Furnace Vent Termination under porch
Jeff Six
noticed something that I'm confused about and would like to get some
opinions on this. My furnace's venting, both the ingoing air and
outgoing air pipes, terminate directly under my front porch. They are
installed in the manner described in my furnace's installation manual,
but they terminate directly under the porch wood boards. It seems to
me that since this is a semi-enclosed area, with the porch on top, the
house on one side with the concrete supports for the porce on two
sides, and the open-air on the other side, that there would be more of
a chance for air going out the out pipe to go back into the in pipe.
Is this a valid concern?
I bring this up because I've noticed that since we've had all this
snow (I'm in MD, we're up to 2 1/2 feet) there is a distinct smell
outside of the house near where the vent pipes are, when the furnace
is on. Is this a problem? Or does furnace exhaust just smell
somewhat am I just noticing this smell now due to the very cold temps?
p...@see_my_sig_for_address.com
>I'm in a new house, my first with a natural gas furnace. I have
>noticed something that I'm confused about and would like to get some
>opinions on this. My furnace's venting, both the ingoing air and
>outgoing air pipes, terminate directly under my front porch. They are
>installed in the manner described in my furnace's installation manual,
>but they terminate directly under the porch wood boards. It seems to
>me that since this is a semi-enclosed area, with the porch on top, the
>house on one side with the concrete supports for the porce on two
>sides, and the open-air on the other side, that there would be more of
>a chance for air going out the out pipe to go back into the in pipe.
>Is this a valid concern?
New to you or new ? If it's new, get it fixed unwarranty from
the builder . If not, you may have to pay for it.
In any case, that is not acceptable. Those are exhaust fumes,
coming up under your porch for anyone to breath.
Paul ( pjm @ pobox . com ) - remove spaces to email me
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kjpro
terminate under a eve, deck or any other awning. This needs to be changed.
A>S>A>P.
Also, if the snow is up to the level of the porch floor, it could cause the
furnace to operate funny. And cause the fuel not to properly burn. In this,
the heat exchanger could sout up. Causing major problems. Very hard to clean
primary and secondary exchangers out once souted up. Been there don that
it's not fun!!!!!!!!!!!!
Also, the tech manuals want a minimum height above ground level for snow
accumulation.
kjpro
<pjm@see_my_sig_for_address.com> wrote in message
news:f9p55v43i3fd6ki12...@4ax.com...
Bob Brown
That dog won't hunt for long. The installation probably does not meet code
anywhere. In many areas, the stack needs to be as high as the roof ridge.
Eric Lee Green
> Yup,
> That dog won't hunt for long. The installation probably does not meet code
> anywhere. In many areas, the stack needs to be as high as the roof ridge.
I think you'll find that the furnace installation manual insists on the vent
being more than x inches above any obstruction, and more than y inches
away from any surface on its level. As far as the "high as
the roof ridge" goes, that probably only applies in snow areas. The
calculation for chimneys in non-snow areas is about avoiding downdrafts,
not about avoiding snowdrifts. Thus x might be 12 inches, but the
stack might need to be 18 inches above the roof in order that y (the
horizontal distance from the stack to the nearest obstruction, the roof
slope in this case) be sufficient.
Check the furnace installation manual (available from furnace
manufacturer if necessary), and check local codes. But one thing's
certain, furnace vent termination under the porch isn't kosher except
for some very special furnaces (those that are certified for
horizontal venting through walls, i.e., ultra-high-efficiency
condensing furnaces with low-temperature exhausts).
--
Eric Lee Green GnuPG public key at http://badtux.org/eric/eric.gpg
mailto:er...@badtux.org Web: http://www.badtux.org
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Darrell
venting with PVC, not a manufactured venting system (B-vent)
kjpro
kjpro
"Darrell" <darre...@aol.comnojunk> wrote in message
news:20030221113639...@mb-fl.aol.com...