how close can i hang boiler furnace to drywall ceiling?

luvit · Oct 31, 2012

i'm trying to maximize every inch of space in my garage.

i have a forced-air boiler furnace 2'x2'x2'.
boiler passes hot water through a radiator heat exchanger -- a forced-air fan blows through it.
it's prefabbed ..all enclosed in a metal box -- filter on back, fan, radiator on front.

with the fan off, the radiant heat is 190* F (in the metal box).
how close can i hang this to my drywall ceiling (8ft high ceiling).

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nwav8tor · Oct 31, 2012

Heater clearances are specific to the unit since they're designed and manufactured differently. Aren't there any installation instructions with the heater unit? They should specify any required clearances. If you don't have the info, try the manufacturer's website or give them a call.

My Mr Heater BigMaxx NG heater required 1 inch clearance.

Paul

nehog · Nov 1, 2012

Can you post model/maker information? That might help, but hanging anything from an eight ft ceiling will result in serious head room problems! Code may require minimum distance from floor too.

The only authoritative answers are building codes and manufacturer's installation instructions/specifications.

luvit · Nov 1, 2012

i went back to double check for a label, which i previously overlooked. -- lennox c33-48c-2f.
i hate to say it, but my searching has found nothing even close to what i have hanging.
i think someone modified this unit to support a boiler heat exchnager and hung it side-ways. -- i like it, though.

this heater existed from a previous owner.. there is no manual included.

i do not have NG/LP/Fuel combustion nor red hot electric heating elements.
i have a boiler radiator that reaches up to 190* F in an insulated box.

if 1" clearance is good enough for Paul's NG BigMaxx, then it should suit me too.
i'll likely have it ever-slightly tilted downward and include louvers to prevent hot air from stressing the ceiling in front of it.
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thanks, guys!
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nehog · Nov 1, 2012

Un, isn't this an AC evaporator coil unit, are you using it for heat? I suppose one could customize it for water... :headscrat

luvit · Nov 1, 2012

here's pictures of it.. i have it disconnected so i can clean-it-out.
the previous owner ran it without a filter so the innards is nasty and the fins need cleaned.

while i'm at it, i'm modifying the pluming which leads to the unions and raising the unit to reclaim a couple inches.
this will be over my work bench, so it won't be a head banger, but i wanted to maximize the height since i'm taking it down and modifying the plumbing.

Charles (in GA) · Nov 1, 2012

Google searches show this to be a "cased" A/C evaporator unit.

Its all a guessing game at this point.

Charles

luvit · Nov 1, 2012

yeah, i thought it was home-made, so it's likely that's really the case.
i'm going to hang this 1" from the ceiling.. but with the bracket and chain.. it could end-up being 2".

i found this picture with the part number which better resembles my unit, but it's a vertical unit, not horizontal. -- and it looks like the fan would not be inside the same box.

nehog · Nov 2, 2012

Clearly custom made by someone. If all it has in it is hot water, I don't see major clearance issues, probably an inch or so is enough, especially if the interior is already insulated.

You can see where the original AC condenser was removed when you look at the pictures, perhaps the coils are part of the original but it's hard to say.

luvit · Nov 2, 2012

thanks for letting me bounce this off of you guys!
this thing works super awesome. i'll update with final changes.

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DPelletier · Nov 2, 2012

OK, what you have is something completely homemade using a Lennox 4 ton uncased coil housing turned on it's side. The coil is not the 4ton A coil that the part number decodes to.

All I can say is that the clearances for a hydronic coil are less than that typically required for a gas fired appliance; 1-2" should suffice.

Dave

DPelletier · Nov 2, 2012

...so where is the boiler located; where do you pipe it from?

Dave

luvit · Nov 2, 2012

DPelletier said:
...so where is the boiler located; where do you pipe it from?

This outdoor wood burner heats enough water for my home furnace, home water heater, plus this
furnace in my shop...

i feel the wood i've consumed is reasonable, but i've only lived here for a year and last winter was very mild.

DPelletier · Nov 5, 2012

Cool.

Cheers,
Dave

how close can i hang boiler furnace to drywall ceiling?

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