what is a plate fired heater

[Black hawk]

I assume it has no pilot light but how does it work?

 

[bdkruger1]

Hot surface ignition ????

 

[danielzig]

Kind of sounds like a torpedo heater? If it is, they can use hot surface or spark ignition.

 

[Ironhorse]

Would that the the plate in the front of a torpedo heater? makes sense

 

[philjafo]

How bout some context or maybe some pictures, maybe your calling it by a different name but I've never heard of plate fired heater.

 

[Black hawk]

This is for a coleman heater for mobile homes and it says it is a plate fired but the web site does not say how a gas heater is started by a plate.
As was mentioned it could be a hot plate but i have never heard of one before and cant find any thing about it on the net.
Thought one of the group might have info or experience with plate fired.

 

[danielzig]

I am thinking it is talking about the heat exchanger when it says plate fired. Not that it is started by a "plate".

 

[danielzig]

Oh, and my rationale for this thinking is at work we work on rapid direct fired heaters. These heat the air by just putting an open flame directly in the air stream. So, if it is plate fired, I would assume a plate is being heated.

 

[philjafo]

might be a reference to the diffuser plate that goes on the end of the burner(came to mind right away when you said coleman mobile home furnace) here is a pic

 

[D.J.]

Back in the old days their were heaters that used Number 1 fuel oil and they just used a line that dripped the fuel oil into a thick round plate in the bottom of the heater. The fuel burnt in a combustion chamber and the a electric fan blew the heated air out of the space around the combustion chamber into the room to provide heat.

 

[Black hawk]

Thanks for all the info.
I will be back down in Yuma az in another month.
Then i will be able to tear into the heater and see if it works.