Used oil furnace search.

brandonf

Hi folks,

Does anyone have any tips on inspecting a used:
oil furnace,
oil tank, 
oil burner.

I don't know what to look for as far as used equipment goes and I hate to get fooled. 

I'm looking to get a used horizontal oil furnace to heat my garage when I like. 
Although I could make a vertical unit work if I elevate it off the floor a bit. 

Seems like a waste of $ to go with new equipment. 

I can't deal with bullet heaters anymore. 

The garage is 1000 ft, all brick, 12ft high, with drafty doors, and no insulation, so I don't mind the furnace being oversized quite a bit. 

My aim is to have a good reliable setup that I could add a smart thermostat to so I could kick it on with my phone about an hour or two before I show up to do some work. 

Sometimes I'm not there for a week at a time so there's no point in keeping it heated constantly. 

I want a pro to do the work.

I would just like to know when buying used equipment that I'm not buying junk somebody wants to get rid of. 

Any tips and tricks are always appreciated. 
Thanks in Advance..

STEVEusaPA

I wouldn't put a used anything in.
How much money do you save when a used tank fails, a used furnace spews CO, or is poorly efficient? Or the equipment is in poor shape and requires many service calls and parts replacements. Don't step over dollars to pick up pennies.

The only exception is if you find a contractor who has a customer with newer equipment switching to gas-newer furnace, newer tank. Even better if you can have him do a combustion test on it before he yanks it out.

Most all furnaces will accept a wifi thermostat.

I take exception to your last remark as actually Pros don't screw people over, unscrupulous hacks do.
As far as 'getting screwed over', that usually happens to people looking for the cheapest option or 'a deal'.

EdTheHeaterMan

As a professional, I have put in used equipment for my personal use in a garage and in my home over the years. But I know the source and the reason for the removal of each piece that I recommissioned.

I can't tell you how to get years of experience in observing all sorts of HVAC equipment and their problems. I can tell you that the cost of the equipment is less than 1/3 of the total job cost of a professional installation.

Since we don't talk price here these are hypothetical numbers only. If a new furnace installed is 6000 units of currency it might break down something like this

1000 furnace
1000 for all the parts needed to install the furnace, like Class A vent pipe, fuel line, filter & valves, minimum duct connections, registers and grills, air filter.... the list goes on.
1000 per day for labor x 2 installers or days
1500 overhead and markup
500 profit
6000 units total job

If the used furnace is 1/2 price the total job drops to 5500

The savings are minimal and you don't get a manufacturer's warranty.

Now, this is in no way the exact calculations I might use to price a job. it is just an example to prove the point that used equipment is not that cost-effective.

brandonf

STEVEusaPA said:

I wouldn't put a used anything in. How much money do you save when a used tank fails, a used furnace spews CO, or is poorly efficient? Or the equipment is in poor shape and requires many service calls and parts replacements. Don't step over dollars to pick up pennies. The only exception is if you find a contractor who has a customer with newer equipment switching to gas-newer furnace, newer tank. Even better if you can have him do a combustion test on it before he yanks it out. Most all furnaces will accept a wifi thermostat. I take exception to your last remark as actually Pros don't screw people over, unscrupulous hacks do. As far as 'getting screwed over', that usually happens to people looking for the cheapest option or 'a deal'.

Point taken, my apologies. I will correct. 

brandonf

EdTheHeaterMan said:

As a professional, I have put in used equipment for my personal use in a garage and in my home over the years. But I know the source and the reason for the removal of each piece that I recommissioned. I can't tell you how to get years of experience in observing all sorts of HVAC equipment and their problems. I can tell you that the cost of the equipment is less than 1/3 of the total job cost of a professional installation. Since we don't talk price here these are hypothetical numbers only. If a new furnace installed is 6000 units of currency it might break down something like this 1000 furnace 1000 for all the parts needed to install the furnace, like Class A vent pipe, fuel line, filter & valves, minimum duct connections, registers and grills, air filter.... the list goes on. 1000 per day for labor x 2 installers or days 1500 overhead and markup 500 profit 6000 units total job If the used furnace is 1/2 price the total job drops to 5500 The savings are minimal and you don't get a manufacturer's warranty. Now, this is in no way the exact calculations I might use to price a job. it is just an example to prove the point that used equipment is not that cost-effective.

Good point. Thank you sir. 

JUGHNE

There are a few waste oil heaters around here in service garages and such.
I know the salesman, he does a travel circuit for maintainance etc.
He also takes in old units for trade in against a "new" refurbished one.
I have seen the trade in's go to the welding shop, some have just enough metal left for a pattern to replate the existing.
They get a new coat of paint and off they go.

The heat exchanger on these might last 3-5 years.
These are trying to burn every fluid in a veichle and have a rough life.
So a used one is possibly really used......there is a reason it is for sale. FWIW

Big Ed_4

Oil furnace 20year life unless it is a Thermal Pride . Now and then usage think about new electric space heater for an option ..

mattmia2

Or a propane "garage heater" type unit heater.

brandonf

mattmia2 said:

Or a propane "garage heater" type unit heater.

I considered propane. But I've always hated those package heaters. I prefer to have the vents low to the floor for good circulation of heat. Plus I'm in the city and propane isn't allowed in a big tank. 

EdTheHeaterMan

The least expensive oil furnace I have found is the type used in mobile homes. I actually use one to heat my garage. I set mine on an 8 ft section of 14"x 8" trunk duct and ran the duct under my workbench. There is no return duct and I clean the air filter after every (Extra Dusty) Project, or at least once every other month. My furnace is oil heat, but they are available in Natural and LP Gas models too.

I like the idea of blowing the heat across the floor... I then installed one in a 20 ft high garage building on a shelf about 10 ft in off the floor, then ran the duct to the floor and under the workbench to get the heat to the floor. The customer loves it. much better than the unit heater hanging in the ceiling that he no longer uses.

JUGHNE

I see my reading skills are starting to wane.
I read your first posting as "used oil furnace" rather than just "used furnace".

426hemi

Don’t buy a used furnace they are cheaply built and have a short lifespan (kind of like all new appliances) and unlike the old boilers talking pre 1960 they have very poor access for cleaning so unless the homeowner has ocd and takes the whole thing apart every year it is impossible to economically clean them (talking drilling out rivits ect) I you were to pay someone to properly clean the thing it would cost more in labor than a new unit As a result the heat exchanger rots out or fails because it’s built out of thin cheap china sheet metal 
Oil tanks are not replaced unless they get full of sludge or spring a leak same thing not worth cuting one open to clean it and welding it back together 
Oil burners are a different story if you can find a Beckett Af of Carlin Ez used I would because the new ones are not built as good and have electronics that don’t work well on portable generators and the last thing you need is no heat because the power went out and the cheap gas generator you spent under $1000 on is so noisy that the new computerized burner control won’t work 

WMno57

Electric in an insulated interior room may be your best option.

SuperTech

The only used furnace I would consider reinstalling would be a Thermopride, those are very high quality.  Used oil tank, only if in like new condition,  even then you are gambling on the condition of whats inside.  

WMno57

@brandonf You strike me as an out of the box thinker.

I have no experience to provide an answer to your original question.

How about forced hot water? The seller claims to have other sizes available. Electric - no stack or tank needed.
Boiler - Electric - Argo, 68,200 BTU
https://fortwayne.craigslist.org/mat/d/piqua-boiler-electric-argo-btu/7232747092.html

Oil fired Boiler. Just add some old radiators, or a forced air HX.
Slant Fin Fuel Oil Boiler
https://grandrapids.craigslist.org/hsh/d/hastings-slant-fin-fuel-oil-boiler/7232469818.html

Could you install the boiler inside insulated conditioned space? Office/boiler room?

EdTheHeaterMan

Boilers are better, but boilers are more costly to install and take up more floor space. Boiler footprint plus multiple radiator footprints and you need to do the connecting piping and still vent the thing thru the wall or a chimney.

Do the mobile home furnace. Natural Gas, LP, or Oil is still the best bang for your buck. If you get the proper venting kit you don't need to worry about dust from your work getting into the burner combustion fan because the air intake and exhaust are thru the same roof opening.

Merry Christmas
Ed