Welcome! Here are the website rules, as well as some tips for using this forum.
Need to contact us? Visit https://heatinghelp.com/contact-us/.
Click here to Find a Contractor in your area.
Older boiler ratings: heating area sq ft?
Gilmorrie
Member Posts: 196
Older heating boilers' nameplate ratings often included heating surface area, in sq ft. For example, my 70-year-old firetube, Kewanee hot-water boiler has 41 sq ft. This is the total surface area of the firetubes. A larger heating surface area should help wring more heat out of the flue-gas and help improve efficiency - so, heating area was something to consider when comparing boilers. Nowadays, the heating surface area is seldom if ever mentioned or listed in specs. Why?
0
Comments
-
Manufacturers are now required to rate the efficiency of their boilers using standardized testing methods. The heat exchanger surface area is therefore no longer relevant to the heating system designer or owner.—
Bburd0 -
Heating surface was an old way of trying to compare boilers and is a holdover from back in the coal burning days. It was never all that accurate. Sometimes still used when discussing larger scotch marine boilers0
-
I believe that rating was Sq Ft of Radiation!Gilmorrie said:Older heating boilers' nameplate ratings often included heating surface area, in sq ft. For example, my 70-year-old firetube, Kewanee hot-water boiler has 41 sq ft. This is the total surface area of the firetubes. A larger heating surface area should help wring more heat out of the flue-gas and help improve efficiency - so, heating area was something to consider when comparing boilers. Nowadays, the heating surface area is seldom if ever mentioned or listed in specs. Why?0 -
Not if it was 41 feet 😅pecmsg said:I believe that rating was Sq Ft of Radiation!NJ Steam Homeowner.
Free NJ and remote steam advice: https://heatinghelp.com/find-a-contractor/detail/new-jersey-steam-help/
See my sight glass boiler videos: https://bit.ly/3sZW1el0 -
Older boilers were rated in sq feet of heating surface. Some were rated in sq feet of grate area. Scotch marine boilers are rated at 5 square feet of heating surface /boiler horsepower0
-
Thanks for your comments, very helpful.
Correct - the 41 sq ft applies to the heat transfer area between the flue side and the water side of the boiler - not room radiators. That 41sq ft is on the boiler nameplate. My radiators are very much larger.0
Categories
- All Categories
- 86.9K THE MAIN WALL
- 3.2K A-C, Heat Pumps & Refrigeration
- 57 Biomass
- 425 Carbon Monoxide Awareness
- 110 Chimneys & Flues
- 2.1K Domestic Hot Water
- 5.7K Gas Heating
- 105 Geothermal
- 160 Indoor-Air Quality
- 3.6K Oil Heating
- 70 Pipe Deterioration
- 978 Plumbing
- 6.3K Radiant Heating
- 387 Solar
- 15.4K Strictly Steam
- 3.4K Thermostats and Controls
- 54 Water Quality
- 44 Industry Classes
- 47 Job Opportunities
- 17 Recall Announcements