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Painfully cheap!

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Tom_133
Tom_133 Member Posts: 884
in THE MAIN WALL
Ok, ok I know this is going to come across as painfully cheap and I fit that description perfectly.

What I have is 2 old Rinnai Continuum water heaters. What I want to do is tear one apart and use the combustion fan on my old wood stove in the shop for added air. My problem is its a 43V DC and I want to just run it wide open, any ideas how to make it go, like what kind of converter or how to use the parts from the unit to make it work?
Tom
Montpelier Vt

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  • Harvey Ramer
    Harvey Ramer Member Posts: 2,239
    edited December 2016
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    You should be able to do it with a step down, center tap ac transformer and a bridge rectifier. Those components are relatively inexpensive. I'm not positive of all the specifics without doing all the research.

    @SWEI Thoughts?
  • BobC
    BobC Member Posts: 5,478
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    it would be a lot cheaper to just go out and buy the right fan.

    Don't let your penchant to save a buck cost you money - there is a time to squeak and a time to spend.

    Bob
    Smith G8-3 with EZ Gas @ 90,000 BTU, Single pipe steam
    Vaporstat with a 12oz cut-out and 4oz cut-in
    3PSI gauge
    Hatterasguy
  • hot_rod
    hot_rod Member Posts: 22,158
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    trying to jam more O2 into the stove? Keep an eye on operating and flue temperatures.
    Bob "hot rod" Rohr
    trainer for Caleffi NA
    Living the hydronic dream
  • JUGHNE
    JUGHNE Member Posts: 11,062
    edited December 2016
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    Wood furnace I had used a small fan with a damper on the inlet, it is very easy to do too much air. I would switch off the draft fan and wait a few minutes before opening the door to refuel.
    The closest thing I have seen to that fan is a "radon exhaust fan" which used to be sold to air out crawlspaces/basements...it came with a variable speed controller also.

    Painfully cheap and good are seldom in the same sentence.
  • Harvey Ramer
    Harvey Ramer Member Posts: 2,239
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    You could always use something like this. https://www.farmtek.com/farm/supplies/prod1;ft_ag_growing_supplies-ft_greenhouse_equipment-ft_greenhouse_fans;pg109842_109842.html
  • JUGHNE
    JUGHNE Member Posts: 11,062
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    That looks exactly like the draft inducer that was on my wood furnace. As I mentioned I added a control switch to shut down while refueling. Also there was a transformer/relay for wall thermostat control. Once the house was stabilized the T-stat would even out the heat pretty well, (although we liked it 80 inside when it was 0 outside.) B)
  • Tom_133
    Tom_133 Member Posts: 884
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    Thanks guys, its a more a recycle, reduce, reuse thing. I was hoping since I have all the functioning parts to just make the fan work. I will have to wait until I get a normal 120 fan that comes in off an older unit.
    Tom
    Montpelier Vt
  • BobC
    BobC Member Posts: 5,478
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    Might be easier to find a 12v fan, 12v dc wall warts are pretty common.

    Bob
    Smith G8-3 with EZ Gas @ 90,000 BTU, Single pipe steam
    Vaporstat with a 12oz cut-out and 4oz cut-in
    3PSI gauge
  • ChrisJ
    ChrisJ Member Posts: 15,707
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    Wouldn't it make more sense to extend the chimney rather than run a blower?

    Single pipe quasi-vapor system. Typical operating pressure 0.14 - 0.43 oz. EcoSteam ES-20 Advanced Control for Residential Steam boilers. Rectorseal Steamaster water treatment
  • Tom_133
    Tom_133 Member Posts: 884
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    ChrisJ

    This is at my shop, it works ok the way it is. I was hoping to frankenstein the Rinnai to make it work as a blower, perhaps put a temp sensor on chimney to make it blow only under certain temps. Its really no problem, I can't think of how to get 43V DC to that fan without costing more than a simple blower so I thought Id ask. I am a native vermonter, which means "if its for me and I can do it cheap and make it work, thats all I need".
    Tom
    Montpelier Vt

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