Good morning!!!!

[rswyan]

34F and cloudy @ 06:30 ... calling for a high of 40F today, with some light rain in the afternoon.

Didn't go back up to the shop last night ... just too tired.

I did manage to make the run to Autozone before I conked out for some gear oil ... which, of course, they were out of ... got some JB Weld (for a mod to the filler plug for the hydraulic fluid on the Kubota) and di-electric grease instead. Also stopped by Harbor Freight and picked up a pack of flux brushes ... and scored a free LED flashlight. Yippee.

Need to swing by Summers Rubber later today to pick up a couple of hydraulic fittings ... assuming I can get some prediction from the HVAC guys as to when I need to be here for them.

Started cleaning all the grease, hydraulic fluid, and accumulated crud off the B2910 ... geezus ... what a mess ... hopefully I will get it degreased and pressure washed today.

And RS is busy making the Eiffel Tower and adding twin turbos to his gas burner (Trane Ecoboost???)

LOL ...

It's actually a Rheem Imperial 90 Plus ...

And I'd settle for one draft inducer (which does look somewhat like a turbo) that was working correctly.

 

[dave1949]

One of the best features I liked living on the German economy was Rolladen shutters.

David Sent from my iPad Air using TractorByNet

Me too.

The tilting and swinging windows and doors, rolladens. Pretty good combination for light, ventilation and privacy. Good quality stuff in the newer homes too. I could make good use of the vinyl shutter type rolladen that has some insulation value for my south windows.

 

[dave1949]

39 and raining off and on. Should hit 48 but cloudy.

Gas is certainly dropping in price - filled up for $2.34 in Petersburg on the way home from a hunting trip down near the VA/NC state line yesterday.

Dave, very interesting home design, and fireplace. I Binged some pics of Finnish Tulikivi soapstone fireplaces and they are beautiful.

Thanks. The house is our green effort, thinking there has to be a better way than burning 500-1000 gallons of heating oil every winter. The Tulikivi was something Sharon fell in love with. Kind of pricey for our usual spending range.

 

[ronjhall]

Coffee has been poured. 66° with some fog this morning. Heading to 73° (Fort Stockton, TX) with sun and wind out of the west. Back on the road today. Should be good traveling except for some wind later in the day. Was a good visit with TBN friends in Lexington, TX area. Enjoyed using txdon's tractor. Nice to have all that power. His Grapple worked great getting the Yaupon Holly out of the ground. Got to be careful though. That stuff will bet into things and bend a heavy metal guard. Thanks Don for the opportunity to use your tractor.
Good Morning All.

 

[dave1949]

Started cleaning all the grease, hydraulic fluid, and accumulated crud off the B2910 ... geezus ... what a mess ... hopefully I will get it degreased and pressure washed today.

My FEL arms need to go into a degreasing tank. :laughing: The rest of the tractor I keep clean but the spaces around the loader pins that get greased are shameful now. The early TC Boomers did not have bushings for the loader pins, real smart and I didn't know enough to check on that. Anyways, they get looser and hold grease less with age but ya got no options other than keep pumping the grease to them or get a total rebuild. The pins are perfect--of course, all the wear happens in the holes.

-1F this morning. Clear & calm. Mid-20's today with sunshine.

 

[bakerg]

Good morning, 28F heading to 41F. Put a big dent into the Christmas shopping yesterday which made the wife happy. Will try to finish up next week when I have my last vacation day of the year.

 

[rswyan]

Rs. I have a couple of things for you to try.

Ok ... thanks in advance for the input.

First you should have a vac tube going to the fan make sure it's clear and not cracked.

Which fan ... the draft inducer ?

If so, yes - it has one. Goes from a diaphragm type electrical switch to the draft inducer. Appears to be silicone rubber ... very flexible.

Second take a nylon .22 gun barrel brush and clean the burner.

I think I have a stainless .22 caliber brush ... no nylon.

You want a nice pretty blue flame.

I have blue flames ... maybe with some yellow mixed in here and there.

I'm not sure what would constitute "nice" or "pretty" ... (too subjective)

The flames are not what I would call stable ... there seems to be a good bit of turbulence inside the combustion chamber.

Additionally, I think I saw further (additional) disturbance in the burner flames when the blower (main air mover) came on ... but I'd need to verify that with additional observation.

If that is, in fact, happening, I don't think it's right - because I think the combustion chamber/heat exchanger should be completely sealed from the air that's being heated. The main air mover shouldn't disturb the combustion process.

Need to find the CO detector that the wife unhooked and put away and get that hooked up again.

For larger openings you can use a larger brush.

From what I saw when he had the burner tube assembly out, it looks like .22 caliber would be about right.

Make sure the orfice from the gas valve is open.

Right.

If burner doesn't light in the flame sensors spot then it won't read a flame.

When the burner does light, it encloses the flame sensor in the flame.

Check condition of squirrel cage. Rust is fine as long as you don't have missing fins.

You mean the squirrel cage on the main blower ? (main air mover ?)

If so, theoretically that should be good ... since it was replaced just this last winter.

If you keep throwing the high limit switch may need to replace it or change the blower motor. Which I think you said is fairly new.

Yup - it is fairly new. At least new to us (if not brand new)

Ours seem to loose a lot of performance after about 7-8 years. But I think they get more hours than a home furnace.

It's moving plenty of air ... that's not the issue.

 

[toppop52]

40's going to 50's today, some showers, more tomorrow. Gas is still $2.70's here thanks to the liberal state of taxation, known as Maryland.

 

[rswyan]

My FEL arms need to go into a degreasing tank. :laughing:

I hear ya ...

I used a small pry bar to dig all the old out of the cavities ... gobs of it ...

Makes a really nice fire enhancer in the double barrel stove ... :laughing:

The rest of the tractor I keep clean but the spaces around the loader pins that get greased are shameful now.

I'm not quite that fastidious ... the poor little Kubota needs a really good cleaning and detailing. Maybe a little rubbing or polishing compound or some finish restorer ...

The early TC Boomers did not have bushings for the loader pins, real smart and I didn't know enough to check on that. Anyways, they get looser and hold grease less with age but ya got no options other than keep pumping the grease to them or get a total rebuild. The pins are perfect--of course, all the wear happens in the holes.

Yeah ... same deal on the B2910 ... no bushings.

Mine are pretty sloppy ... a rebuild is on the "to do" list ... but it probably won't happen before next winter ... at the very earliest. Internal seals on the loader probably need replaced as well.

 

[rswyan]

I do all my own repairs and maintenance on the heaters in the chicken houses. If I hired it all done I'd go broke. They're not that complicated but I cheat. I go look at what isn't working say it looks like ... Then go get a new ... Out of storage. Plug it in if it works great, if not why. Usually simple but always findable.

Economies of scale ... when you're in business and have multiple units of the same type - which serve a critical function - it makes sense to have a stock of spares in inventory. Would definitely make troubleshooting by trial and error easier.

Now house furnace is a combo pack. Had problems called wife's cousin who is an HVAC contractor. He comes out and asks why I didn't fix it. Said its the same principle as the ones in the chicken house. And showed me where the diagnostic codes and schematics were on a sticker on the heater. Haven't had to call him back out since. But I do call and get my parts from him.

Nice to have such a resource.

I get far more confused trying to trouble shoot a modern vehicle. For one the light just says"problem".

You need an OBD code reader for your vehicles

On the heater if it blinks once it's this. Twice its this. Three times that. Follow me?

Yup.

Won't tell you what part to replace but might say "no flame detected" well look if there is a flame then check flame sensor. If no flame figure out why.

I'm not sure if this furnace has any lights on it ... will have to look into that.

 

[farmer2009]

47 this morning and headed to 64 today. Very foggy this morning. Rain tapering off today till tonight. One local guy was giving 2-3 inches of rain tonight. Nice just what I need the bottom to fall out of everything.

 

[farmer2009]

Dave

How hot do your summers get? Do you think that design would work further south.

We are in planning stages of building. Still 3-5 years out. I have had 3 request a basement and nice stair case to 2nd floor and a wrap around porch. 1&3 are more of requirements. 2 is something I don't know if I want. But I wanted to have some passive heating also. But our summers can be really hot and humid. And last 3-4 months. So I don't want to move money from winter heating bill to summer cooling bill. My long term heating goal is to switch to a outdoor wood boiler. Then have a gas fired heater for when we get old and can't mess with wood.
But my building goal is to be a "net zero house". I know it's not possible to get to an actual net zero house but I'd like to get as close as possible. Plans are to add grid tie solar.

 

[farmer2009]

Rs

You don't want to use stainless brush as they can be pretty rough. Brass or nylon. Don't get too carried away cleaning but make sure nothing is stopped up and no loose rust. Pretty blue flame. Just means the flame doesn't have a lot of yellow or orange in it. Yellow and orange flames on gas means impurities. (Dirty burner, rust, something from the air). Some streaks are ok especially if they move. The blowers will cause some flame disturbance. But you shouldn't get any from the house blower. Pretty sure heat exchanger should be sealed.
May try a high limit switch. You may have more than one. Mine has 2. One auto reset and one manual.
Find the door to the brain box. (Computer). Look around it. That's where the light should be wait for it to shut down into protection mode. (Shuts down after not finding flame) should try 3 times. It should be a little red light. That's on when everything is fine and flashes when not. The diagnostic codes should be on a panel sticker close to this. May even be on cover.

Thought they were pretty intimidating myself till I had to start working on them. Then they became remarkably simple.

 

[deerseeker001]

22 and foggy this Morning with a chance of sprinkles.We will hit a high of 31 Today,it looks like we are going to have a nice warmup for the next Week.

 

[dave1949]

Dave

How hot do your summers get? Do you think that design would work further south.

We are in planning stages of building. Still 3-5 years out. I have had 3 request a basement and nice stair case to 2nd floor and a wrap around porch. 1&3 are more of requirements. 2 is something I don't know if I want. But I wanted to have some passive heating also. But our summers can be really hot and humid. And last 3-4 months. So I don't want to move money from winter heating bill to summer cooling bill. My long term heating goal is to switch to a outdoor wood boiler. Then have a gas fired heater for when we get old and can't mess with wood.
But my building goal is to be a "net zero house". I know it's not possible to get to an actual net zero house but I'd like to get as close as possible. Plans are to add grid tie solar.

We consider the mid-80's a hot summer day here. Hit 90F once in great while but we can commonly go all summer and never see a 90F day. I would definitely say my house design isn't what you need in a warmer area. That's good thinking that you don't want to trade winter savings for summer expenses.

Passive solar (passive means there are no moving parts like blowers, pumps, heat storage tanks, etc.) is a balance between taking sunlight in during the day and having thermal storage like concrete floors and walls that absorb that heat. As the interior air temp at night drops below the temperature of the concrete, the heat moves in the other direction. The amount of thermal mass has to be large enough that it can give up heat all night, or for a couple days, without dropping temperature too much.

Knowing the right balance between the southern glass exposure area and the amount of incorporated thermal mass in the building is the key to reasonable results for passive solar. Earth berms make a huge contribution too. Our house is surrounded on three sides by ground temperature dirt, not exterior cold air. They also stop wall air infiltration dead.

For your three design goals: basement, nice stairway, wrap around porch; sort of puts you out of the passive solar realm. The porch would be best on the south side, so that limits your direct sunlight in winter. Two stories (basement and 1st floor) are separating you from the basement slab and upstairs where you would spend most of your time. Basement slabs store heat, wood frame floors do not store near enough. The stairway probably makes little difference. Two stories limits the benefit you can get from earth berms.

Given what is available these days in heat pump efficiency, and in your location where you need a good balance between heating and cooling, a geothermal ground loop or well system powered by grid-tied solar panels is a pretty green solution. Build the house the way you want, insulate and seal it well, use energy efficient doors and windows, pony up ($$$) for a good integrated heat recovery, humidity control air handler system to refresh the interior air. I think you would be happy with the results.

That would be a cleaner and likely better quality solution than an active solar approach where you collect heat, pump or blow it to some central storage medium, then extract heat overnight. Off-the-shelf technology and energy efficiency has pretty much caught up with and surpassed that now, plus it doesn't do cooling very well and certainly won't do anything for humidity.

The outdoor boiler would be good for heat and less initial expense. That combined with the new mini split units for AC and humidity would also be a good solution that can be powered by solar pv. You can design in the ideal mini split interior unit locations. A heat exchange air handler to turn over the interior air would be a good pairing with that.

If you are willing to spend more upfront, the newer gasification wood-fired boilers are something to consider. They are designed to be installed indoors like a normal furnace. With a new design you could have a boiler room on the side of the house with space for wood storage, all nice and handy to use.

I hope that info helps. It's fun to check out all these things and noodle over them.

 

[sodamo]

66F and .16 inches rain last 24 hours.

Sitting here in town having breakfast with wife the errands.

Be safe
Have a great day.

Sent from my iPhone using TractorByNet

 

[mostly_gas]

Good afternoon all. 38F this morning, and rain, .4 in in the rain gauge at 7:30 this morning. Forecast is for 46F and 1 in rain. Working on truck door handle door closing requires adjustment, will put up the Christmas tree later.

 

[Larro Darro]

Good Afternoon. 1505, partly cloudy, 73F with 76% humidity. Forecast high of 73F with 0% chance of rain this afternoon, and a low of 57F tonight. It was 54F when I rolled out at 0630 this morning. I got called in to work early, so I never got to post this morning. The local hospital is having their Christmas party tonight, and more folks are coming than planned. So I had to come in and set out more tables and chairs. I never mind a few extra hours on the old paycheck, not to mention the fee for setup/cleanup is 50% larger if you go from 99 chairs to 100. But I'm all caught up now, and can take it easy until after the event tonight.

Hope everyone has a good day,

Larro

 

[farmer2009]

We consider the mid-80's a hot summer day here. Hit 90F once in great while but we can commonly go all summer and never see a 90F day. I would definitely say my house design isn't what you need in a warmer area. That's good thinking that you don't want to trade winter savings for summer expenses. Passive solar (passive means there are no moving parts like blowers, pumps, heat storage tanks, etc.) is a balance between taking sunlight in during the day and having thermal storage like concrete floors and walls that absorb that heat. As the interior air temp at night drops below the temperature of the concrete, the heat moves in the other direction. The amount of thermal mass has to be large enough that it can give up heat all night, or for a couple days, without dropping temperature too much. Knowing the right balance between the southern glass exposure area and the amount of incorporated thermal mass in the building is the key to reasonable results for passive solar. Earth berms make a huge contribution too. Our house is surrounded on three sides by ground temperature dirt, not exterior cold air. They also stop wall air infiltration dead. For your three design goals: basement, nice stairway, wrap around porch; sort of puts you out of the passive solar realm. The porch would be best on the south side, so that limits your direct sunlight in winter. Two stories (basement and 1st floor) are separating you from the basement slab and upstairs where you would spend most of your time. Basement slabs store heat, wood frame floors do not store near enough. The stairway probably makes little difference. Two stories limits the benefit you can get from earth berms. Given what is available these days in heat pump efficiency, and in your location where you need a good balance between heating and cooling, a geothermal ground loop or well system powered by grid-tied solar panels is a pretty green solution. Build the house the way you want, insulate and seal it well, use energy efficient doors and windows, pony up ($$$) for a good integrated heat recovery, humidity control air handler system to refresh the interior air. I think you would be happy with the results. That would be a cleaner and likely better quality solution than an active solar approach where you collect heat, pump or blow it to some central storage medium, then extract heat overnight. Off-the-shelf technology and energy efficiency has pretty much caught up with and surpassed that now, plus it doesn't do cooling very well and certainly won't do anything for humidity. The outdoor boiler would be good for heat and less initial expense. That combined with the new mini split units for AC and humidity would also be a good solution that can be powered by solar pv. You can design in the ideal mini split interior unit locations. A heat exchange air handler to turn over the interior air would be a good pairing with that. If you are willing to spend more upfront, the newer gasification wood-fired boilers are something to consider. They are designed to be installed indoors like a normal furnace. With a new design you could have a boiler room on the side of the house with space for wood storage, all nice and handy to use. I hope that info helps. It's fun to check out all these things and noodle over them.

Wish we had that for summers. 90's are the norm. But we will see a few days each year over 100. Even more with heat index above 105.

Thanks for the info on the passive heating systems. I know I said gas backup but a geo unit is also on the table. That would make the excavator to dig the basement with even more cost effective. . In our area a lot of insurance companies don't like indoor wood burners. Some won't even insure you because of them. But as long as they are 10 feet from the house they don't care. I know there are some cleaner burning outdoor boilers out there. Catalytic and all. Now put one in an out building and they don't care either.
Like I said the porch and basement are must haves. According to wife. May only be a half basement but.

 

[dave1949]

Good afternoon all. 38F this morning, and rain, .4 in in the rain gauge at 7:30 this morning. Forecast is for 46F and 1 in rain. Working on truck door handle door closing requires adjustment, will put up the Christmas tree later.

The thread got locked--go figure. I really should stay away from those threads. Ya know the point was, too much of anything can be a problem. Is there a typo in this? I don't understand how you eliminated the Carbon to render O2. Pure O2 would be deadly too, no?
"Dave you can't breath 100% [C]?O2 at 1 atmosphere pressure so your test for Co2 as a pollutant renders O2 a pollutant."


Good evening all. 20F with more messy weather on our doorstep. 1-3" of snow-wintry mix tonight, freezing rain to rain tomorrow. I haven't mounted the 3pt blower yet, no point with this crud.