Many parts of the pipeline burn some gas in a turbine to power the compressors. No external input needed. There are some compressor stations in south western ontario with a few megawatts of compression this way.
|
|
|
Alternative Heating
- Thread starter Jampy00
- Start date
Relax
Well-known member
I'm OK with breaking some rules if the other options are freezing or having a flooded basement. During one of the past power outages, a friend of mine had no choice but to use one of those propane tank-mounted sunflower-looking heaters to stay warm while he had no power for a few days in his poorly insulated 1950's house.
The upside to a gas powered furnace is a 1-2 kw generator can keep the house warm and fridge/freezers cold. A 5 gallon tank of gas lasts a long time too.
Relax
Well-known member
I understand the principle, I just don't have the details. Looking at the manuals and wiring diagrams for other models of the same make, they all seem to be low voltage, but different specs - some 3v, some 6v, and they all have battery backup options using AA or D cell batteries. But when I opened up my fireplace, I don't see a transformer in there at all, so maybe it's 110, in which case I'd need to wire it to a UPS.
Be careful with cheap UPS and circuit boards. Most furnaces require sine wave input and cheap UPS's deliver a horrible square approximation full of harmonics. I would assume that fireplace boards are similar. Cheap UPS is fine for a computer as their switching power supplies don't care nearly as much about the crap thrown at them.
My parents thermostat takes a dump when the power goes out. Thermostat turns off when power drops but when generator fires up, it is locked up. Depower the thermostat for five minutes and repower and it is fine. It is the short interruption it doesn't like. I was contemplating a UPS just to power the 24 v transformer and eliminate that issue but a UPS with a clean inverter is expensive (pushing $1000).
AllistonGT
Well-known member
Get the code is the code but I can plug in our clothes drier, stove, dishwasher and fridge. Things that don't get moved. Perhaps some codes are just illogical.
Pretty easy to build a shelter for your generator to avoid rain/snow and leave it outside year-round. Do proper rodent related steps like you would in a garage so they don't nest/chew in there. I was around for the 2003 power-outage and always keep more than 7 days of generator fuel on hand (if I blow though that in an outage there's another 24gals in the sleds to use.....). Just saying, the worry of sucking in snow/etc definitely doesn't out-weigh the benefit of having one to me.
I have geo and no auxiliary heat keeps up fine all winter no issues. Mine is a simple pump and dump system hooked to the water well pump in the basement dumps to the pond.
Sent from the future
The neutral for the furnace becomes isolated when you unplug it from the switch/receptacle.
Mad Mike
Well-known member
Ive had furnaces passed with a plug, ESA inspectors looked it over and said nothing. The unit heater installed in my garage (2018) has a 30a plug, my gas furnace up north 15a (approved Oct.)
I never press my luck by asking if it's OK, inspectors 500km away from each other had nothing to say about plugs.i can't find a requirement in the code.
That is correct. You also have to have a means of isolation (a switch) next to the furnace, you don’t generally put them ON the furnace as they show in the video. It has to be on a dedicated circuit. The wiring from the switch back to the panel does not need to be in BX. If I were to do this with the intent of getting it passed by an ESA inspector, I would run the BX from the furnace to a junction above or beside the furnace, I would join a short piece 14/3 sow cable with a male chord cap on it., making the joints inside that junction box.Instead of a switch I would put a receptacle on a dedicated circuit next to the junction box so that you can plug the furnace into it. You can put that receptacle on a switch right beside it if it makes you feel good but I would say that the ability to unplug the furnace meets the requirement for means of isolation and you’ve met the requirement for the final connection to be in bx. This would be slightly better, simpler installion than as shown in the video. It really depends on the inspector’s mood that day on whether he would pass that. He would obviously understand what you were trying to do. I think this is the safest, simplest way to get your furnace isolated from your home’s electrical system (and power grid) when the power goes out and you need get some heat in a hurry. It’s as simple as unplugging your furnace and plugging it into an extension chord going out to your generator.
The problem with the installation as shown in the video is that you could potentially have two sources of power in the box that the switch/receptacle is mounted in - power from your panel as well as power from your generator. An inspector would definitely have a problem with that.
Typical 120v feed to a furnace or boiler will be NMSC 14/2 or in some cases 12/2 (I have seen this on oil) from the panel to the shutoff switch. From the switch to the furnace armoured cable. The logic AFAIK is the feed to the switch from the panel is all between joists, etc. (or at least above 5'). The cable at the furnace will be exposed and needs protection, hence armoured cable. Switch is just an easy transition point between NMSC and AC/BX, no need to add another box.
As for a plug on the furnace. Just to be a devil's advocate....it is an appliance. Portable appliances are not typically hard wired like a stove (even gas with 120v power) nor a washer/dryer. But the furnace is not portable... so better yet like a power vent water heater fixed, uses power not to heat but to run....
Right or wrong I can not say but when it is right in other cases you have a plug in appliance the outlet/receptacle is ALWAYS mounted to the "wall" not the appliance. The power cord runs from the appliance to the outlet. I do not see why this could not be done here (like a power vent heater). Make sure the power cord is a proper power cord and not some sort of NMSC or BX with a plug on the end. Make sure there is a grommet and strain relief where it runs through metal on the furnace. DO NOT mount the outlet itself on the appliance!
As for a plug on the furnace. Just to be a devil's advocate....it is an appliance. Portable appliances are not typically hard wired like a stove (even gas with 120v power) nor a washer/dryer. But the furnace is not portable... so better yet like a power vent water heater fixed, uses power not to heat but to run....
Right or wrong I can not say but when it is right in other cases you have a plug in appliance the outlet/receptacle is ALWAYS mounted to the "wall" not the appliance. The power cord runs from the appliance to the outlet. I do not see why this could not be done here (like a power vent heater). Make sure the power cord is a proper power cord and not some sort of NMSC or BX with a plug on the end. Make sure there is a grommet and strain relief where it runs through metal on the furnace. DO NOT mount the outlet itself on the appliance!
Is the centrifuge to get the chunks out so you don't plug the nozzle as often or are you only burning lighter fractions?
I gather you are knowledgeable enough that in case of an emergency outage you could grab a piece of cabtire with a plug, disconnect the BX from the furnace and hook up the temporary cabtire. Reverse when the power comes back on.
You could make the procedure simple for a less knowledgeable person by throwing a junction box and DPDT switch into the mix.
However the inspector also has to consider the house being sold and a totally clueless person misunderstanding the system and burning the house down.
A friend in rural Quebec bought a house with wood heat, probably pellet.
She switched it to electric baseboards and had the duct work removed.
Now Hydro PQ is sending her info on heat pumps and touting the savings.
Too bad she didn't leave the ducts in place.
She switched it to electric baseboards and had the duct work removed.
Now Hydro PQ is sending her info on heat pumps and touting the savings.
Too bad she didn't leave the ducts in place.
|
|
|
|
|