A Dead Man Speaks (Steamhead)

Sean_15

Makes much more sense than my guess. That's OK, he's worthy of the honorific "emeritus" regardless!

Steamhead (in transit)

\"House Heating with Oil Fuel\" from 1927

by P.E. Fansler, E.E. (never seen E.E. before but I'm assuming it's some level of engineering degree).

In 1927, the oil-heating industry was just coming into prominence. Many different burner designs were on the market. Minneapolis-Honeywell had recently introduced the Series 10 control system that would endure for 30 years or so. The 275-gallon indoor tank had been approved for about a year.

Here are some things Mr. Fansler had to say:

"The oil burner...produces the heat, and the boiler transfers it.". The need for efficient heat transfer from the flame to the water was as big a factor then as it is now.

Regarding scorched-air furnasties: "There are two objections, both inherent in the design and construction of many warm-air furnaces.... to the use of mechanical-draft oil burners (in these units). One is the noise that frequently transmits through the house, and the other is the tendency of the furnace to leak gases into the jacket". Carbon monoxide- enough said. He does note that furnasty makers were striving to improve the situation.

On the low-water situation in steam boilers: the metal in the boiler "may actually become red-hot, and if water is again restored to its proper place there is a liability that the boiler will be cracked or that an excessive steam pressure will be created". He describes float-type Low-Water Cutoffs as well as a type that responded to this excessive temperature. How many older boilers have we seen without LWCOs? Too many.

Many burner control systems in use then did not have a means to stop the burner if the flame failed or didn't come on. But some recent ones did. The stack control at that time was just a sensor, rather than the integrated sensor/relay package we know as the RA117 and similar units. But even then, this wasn't the state of the art. Someone, he doesn't say who, had introduced a mercury switch for this service that worked by expanding gas.

On insulation: "One of the most important considerations in the problem of heating the home has been sadly neglected, almost to the present day. This is the proper conservation of the heat that is developed in the combustion chamber and distributed by pipes to the various rooms of the home... Considering the walls, it is safe to say that the heat losses through the average construction of to-day can be cut in half through the use of the most effective insulating materials. But it is through the roof and around the eaves (especially in houses of conventional frame construction) that the large part of the heat escapes, and this loss can be halved".

It took several energy crises and drastic price increases before building codes recognized this fact and required homes to be insulated.

On efficiency: No oil burner can be properly "set" for optimum results without making an Orsat test of flue gas accurately, to determine combustion conditions". How many techs reading this don't use combustion analyzers? The current digital ones are far easier to use than the old four-pipette Orsat kits...... The writer also states that the Orsat should show a CO level below .05%. If my math is correct that's 5000 parts per million- way too high by today's standards.

Interestingly enough, of the many burner manufacturers mentioned in this book, only one is still in business today- Wayne.





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Sean_15

Very nice article. I'd guess that E.E. in this context stands for Engineer Emeritus, which would mean Mr. Fansler had been around for a while when he wrote this.

Sean_15

Very nice article. I'd guess that E.E. in this context stands for Engineer Emeritus, which would mean that this gent had been doing this for quite some time.

EBEBRATT-Ed

just goes to show that some things never change.

RonWHC

Series 10 - - - 30 years?

Saw my first T-11 Thermostat (3-wire) in 1962. It was connected to an RA117A Stack Relay. You can still buy that relay new! For better, or worse. Suspect there are still more than a few R117-3 (mercury switch) controls operating out there.

Think about it. Interrupted ignition - when the gas boys could only offer "constant" w/ a standing pilot. They're catching up, but their "may fly" life span ignition modules are only "intermittent", & will probably never match that which was born in 1927.

Christian Egli_2

I wasn't born yet in 1927

Common sense just never goes bad, we just loose sight of it sometimes when trying to invent the better mouse trap.

It's the Lemmings that fall off the cliff.

Steamhead (in transit)

I think the Series 10 fell out of favor

with the introduction of the T86A round thermostat, which evolved into the T87F. Two wires instead of three, and fewer contacts. The stack relay became the RA817A. This would have happened around 1960 or so.

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Steamhead (in transit)

I think you might be right

he certainly writes like he's been involved in heating for a long time.

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Steamhead (in transit)

Actually

some of these early oil burners did have gas pilots- some constant, some intermittent. The reason was that fuel oil grades weren't standardized as they are now, and direct-spark ignition didn't work so well with some fuels.

The writer also mentions that gas heating in America was first used in Baltimore around 1916. This date is corroborated in a history of what was called the Consolidated Gas & Electric Light & Power Company of Baltimore in 1950 when it was written. Today it is known as BGE, which is owned by Constellation Energy.

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RonWHC

The T-11 was

used thru the 60's. A dollar bill could solve most of the problems. It was eventually replaced by Series 80 (2-wire 24V) Stats. I liked the Robertshaw TX400. The RA117A is still out there. A Series 80 stat works it quite well. Most of the Series 80 Relays were 816s, w/ intermittent ignition. Cheaper. That's why they were used. Service Agreement customers didn't know they were using more electricity & eating up transformers & electrodes.

Take a good look @ that next switching relay you hear. Just might be an RA19A. Almost indestructible.

Did the Centra VF 20 work?

Bob W._3

I am assuming that E.E. meant electical engineer. Seems logical as he was dealing with controls.

jp_2

CO

my math says .05% equals 500ppm

Steamhead (in transit)

Turned out

it did have a sensor in addition to that extra pressuretrol, but it was hidden away on a wet return where it wasn't easy to find. But, the main controller has some other issues (clock switch is bad, etc.) so it will be replaced. I can drop it back off if you like. Thanks for the help.

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Steamhead (in transit)

Bob W. You're Right- E.E. = Electrical Engineer

Further research by Firedragon and myself turned this up. Percival E. Fansler was probably in his thirties or forties when he originally wrote that book (BTW my copy is the third edition). He was also involved with early aviation and motorboating. He became a Dead Man in 1937 at age 57.

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Steamhead (in transit)

I hope

yours is right!

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