Experimental re-post from yesterday,,*grin*

Lots of heat related questions lately.. I have a Comfort Glow solarfusion propane SF30PT heater,,thermostatically controlled and works by convection(no fan)and radiant heat both..It claims to heat 1,000 sq ft..Operates at 15,000 to 30,000 btu..I've had it new in the box for over a year now and probably wo'nt install it till next fall..It is vent free..I plan to use it along with a forced air furnace to heat this leaky old place,,I also plan to seal this place up eventually so a high efficiancy forced air furnace that draws fresh air from outside makes sense I guess..The thinking here is efficiancy,,the C-Glow requires no electricity and no heat goes out via exhaust wich makes it virtually 100% efficient..Propane is less costly than elec..It will operate during power outages.. I realize the safety issues,,I live alone lately,,no woman or kids to

worry about.. My question is about calibrating the two thermostats..How to do this so

they both share the heating load? The C-Glow has a mechanical thermostat built-in I'm sure(have'nt opened box yet)so should I move the furnaces' thermostat to near the C-Glow? Or just try to calibrate with the respective settings?

Has Anyone else here been crazy enuff to try something like this?! LOL..What were Your results? Any experiences with this exact C-Glow heater? I'm sure more questions will come up,,I have more questions than Carter,Lilly or Roche ever had pills! I've been holding back,,do'nt wanna overload the internet! Inquiring minds wanna know! TIA. Dean

Reply to
Dean
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Hi Dean,

I don't have any personal experience using ventless heaters (they're not permitted here in Canada, by code), but beyond the obvious safety issues, I would be concerned about potential odour problems, any possible heath risks related to long-term exposure to combustion products and elevated humidity levels. Perhaps these issues are of little concern now due to your home's relatively leaky construction but as you take steps to seal up your home, they would be worthwhile revisiting.

In any event, I take it you would be using this space heater primarily as a backup heat source in the event of a power outage or furnace break down? Would that be correct?

If so, I would leave the unit turned off until such time as it is needed. If you will be away from home for an extended period of time and are concerned you may lose heat, I would turn it on and set the thermostat at the minimum setting required to keep your pipes from freezing (say 40 or 45F). If you normally keep your furnace thermostat above this set point, this space heater shouldn't come on unless, obviously, there's a problem. With regards to moving your furnace thermostat, I can't imagine why this would be necessary (does the temperature in your home vary that much from room to room?).

Does this unit have a pilot light or electronic ignition? If it operates on a pilot light I would be inclined to turn it off just to conserve fuel -- a standard pilot light can uses about a litre of propane per day (sorry, I don't know how that translates into pounds or gallons). [During the dead of winter there's little, if anything, to be gained by doing this, in that your daily heat demand will exceed this amount by a wide margin, but during more mild periods this additional heat may be unnecessary.]

If you plan to use the heater on a regular basis for spot heating and/or personal enjoyment, then you might leave the pilot running (again, assuming it has one) and turn down your main thermostat, at least during the times it's in use. This is so you don't waste fuel or overheat your home. At its lowest setting (15,000 BTUs), it's cranking out about the same amount of heat as three 1,500-watt electric baseboard heaters and unless your home is especially leaky or large, this will quickly have you stripping to your shorts in relatively short order (so to speak).

Not sure if I've properly answered your questions but, if not, hopefully someone else can.

Cheers, Paul

Reply to
Paul M. Eldridge

-snip-

Also no chance that when you pass out from CO poisoning- no-one to wake you up. Buy a good explosive gas/CO detector. Cost $40 & could save your life. [since you'll be using this during power outages, be sure to get one with at least battery backup]

And before you install it, see what the codes are where you live. In my area, you can't have gas space heaters in rooms where people sleep, and there are strict BTU/square foot restrictions.

You might want to break the code at your peril-- but your gas supplier won't.

I doubt you'll get them to work together. If it is possible to add another thermostat, get a setback thermostat for your space heater. Otherwise, you'll have it trying to heat the whole house when your furnace gets setback at night.

Jim

Reply to
Jim Elbrecht

doubt you'll get them to work together. If it is possible to add

I've got a Nighthawk co detector but it's due for replacement,,$40 ai'nt bad,,maybe 2 of those You mentioned,,I like the idea that it detects explosive gas in-case of a leak,,that's something that should be in place anyway since there are charged gas lines in place.. While researching I came accross a site that said "the proper color of propane flame is blue",,"a blue flame is putting out carbon dioxide but a yellow flame is putting out carbon monoxide",,When I use the propane range I have to turn the flame fairly low to get rid of the yellow tips on the flame before placing a pan on it,,does this mean it's time to replace the range or just the burners? Dean Dean

Reply to
Dean

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