Heating and air conditioning - Is there any hope for this furnace?

Author

Is there any hope for this furnace?

Kurt L.

2006-01-20, 11:21 am

Hi,

It's been raining especially hard in Oregon. Well, to condense a
fairly long story, I had a furnace sitting in my cellar waiting to be
connected. It wasn't energized or hooked up yet. Then I had another
flooding event of relatively clean water (not very muddy) that reached
the bottom inch or two of the electrical box; it probably also got the
blower mower wet, though I'm not sure whether it reached the bearings.
Do you think that this (used) furnace is toast? You can see a photo of
the furnace and the water level at this link:

http://burningbush.fastmail.fm/FurnaceWater.jpg (the dark area on the
screen tells you the height of the water level)

You can see that the water didn't reach the gas control valve, nor the
heat exchanger, both of which would be Very Bad News.

I'll be going down to look at it later today (it's in a remote location
from where I live). Are there any tips you can give me to help me
decide whether it is a total loss? I figure on checking out whether
the water reached the motor bearings, and pulling the cover off the
electrical box to see if water reached any relays or such. Any guesses
on what it might cost to replace a blower mower and an electrical
control box, or is that just not economical?

Thanks in advance for your advice,

Kurt L.

.p.jm@see_my_sig_for_address.com

2006-01-20, 12:21 pm

On 20 Jan 2006 06:56:07 -0800, "Kurt L."
<e1-qcpq-kt69-cbtm@emailias.com> wrote:

>Hi,
>
>It's been raining especially hard in Oregon. Well, to condense a

Yer fucked.

--

Click here every day to feed an animal that needs you today !!!

http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/

Paul ( pjm @ pobox . com ) - remove spaces to email me
'Some days, it's just not worth chewing through the restraints.'
'With sufficient thrust, pigs fly just fine.'
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Noon-Air

2006-01-20, 1:21 pm

The only hope is that your life insurance is paid up when you try to install
*ANY* -used- gas furnace.
Legitimate HVAC contractors and technicians are prohibited from installing
any used fossil fuel burning appliance.
The furnace you showed in the picture will at the least have to have the
entire blower section replaced.... its cheaper to buy a new furnace

"Kurt L." <e1-qcpq-kt69-cbtm@emailias.com> wrote in message
news:1137768967.717327.128320@g44g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
> Hi,
>
> It's been raining especially hard in Oregon. Well, to condense a
> fairly long story, I had a furnace sitting in my cellar waiting to be
> connected. It wasn't energized or hooked up yet. Then I had another
> flooding event of relatively clean water (not very muddy) that reached
> the bottom inch or two of the electrical box; it probably also got the
> blower mower wet, though I'm not sure whether it reached the bearings.
> Do you think that this (used) furnace is toast? You can see a photo of
> the furnace and the water level at this link:
>
> http://burningbush.fastmail.fm/FurnaceWater.jpg (the dark area on the
> screen tells you the height of the water level)
>
> You can see that the water didn't reach the gas control valve, nor the
> heat exchanger, both of which would be Very Bad News.
>
> I'll be going down to look at it later today (it's in a remote location
> from where I live). Are there any tips you can give me to help me
> decide whether it is a total loss? I figure on checking out whether
> the water reached the motor bearings, and pulling the cover off the
> electrical box to see if water reached any relays or such. Any guesses
> on what it might cost to replace a blower mower and an electrical
> control box, or is that just not economical?
>
> Thanks in advance for your advice,
>
> Kurt L.
>

spamTHISbrp@yahoo.com

2006-01-20, 3:21 pm

This leads me to the question-
if contractors cannot install a used unit, is it permissable for a
contractor to relocate an existing unit within the same premises?

Dave

Bob

2006-01-20, 3:21 pm

I have seen people (who didn't want to pay for repairs) thoroughly dry
everything out and the heater worked for years and years. Not saying it's
right, just that I've seen it.

"Kurt L." <e1-qcpq-kt69-cbtm@emailias.com> wrote in message
news:1137768967.717327.128320@g44g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
> Hi,
>
> It's been raining especially hard in Oregon. Well, to condense a
> fairly long story, I had a furnace sitting in my cellar waiting to be
> connected. It wasn't energized or hooked up yet. Then I had another
> flooding event of relatively clean water (not very muddy) that reached
> the bottom inch or two of the electrical box; it probably also got the
> blower mower wet, though I'm not sure whether it reached the bearings.
> Do you think that this (used) furnace is toast? You can see a photo of
> the furnace and the water level at this link:
>
> http://burningbush.fastmail.fm/FurnaceWater.jpg (the dark area on the
> screen tells you the height of the water level)
>
> You can see that the water didn't reach the gas control valve, nor the
> heat exchanger, both of which would be Very Bad News.
>
> I'll be going down to look at it later today (it's in a remote location
> from where I live). Are there any tips you can give me to help me
> decide whether it is a total loss? I figure on checking out whether
> the water reached the motor bearings, and pulling the cover off the
> electrical box to see if water reached any relays or such. Any guesses
> on what it might cost to replace a blower mower and an electrical
> control box, or is that just not economical?
>
> Thanks in advance for your advice,
>
> Kurt L.
>

Noon-Air

2006-01-20, 6:21 pm

<spamTHISbrp@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1137782159.733062.190130@g14g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
> This leads me to the question-
> if contractors cannot install a used unit, is it permissable for a
> contractor to relocate an existing unit within the same premises?
>
> Dave

Different situation.... and it will be up to the contractor.
Generally when a furnace is moved, its due to renovations and additions, in
which case the furnace will probably be replaced for one that is correctly
sized for the additional space. The old furnace would be scrapped.

whatsinaname

2006-01-20, 10:21 pm

<spamTHISbrp@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1137782159.733062.190130@g14g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
> This leads me to the question-
> if contractors cannot install a used unit, is it permissable for a
> contractor to relocate an existing unit within the same premises?
>
> Dave
>

We can not install a used unit that came from another home, into a new or
another different home.

And if the units old enough, we dont install the old one.

Raines

2006-01-21, 2:21 am

<.p.jm@see_my_sig_for_address.com> wrote in message
news:tb02t1ph56iebdleh4htpg26hjmalcrq0g@4ax.com...
> On 20 Jan 2006 06:56:07 -0800, "Kurt L."
> <e1-qcpq-kt69-cbtm@emailias.com> wrote:
>
>
> Yer fucked.

If he ever hires an incompetent like you he is.

>
>
> --
>
> Click here every day to feed an animal that needs you today !!!
>
> http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/
>
> Paul ( pjm @ pobox . com ) - remove spaces to email me
> 'Some days, it's just not worth chewing through the restraints.'
> 'With sufficient thrust, pigs fly just fine.'
> HVAC/R program for Palm PDA's
> Free demo now available online http://pmilligan.net/palm/

ftwhd

2006-01-21, 10:21 am

On Fri, 20 Jan 2006 20:18:30 -0500, "whatsinaname" <cbhva*1@yahoo.com>
wrote:

>
><spamTHISbrp@yahoo.com> wrote in message
>news:1137782159.733062.190130@g14g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
>
>We can not install a used unit that came from another home, into a new or
>another different home.
>
Well we can but the inspector has to approve it.

>And if the units old enough, we dont install the old one.
>

cornytheclown@hotmail.com

2006-01-21, 1:21 pm

As far as the electrical controls...if you make sure and get everything
dry before applying electricty they should be ok. The blower motor will
probably work fine too if you allow it to dry completely before firing
it off..

Ive washed old grungy circuit boards in soapy water before...just got
to dry them good.

The board on that furnace has a couple of relays on
board...hahaha...might need to look at them and make sure water didnt
get inside the plastic shell....think they are clear plastic relays.
Shells can be removed if your patient and look them over good...hair
dryer will dry the contacts and coils inside.

Take out the blower motor and electrical control section...set in a
warm dry space...take a hair dryer and dry everything out if you have
the time...as for the motor and any enclosed parts...time and warm dry
air will take care of the moisture.....the motor could work for years
or days...or seconds....wont know till you apply electricity .......re
oil the motor if in doubt and if it does have oil ports

cornytheclown@hotmail.com

2006-01-21, 1:21 pm

By the way....IF this furnace does work...Id find out before going any
further with the installation...... I would recommend hanging the
furnace from the floor joists or building a stand for the furnace to
lay down that is above any expected water level.

Kurt L.

2006-01-23, 2:21 pm

Thank you all for your replies.

I'm in the process of getting quotes for a replacement furnace. One
local shop gave me a quote of $1900 for a replacement standup updraft
gas furnace, 80% AFUE. This new furnace would sit on blocks, but would
still be at some risk of future floods, so I asked them for a quote on
a horizontal model furnace, suspended from the house floor joists, four
or five feet above the cellar floor. This would likely be immune from
anything but the most spectacular floods. The quote for the horizontal
furnace came in at double the cost - $3900. Is this reasonable? To be
fair, there would have to be more sheet metal work to adapt the
vertical ducting to a horizontal configuration, and the horizontal
model is a 90% AFUE model. Note: the furnace shown in the picture was
a bit undersized, so the quotes were for the next size up in BTU's (the
house is 1900 square feet, and reasonably insulated). Also, there is
air conditioning involved in this system; the vertical quote was
reusing the old condenser, but I think that the horizontal quote
included a special replacement condenser unique to the horizontal
configuration.

Just wondering whether the second quote seems reasonable. I suppose I
should ask someone else for a competitive bid to be sure...

TIA,

Kurt L.

Bob

2006-01-23, 2:21 pm

Nobody here can tell you without seeing the job, but the second quote might
also cover many call-backs due to noise and vibration complaints. A sump
pump would be cheaper.

"Kurt L." <e1-qcpq-kt69-cbtm@emailias.com> wrote in message
news:1138037802.736891.105320@g47g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
> Thank you all for your replies.
>
> I'm in the process of getting quotes for a replacement furnace. One
> local shop gave me a quote of $1900 for a replacement standup updraft
> gas furnace, 80% AFUE. This new furnace would sit on blocks, but would
> still be at some risk of future floods, so I asked them for a quote on
> a horizontal model furnace, suspended from the house floor joists, four
> or five feet above the cellar floor. This would likely be immune from
> anything but the most spectacular floods. The quote for the horizontal
> furnace came in at double the cost - $3900. Is this reasonable? To be
> fair, there would have to be more sheet metal work to adapt the
> vertical ducting to a horizontal configuration, and the horizontal
> model is a 90% AFUE model. Note: the furnace shown in the picture was
> a bit undersized, so the quotes were for the next size up in BTU's (the
> house is 1900 square feet, and reasonably insulated). Also, there is
> air conditioning involved in this system; the vertical quote was
> reusing the old condenser, but I think that the horizontal quote
> included a special replacement condenser unique to the horizontal
> configuration.
>
> Just wondering whether the second quote seems reasonable. I suppose I
> should ask someone else for a competitive bid to be sure...
>
> TIA,
>
> Kurt L.
>

B-Hate-Me

2006-01-23, 3:21 pm

Kurt L. wrote:
> Hi,

You need a new furnace ASAP

Bubba

2006-01-23, 7:21 pm

Usually if you change a furnace from an upflow to a horizontal, it
costs about 3 times what a normal install is. Your installer must have
screwed up on the figures. Hurry and sign his paperwork and get it
installed as quick as possible. Twice the price is a steal. You better
jump on it.
Make sure you get a new thermostat with it and ask if the ductbooster
comes with it.
Bubba

On 23 Jan 2006 09:36:42 -0800, "Kurt L."
<e1-qcpq-kt69-cbtm@emailias.com> wrote:

>Thank you all for your replies.
>
>I'm in the process of getting quotes for a replacement furnace. One
>local shop gave me a quote of $1900 for a replacement standup updraft
>gas furnace, 80% AFUE. This new furnace would sit on blocks, but would
>still be at some risk of future floods, so I asked them for a quote on
>a horizontal model furnace, suspended from the house floor joists, four
>or five feet above the cellar floor. This would likely be immune from
>anything but the most spectacular floods. The quote for the horizontal
>furnace came in at double the cost - $3900. Is this reasonable? To be
>fair, there would have to be more sheet metal work to adapt the
>vertical ducting to a horizontal configuration, and the horizontal
>model is a 90% AFUE model. Note: the furnace shown in the picture was
>a bit undersized, so the quotes were for the next size up in BTU's (the
>house is 1900 square feet, and reasonably insulated). Also, there is
>air conditioning involved in this system; the vertical quote was
>reusing the old condenser, but I think that the horizontal quote
>included a special replacement condenser unique to the horizontal
>configuration.
>
>Just wondering whether the second quote seems reasonable. I suppose I
>should ask someone else for a competitive bid to be sure...
>
>TIA,
>
>Kurt L.

CBHVAC

2006-01-24, 8:21 am

"Bubba >" <<ReMoVe likealake@iname.com> wrote in message
news:demat1tka7rflrf7clfracban0gf225aji@4ax.com...
> Usually if you change a furnace from an upflow to a horizontal, it
> costs about 3 times what a normal install is. Your installer must have
> screwed up on the figures. Hurry and sign his paperwork and get it
> installed as quick as possible. Twice the price is a steal. You better
> jump on it.
> Make sure you get a new thermostat with it and ask if the ductbooster
> comes with it.
> Bubba

And they are gonna reuse the same old condensor!!..wow....what about that
EVAPORATOR above the furnace??

>
> On 23 Jan 2006 09:36:42 -0800, "Kurt L."
> <e1-qcpq-kt69-cbtm@emailias.com> wrote:
>
>

cornytheclown@hotmail.com

2006-01-28, 10:21 am

get at least three estimates...they are free and try and get them from
people who are recommended by friends, family or co workers....

Bob

2006-01-28, 11:21 am

Not all estimates are free.

<cornytheclown@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:1138454828.185483.317590@z14g2000cwz.googlegroups.com...
> get at least three estimates...they are free and try and get them from
> people who are recommended by friends, family or co workers....
>

~^Johnny^~

2006-02-14, 2:21 am

On 20 Jan 2006 10:35:59 -0800, spamTHISbrp@yahoo.com wrote:

>This leads me to the question-
>if contractors cannot install a used unit, is it permissable for a
>contractor to relocate an existing unit within the same premises?
>
>Dave

Only to an unvented basement. :-)

--
-john
wide-open at throttle dot info

~^Johnny^~

2006-02-14, 2:21 am

On Fri, 20 Jan 2006 20:18:30 -0500, "whatsinaname" <cbhva*1@yahoo.com>
wrote:

>
><spamTHISbrp@yahoo.com> wrote in message
>news:1137782159.733062.190130@g14g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
>
>We can not install a used unit that came from another home, into a new or
>another different home.
>
>And if the units old enough, we dont install the old one.
>

And if the house is old enough, we tear it down.

--
-john
wide-open at throttle dot info

~~~~~~~~
"The first step in intelligent tinkering is to
save all the parts." - Aldo Leopold
~~~~~~~~

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