Mod/con vs Cast Iron

Jed_2

Mod/Con!!! 5:1 Turndown!

Jed

Eileen Olive

Mod/con vs Cast Iron Boiler

If opting not to go with a mod/con boiler, settling instead to go with less expense and simple realability, what boiler might be a good choice, in the 60K btu range. Gas-fired, hot water, converted gravity system with ci rads, 1,500 sq ft, 2 story house? Any suggestions?

heatman101

There aren't any good choices...

C.I. boilers are old technology, obsolete, and a waste of resources. Especially for a converted gravity system that will be capable of running at condensing temps. the majority of the time.....
Bite the bullet and spend the money to install a system that will pay you back many times over in the lifetime of the system.

kevin coppinger_4

Buderus GA 124

Use it w/ the 2107 and constant circulation RTU it will save you plenty.....it is a direct vent. kpc
Edit..the last one I did saved the HO 30-35%...although there are many choices for mod cons.

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Steve Ebels_3

Did you see the news today?

Whoops .....FFFFUA

Ross_7

Lochinvar Solution

If a mod con isn't in the budget, which some people can't simply afford. The Lochinvar Solution Series is a nice little two stage(Hi-lo fire) copper fin boiler with optional Outdoor Reset. Usually fits the same footprint as a cast iron boiler.

Steve Ebels_3

Did you see the news today?

They were talking about gas and fuel prices hitting $5,00 per gallon. Go with a M/C boiler. Every single installation we've done has pinched a minimum of 25-30% from the fuel bill. Some have been in the upper 40% range. The price difference will be paid back within few years at the most. If one of the dictators in the Persian Gulf gets a little sideways, it'll be less than that!

ALH_4

Mod/Con

Have you looked at the Viessmann Vitodens 100? The controls are basic, but the price is pretty decent. You can always add an outdoor reset control to it later as the budget allows. An indirect water heater is also a good investment if you dont have one already.

Mike T., Swampeast MO

If cost of the boiler itself is your primary concern, consider the "Contender" by Heat Transfer Products. While some concessions (most notably a fairly low turndown ratio) have been made to keep the price as low as possible, those who have used (and reported back here) have been quite impressed even considering it in some ways superior to their "flagship" Munchkin models.

MUCH of your boiler replacement cost will be labor--this is especially true when converting a gravity system to forced flow. Compared to an utterly bare-bones conversion using a properly sized cast iron boiler in a simple, single-zone system (which SHOULD include an ESBE thermostatic bypass valve for low-temp protection) there will be a bit of added piping plus an additional circulator, but I can truly guarantee that if the mod-con is properly sized and properly installed that your fuel savings will pay for the added cost quite rapidly. Depending on the condition of the current system and your climate, payback could occur within a single season.

NOBODY expect even the finest mod-cons to last anywhere near as long as the OLD cast iron boilers. BUT, by the time your mod-con fails, I have a real feeling that law will no longer allow residential cast iron hot water boilers.

Jed_2

Again!

Cast Iron Mod/Con, 5:1 turndown (200,000-40,0000), 98% Comb. Eff., 92.6% DOE Seasonal, Control options avaialable, Limited Lifetime Warranty ( standard nowadays). This will last like Cast Iron is supposed to last (ROI)?

Mike T., Swampeast MO

So who makes this?

Boilerpro_5

I am not sure what he's talking about in that size, But....

Hydrotherm has cast iron condensing boilers in the larger sizes

Boilerpro

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Jed_2

Not official yet

Boilerpro, right church, wrong pew.

Jed_2

ASHRAE

Look for the Smith 200i Cast Iron Mod/Con. Interested in feed back from the Pro's. Very interesting design, with exceptional features (outdoor AND indoor reset, among many other onboard control functionality). A picture of this boiler was posted earlier (don't remember by whom). Looks very interesting.

Jed

joe_94

If you factor in the reasonably costly annual tuneup,and the occasional failure of computer chip controls in lightning storms,etc., and the likely shorter life of a mod-con, vs. cast iron, it may be that a well regulated quality iron boiler competes well. The KISS principle is real.

Tony_23

Costs

The tune-up should cost about the same for both.

The lightning strike repairs can be alleviated with a quality surge protector. And if it gets through, homeowner's insurance kicks in. The CI boiler has controls, too.

And, who knows the life span ? My typical fuel savings on retrofit work is 40%. To me, that's significant. Over 20 years that's a lot of money. And, the price of fuel isn't going down. One of my customers used to burn 5000 gallons of LP a year. You do the math

joel_19

nope

Cost just as much for maintenance each year CI or mod. In my area a CI is going to need a chimney liner which closes the gap on price considerably unless it's a real short simple chimney and most aren't. Throw in a 1000$ utility rebate on the mod con and it's a no brainer. I see alot of guys that aren't selling them because they don't want to get trained they don't understand how it works etc. But from a consumers financial point of view anything other than mod/con in most cases is just plain dumb.


Why not just drive your car around with 1 foot on the brake 1 on the gas?? shoot it's only 3.25/gallon who cares? install a CI with simple bang bang contoll and that is what you are doing to your customer.