New Heating System Project, Need Solutions

snuffy · Post by **snuffy** » Sun. Mar. 01, 2015 12:10 am

Hi all,

I'm contemplating a new heating system for a ranch home about 1,500SF 1st floor and 1,500SF basement. 1st floor is all electric baseboard and basement is heated by a Keystoker 90K rice burner. In this project I need to abandon the existing chimney and change out all equipment to a exterior raised concrete patio with an area enclosed Block (12'X14'X 10'H) with garage door below the concrete patio deck that is attached to the concrete basement wall. Logic suggest I use the existing chimney but due to other factors that won't be possible.

I prefer to install a hot water baseboard or under floor hydronic system using EFM DF500 with oil gun or even a similar Keystoker or possible some other yet unknown to me oil/coal system for it's inherent flexibility. I also prefer to make this system a direct vent system but I'm not sure this will be possible. EFM literature states a 30 foot chimney for this type of install and I would imagine Keystoker would suggest the same. Is 30' a hard and true height for such a system? (A more reasonable possibility would be a +-22' chimney) Is it possible to set up a direct vent system with a coal/oil stoker? The patio area has a full concrete basement wall and it would help isolate possible CO gas from infiltrating the main living space.

Your thoughts are welcome!
Snuffy

Freddy · Post by **Freddy** » Sun. Mar. 01, 2015 6:26 am

You just can not do a direct vent with a full size coal boiler. If the electricity dies it will very quickly cause carbon monoxide to fill the area as the coal keeps burning. Only devices with a very small amount of coal burning can be safe with a direct vent. With them if the power dies, the fire goes out within seconds of minutes and leaves no fuel to make CO. Others may chime in. I don;t know if anyone makes a boiler made for direct vent, but I'm guessing no one make one with oil also.

As for the height of the chimney, I'm simply not sure if you'd get away with a shorter one. I do know that Axeman Anderson calls for a shorter one, but they don't have an oil burner.

Mikeeg02 · Post by **Mikeeg02** » Sun. Mar. 01, 2015 6:47 am

Do you have a/c ductwork in the house? I would want to have a zone with a heat exchanger in the ductwork. While heated floors in a house are nice, I would not want to heat a house solely by the floor. Heated floors IMO should be a 'supplemental heat'. Main reason is after a cold night, and the floor is plenty heated up, and the sun comes out, the temperature inside will severely over shoot. Probably making you turn on the a/c or open the Windows.

If I was you, I would find a way to not lose the chimney. Otherwise you will be building another.

windyhill4.2 · Post by **windyhill4.2** » Sun. Mar. 01, 2015 7:43 am

EFM recommends a minimum 8" x 15' ,this may be sufficient depending on the height of the roof peak & how close the surrounding trees are to your house.

McGiever · Post by **McGiever** » Sun. Mar. 01, 2015 7:59 am

If that under-floor hydronics system were the staple-up w/ aluminum plates type, instead of the poured self-leveling type the over-shoot issue is not much of a factor.

Less heated mass = less over-shoot.

Pacowy · Post by **Pacowy** » Sun. Mar. 01, 2015 10:45 am

snuffy wrote: Is 30' a hard and true height for such a system?

The manuals that I have seen provide guidelines for chimney dimensions, but it's all in the context of achieving a specified draft. AFAIK the important thing is to achieve the draft, not to satisfy a tape measure.

Mike