Should I buy a used boiler or save up for years to get a new one?
A guy near me is selling a Lochinvar FTX500N for 1/10th of the new price. It's from 2018 and came from a school. It looks good and Lochnivar walked through how to check for errors and self test and all is good.
It fits my needs perfectly for the driveway and home… Are they serviceable enough that I should consider it a good option?
Comments
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it is probably 1/3 of the way through its life. it depends on who is doing the labor. the piping will likely cost as much as the boiler if not significantly more so you will pay that again when you have to replace it unless you plan the near boiler piping to work with most other boilers and you leave enough physical space to connect a different boiler with a different shape and piping locations to it.
it could make sense if you know enough to do it yourself, probably doesn't make sense if you're paying someone to install it.
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how close to the size required is it?
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do you have a heated driveway ?
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I'd likely try the diy side especially if I find I can use propress. It's going to be in a dedicated room so I'll have plenty of room for upgrades or changes down the road
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It is the size that was recommended by a system designer… 3000 of snowmelt and 2500 of basement that is very insulated.
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That is the plan. 3000 sq ft.
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Do you understand that this boiler has a minimum output of 50,000 BTU/hr and rises to 500,000 BTU/hr?
If you are attempting to heat a residential dwelling, it's ridiculously oversized.
If you install it, the cycling will kill the boiler in less than five years…………..possibly way less.
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Taking a look at the plan, I don't think I'm too far under the btu min.
2200 sq ft that the designer has at 14.9btu/hr. So 32,800 there. 1,000 sq ft of supplemental heat going into walls and ceiling of basement, and then 900 square feet of garage radiant that is just to keep it warm enough to keep snow melting off the cars.
I get your point though… Maybe I should just set up this 500k unit for the driveway and add another small boiler for the floor heat. That would keep me from needing to deal with a heat exchanger as well.0 -
I get your point though… Maybe I should just set up this 500k unit for the driveway and add another small boiler for the floor heat. That would keep me from needing to deal with a heat exchanger as well.
Absolutely correct.
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Dedicate that boiler to a high performance snowmelt 160 btu/ sq ft.
Then right size the building boiler.
Bob "hot rod" Rohr
trainer for Caleffi NA
Living the hydronic dream
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I see those boilers failing at local schools within 10 years regularly, usually heat exchangers rotting out from too much makeup water. Make sure you get a great deal, like maybe 1/6th what is advertised online or see if you can pressure test it before paying more. Remember a lot of the advertised price is from the manufacturers warranty, which you are not getting any of, so make sure you don't pay too much for it.
I would make a future plan for when you inevitably need to replace it. It's probably less expensive to go with multiple small units for the next one unless you have a good relationship with a local supplier. Multiple units would let you modulate down really low as well, and keep in mind if you plan to idle the slab through the winter months the required BTU/hr is quite a bit less than using a cold start on demand snowmelting. Idling the slab will cost more in fuel of course, quite a bit more.
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It's only a couple grand, so I guess I'm good there. Supply house has that heat exchanger listed at $14k. Holy moly.
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………….and the boiler is quite a bit more than that……………….
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My advice assumed the boiler was about the right size. You will also need a gas supply for that monster.
you can probably buy a boiler the right size with a warranty for what you'll spend in getting an adequate gas supply and adding enough of a buffer tank to make it run reasonable length cycles.
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