question about high eff furnace
popawheelie
| Posted in Energy, Heating & Insulation on
I was outside fixing the cable and heard my high eff furnace blow out some water out of the exhaust PVC pipe. Is that normal? I’ve listened to it before and it sounds like the pipe is running up hill or has a dip in it because there is sloshing water in there.
Replies
not normal for a properly installed exhaust..
need more slope running back to the furnace.....
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Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
So they probably have a dip in it. Does that make sense? It doesn't sound that bad of a problem. The air does pass the dip. I did plan on taking down the cieling at some point to do some other work. I could just lower the pipe on the furnace end at that time.
Edited 12/26/2007 12:21 am ET by popawheelie
see plumpbill's reply...
he explains it more gooder..
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming<!----><!----><!---->
WOW!!! What a Ride!Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
Thanks! I'll fix it "soon'.
"plumpbill's"
You been talking to my wife????????????
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ummmmmmm...
ahhhhhhhhhhh...
errrrrrrrrrrrrr.....
hemmmmmmmm...
hawwwwwwwwwwww...
why no... musta been a typo...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming<!----><!----><!---->
WOW!!! What a Ride!Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
popawheelie,
I had a dip in my pipe which I could hear the water sklooshing back and forth.
I wound up taking the dip out of the exhaust and that fixed the problem.. However I do have to watch that the resulting Ice block doesn't get too large.. The exhaust exits about 4 1/2 feet above the ground which slopes away pretty steeply so we are speaking about a really massive Ice block. Last winter it came within a foot of touching the exhaust pipe during an extremely long cold spell. However the first warm spell and the dripping water which is pretty warm quickly melts the ice block.. Doesn't even have to be above freezing..
Mild climates slope the exhaust to the outside & let the condensate drip out of the pipe.
Freezing locations slope the exhaust back to the furnace & let the pump or gravity drain take care of the condensate. If you have condensate drip on the outside in a freezing condition you end up with big icicle & ice dams.
If the exhaust is trapped or flat it can build up water until the pressure blows it all out at once.
Edited 12/26/2007 12:09 am ET by plumbbill
If there is a dip in the pipe it should be fixed. Furnaces have a backpressure sensor that prevent the furnace from starting if the exhaust is plugged. Depending on the size of the dip you could collect enough condensation to engage the backpressure sensor and lose your heat.
thanks! I figured there was some back pressure on the fan. I don't want to replace it prematurely. I might be tearing out that ceiling sooner than I thought.
The ceiling is in the laundry room. It has the furnace in it, the water heater, the main panel, and a bathroom stacked on top of it.
The main panel is 100 amp and I've gotten one quote for a 200 main. I was going to remove part of the ceiling for him. And a full bathroom above has some questionable plumbing in it. The toilet flange is lead for one. So I planned on fixing the plumbing while I had it off. PVC drains and pex supply.
The water heater is sized to small and is 12 years old with shody work.
I'd also like to put a floor drain in there. It just makes sense with all that water in there.
So one thing leads to another I guess. I can take my time though. Leaving the ceiling off is ok because it is my house.
Edited 12/26/2007 10:49 am ET by popawheelie
Edited 12/26/2007 11:05 am ET by popawheelie
Thanks for info. I'm in a cold climate so it will form a ice block. Plumbbill said that, "Freezing locations slope the exhaust back to the furnace & let the pump or gravity drain take care of the condensation".
So if I understand it right, I should lower the pipe on the furnace side and it will drain back to the furnace.
popawheelie,
Here's the deal, that exhaust water is acidic.. if when it gets outside it won't harm anything than I'd go ahead and let it drain outside.. You mentioned that you have water dripping there now, do you have a big block of ice? If not and we're about at the worst of the winter I'd keep an eye on it and as long as you don't get anywhere near the potential to block the exhaust pipe with ice and snow I'd rather it drain outside than drain back thru the furnace and go out the floor drain..
So draining it outside is better? I'm not set on either way. The pipe is high like your on the outside. So it would have to be quite a long cold spell to build it up to the outlet.
I live in Ft Collins, CO so the climate doesn't get that cold for long. It dumps some snow and then it melts off. the pipe is on the southwest corner so it warms up every afternoon.
I just figured it was better to drian it back to the furnace. I do all my new waste plumbing in PVC when I have a choice.
popawheelie,
I live in Minnesota, that's where Babe the blue OX turned blue one winter because of the cold. Not down in those warmer southern states that really don't know cold <Grin> Mine drains outside and isn't an issue. The slight acidic qualilty of the drain water is quickly dilutted every time it rains (or snows) My floor drain is cast Iron and I don't like the way it corroded the drain when it was installed on the other side of the house so on this side I let the pipe have a tiny downward tilt.
I do know that having a sag in the pipe where you can hear the water whoosing back and forth isn't good, on rare occasions untill I fixed it it would trigger a misfire on the burner. Never lost heat all night but I did lose it briefly on occasion untill the sag was removed..
Thank you. I'm on it, really. just one more cup of coffee. ;^ )
I had a high efficiency furnace installed last year, and in my case they routed the PVC exhaust so that it slopes back to the furnace instead of to the outside. My basement doesn't have a floor drain, so there is a little condensate pump that collects the water and periodically shoots it over to the laundry sink through a little plastic hose.
That's what I have right now. A little blue pump. I'd like to have a floor drain with all the stuff in there that could leak. Right outside of that room is an improved basement. It might not happen. It depends if I'm up for it.
Every installation instruction I've see calls for the flue to be pitched back towards the furnace.Make sure the condensate system works, with no kinks in the tubes.
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