s
specs and the chimney manufacturers specs.

So after reading the woodstove installation instructions and chimney
installation instructions, I went and asked my local building inspector
questions about what I could and could not do.

Then I got a permit, had my work inspected by building inspector, then by my
insurance company.

So bottom line, read the installation instructions for your specific model
of woodstove and/or call the manufacturer. Then ask your local building
inspector and insurance company. (If you want your home covered in case of
fire.)
Associated Furnace Stove Question:want a wood stove but furnace is taking up the chimney?
My furnace is using the chimney but I want a wood stove and cant have them both on the same flu. any ideas on the cheapest but still safe way i can change it to have a woodstove by next winter

• Answer:I may be incorrect, but I believe they make direct-vent furnaces that can be directly vented to the outside through a wall. You then would be able to free up your chimney flu to make use of a wood stove. However, this means that you have to buy two new appliances plus installation. Defiantly not worth it. Instead, I would recommend that you purchase a freestanding wood stove and vent it through its own metal chimney. I’m sure you seen metal chimney flus attached to the side of a house and vents straight up above the roof. I bet you their all wood stoves. And theirs nothing wrong in doing so, as long as all of the installation is is accordance with the manufactures instructions, or if that does not apply, the local building codes of your town. This is either going to require a lot of research and work on your part, or the money to hire a knowledgeable company to do the job the right way the first time. Good luck.

Associated Furnace Stove Question:can i install a wood stove in an existing chimney that has a furnace attached to it?
i have a small wood stove and want to put it in my kitchen. the chimney has an oil furnace attached to it in the basement and the gas water heater above the furnace. the wood stove will be about 8 feet above the furnace. id prefer to just vent it into the existing furnace without having to use the chimney liners.

• Answer:Big NO NO. A wood stove presents hazards that the other two don’t, and opening the existing flue above the other appliances can decrease the draft. That flue was designed and approved for use as is. Changing it should only be done after review and calculations even if a wood stove were not involved.

Associated Furnace Stove Question:How safe is a wood burning stove/furnace?
My husband wants to buy a wood burning stove to heat our home in the winter time because of the cost of propane. He will have it installed in the basement (concrete floors) and he said the radiant heat will flow upwards and heat the entire house. My fear is that our house has tongue and groove knotty pine throughout 75 % of the upstair’s ceilings and walls. The knotty pine has been stripped and varnished with polyurathane from when the house was first purchased around 9 years ago. My fear is that the wood stove could catch the knotty pine on fire. He thinks I’m being silly, but I’m just trying to be cautious. What are the pros and cons of a wood burning stove for heat?

• Answer:A husband who thinks his wife’s fears are silly sleeps on the couch, rightr? No, you aren’t silly. The thing needs to be installed properly and, most importantly, the vent pipe must be done well especially where it goes through the wall and, once outside, it must clear roof lines or there is great danger that the products of flames will back up into the house (not good if that happens). Radiant heat only flows in a straight line and does not go through any material except air. So, you’ll need to arrange to allow the heated air to flow up and (surprise, surprise) the cool air to flow down to be re-heated. Depending on the source of the wood, it will heat three or four times. Once when the tree is cut, once when it is sawn, and again when it is split. Much more convenient might be a stove that burns corn or wood pellets.

Associated Furnace Stove Question:I want to know why does my furnace and gas stove burn yellow with the blue sometimes? Is it getting air ?
When I turn on my gas stove burner it sometimes burns yellow mixed with the blue flame. My furnace burns like that also. What does it mean and should I have it checked by a repair man or your company? Thank you in advance.

• Answer:Yellow in the flame is a sign of incomplete combustion and should be taken very seriously. When natural gas or propane is mixed with the right amount of air and burned, the natural byproducts of that combustion are carbon dioxide and water vapor. That’s CO2 and H2O. If there is not enough oxygen available then carbon monoxide, CO is produced. The yellow streaks or tips in the flame are actually small amounts of carbon glowing in the hot gases of the flame. The flame is making carbon monoxide. Carbon monoxide is a deadly poison. It attacks the soft tissues of the nasal passages and the lungs. Absorbed into the bloodstream it attacks the blood cells carrying oxygen to our bodies. It is a very debilitating poison and requires great effort to recover from. Orange streaks in the flame is another matter. If the streaks are orange it is dirt particles in the air. But yellow is a danger sign. Have your gas burning appliances checked out to be on the safe side.

Associated Furnace Stove Question:Is it possible to vent a gas furnace through an existing wood stove chimney pipe?
I am trying to put a used furnace in my garage and already have a wood stove as an existing heat source in there. If it is possible, will I also still be able to continue using the existing wood stove?

• Answer:if the chimney is lined, yes. check with you local code enforcement officer or fire chief….most likely not a problem

Associated Furnace Stove Question:A yellow flame in the burner of a gas stove or furnace usually indicates that the proper?
Content::A yellow flame in the burner of a gas stove or furnace usually indicates that the proper combustion is present. a, true b, false

• Answer:False. A yellow flame indicated that there is too much oxygen. A medium blue flame indicates the proper mixture.

Associated Furnace Stove Question:how do i supplement my gas furnace with a wood burning stove?
I currently have a gas furnace in my basement and would like to supplement with a wood burning stove. What is recommended for a 2500 sq. ft. 2 story home and how to tie into my existing ductwork?

• Answer:Take care. If you have a wood burning stove that gets its combustion from the room rather than from an outside source, you are not going to help your heating problem except in the area near the stove. Since you have to heat all of the combustion air as it comes into the house, you are adding to the heating load for the gas furnace.

Associated Furnace Stove Question:Can I “pipe” the heat from my wood stove into my furnace?
I now have a hood over the stove which goes into a dryer hose (metal) with a fan on the end of it which blows a little heat upstairs. I was told by someone that I can put that same part into the furnace and have the heat go out of all my ducts that the furnace sends heat out of.

• Answer:no doubt if you can collect the heat in a hood ( not the flue pipei t must be piped outside the house) I would connect it to the return part of the furnace and let the furnace fan move it around. just be careful your hood doen not create a negative condition where the stove does not draft out of the house. A negative condition at the stove coule actually pull the combuston product into the home and may be dangerous be careful

Associated Furnace Stove Question:Ever heard of running a forced hot air furnace blower to circulate pellet stove heat?
I have a forced hot air oil fired furnace and I am thinking about running the blower ductwork past the heat of a pellet stove, or flood lights as an electric option or a 220VAC electric heating element.

• Answer:Funny – my husband was thinking of installing a separate duct with a duct fan inside of it to move some of the warm air from the familyroom (where it gets tooooo warm sometimes w/the pellet running) to the other side of the house more effectively. He hasn’t done it yet, but we’re hoping it will work ok – or will at least help keep the house more evenly heated.

Associated Furnace Stove Question:pellet stove or oil furnace?
Well its time to replace the OLD oil burning furnace in the basement. We are thinking about getting a pellet stove, What can you recommend? What can you teach me about these pellet stoves? we dont really know anything about them but are looking into it as a way to heat the house.

• Answer:Pellet stoves are fantastic, but they still require electricity to operate. This may be important if you are in an area where power outages are frequent. The fuel for the pellet stoves are also manufactured domestically, so you don’t have to be concerned with embargo’s, shortages or middle east turmoil. The downside, is that you have to pay attention to them in the regard that you have to fill them up, and have a place to store your fuel. These are concerns not related to an oil furnace. It it quite possible that a natural gas/propane furnace will be the best choice for you, as natural gas supply is more reliable than oil, and less expensive. They also burn cleaner, and can be direct vented. Gas furnaces are also less expensive to buy than oil. I am a building contractor, and have decided that when I build my own new home, I will be using gas fired furnace with radiant floor heating. I will also be using a solar tube technology for additional domestic hot water and heating. I will also be using geothermal systems and photovoltaic cells for electricity. It is my wish to be as removed from the grid as possible. Who says Republicans can’t be environmentally friendly?