heat exchanger

Brad White_184

Don't go there.... :)

There was an era of heat reclaim devices from the 1970's and 80's that promoted stack deterioration and worse. I can see the desire but the result could be building if not life-threatening.

The best heat exchanger is the boiler properly tuned and transferring the heat of combustion to the water as best you can. The match-up between your boiler and your connected load is so wide but you just have to do your best on the water side.

My $0.02

john_181

can i .......

Is there any type of heat exchanger I can use on my boiler to re-claim some of the lost heat up the stack?

Is there something on the market or can i put something together?

Thanks

john_181

WORKS FOR ME.......just a thought. As for that boiler flash out problem I had....The regulator vent tube WAS plugged and it was not allowing the regulator to regulate the gas pressure. I was getting 8lbs at the burners. After cleaning out the tube, I plugged it and re-lit it with the flashout and then I removed the plug and the flame dropped right down - PROBLEM SOLVED. I plan on replacing the boiler in the spring - Brad, What do you recommend?

Brad White_184

Going Forward

John, at the risk of repetition, start with a good solid heat loss calculation. No shortcuts. See if you can improve the envelope of course. You have room to do that, I believe. That is an excellent long-term investment. Not just insulation but air sealing. Huge numbers sometimes.

(No point in wearing several layers of outdoor clothing when the back flap of your Dr. Denton's are flagging in the breeze...!)

Then I would select the best ModCon boiler you can afford. May even be two of appropriate size to maximize your part-load performance.

But until we get a good heat loss number, we have no place to start. Get going and let us know what you calculate.