Propane Heater Conversion

I presently have propane gas at my home. The Empire SR-10T heater than I'm considering purchasing includes a warning in the manual that field conversion from propane to natural gas is not permitted. (One day I hope to get natural gas and would hate to discard the heater.) Why would the conversion not be permitted? Is it just changing a gas nozzle?

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Reply to
mcp6453
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m considering purchasing includes a warning in

tted. (One day I hope to get natural gas and

ted? Is it just changing a gas nozzle?

On page 7 it mentions both LP and NAT...when I converted our range from LP, there were orifices to change on the burners and a lighter spring to excha nge in the regulator. Neither appliance dealers nor the gas company would d o the conversion because of liability.

Reply to
bob_villa

At least Fig. 10 (on page 17) would have to be changed to the NAT gas regulator.

Reply to
bob_villa

m considering purchasing includes a warning in

tted. (One day I hope to get natural gas and

ted? Is it just changing a gas nozzle?

There is a difference in BTU (heat) between natural and propane gas. That m eans the burner section has to have different metal quality & thickness whe re the flame heats it. Propane usually has cast iron whereas natural can b e steel. The gas jets vary in size to control the flame size for the same reason.

That info came from water heater manufacturers and I assume it would apply to home heaters also.

Reply to
RedAlt5

I would say that code says such appliances must be installed to conform with the manufacturer's instructions. Given that the manufacturer's install instructions say field conversion is not allowed, to be code compliant, it's not allowed. Could you do it? Probably. Typically the burner orifice/s size must be changed. Given that it;s unvented though, I sure wouldn't muck around with it.

Reply to
trader_4

I would change "probably" to "maybe". In water heaters the gas controls for propane are left hand threaded and natural gas are right hand threaded, all to prevent conversion.

Reply to
RedAlt5

I have to question this..... What threads are you referring to?

I've hooked up several propane water heaters, and just used plain copper tubing and flare fittings, or a standard flex pipe at the heater.

Yea, the propane tanks are left hand threaded, but that's installed by the propane supplier when they install the tank. I have never seen a left hand thread on any propane appliance. I have a propane furnace and kitchen range. Both are standard right hand thread connections.

You might be speaking about the connection between the control and the burner. There you could be correct. (I've never taken one of them apart).

Reply to
Jerry.Tan

That's where it is.

If the manufacturer of a furnace warns you "DO NOT CONVERT", it says that f or a safety reason and tries to prevent you from doing it. If you bypass th eir efforts to prevent conversion and have fire damage, you are at fault an d not them. If a furnace comes with the choice of using either gas, and no warnings about doing it, they see no safety problem with their product.

I would assume that a water heater overheating by using the wrong gas could turn it into a nasty bomb if the overflow valve stuck shut.

Reply to
RedAlt5

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