Pix of a furnace I want to convert

[Chaz]

Hey Folks,
  New guy here. Just found you guys. I have a furnace that I want to turn into a "drip style" heater and was wanting your opinions, if I may.




  It's a great working fuel oil furnace that I got for converting to a waste oil furnace. It all works fine but I've chickened out of going thru all that it takes - money and time - to make it into either a siphon or pressure feed wmo furnace. Instead, I think I'm just going to turn it into a "drip" style and use the blower, etc. to blow the heat out into my shop. Seems like a viable gig to me. Have any of you or anyone you know done this? I know, it might be a waste to cut up a good working fuel oil furnace to just make a drip unit out of it but going the whole route of converting it and then the trials and tribulations of getting it running good and then the maintenence has kind of scared me off. But it would have been a good unit for it. Whataya think? 
  Thanx for looking! Appreciate your time!!
   Chaz

[Dead Eye]

 Well its not the right stuff to make a drip style out of. Its a good unit for pressure or siphon. The drip system is built in a tank were the gun style is fired into an exchanger.

 Cheers D.E.

[Chaz]

Hey DE,
  Yeah, I know they are different in those ways but, here's my reasoning and how I am planning on doing it. But I am DEFINITELY open to something I haven't thought of or missed.

I was figuring cutting my "door" out where the gun is and build a door for the opening. (No problem there, I own a welding and fab shop.)
 The "plus" I was thinking of was that it is already set up as a heat exchanger style "tank" (water heater tank in the original styles), if you will.  I also figure I can use the blower, filter and make a plenum to send the heat out to where I need it like a conventional furnace.
 So I think I just have to cut and insert the intake air tube, oil line, attach an intake blower, build a door and I plan to use the 6"x6" round pipe "burner pan" with the 1/2" x 4" bolts in the bottom of it like on MEN blower modification burner.  (see: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel_library/ethanol_motherearth/me8.html )
  The bad thing, as I see it, is I will need electricity to run the blower to get the heat out. Unfortunately, I think I need to do it that way because my shop is 40'x60' with 13' ceilings. I don't think I will be able to easily heat the whole shop with a hot water style tank heater, so I want a heater to direct the heat where it will do the most good........... on me! 

Thanx for looking in!
  Chaz

[Russ]

Wow, nice looking heater!  I wouldnt cut it up and make a drip heater.  I dont think that would work too well with this style of a heater.  I think that would be more work than making a pressure system.  Heck, its already a pressure system, you just need to heat the oil up a bit to make it spray.  Did you check out my system?  Building the heater block was beyond my skills, but I had a friend that was able to help me out.  I vote for keeping it in tact and making it a pressure system!

Good luck in your adventure!

Russ

[doug]

 I too think your furnace would be better used as a pressure/siphon heater. Your burner look a lot like a Beckett gun.
  I'm not a fan of the drip style heater because of the fuel delivery system (too many variables). But, who would have thought an old water heater could make a good waste oil heater. Please keep us informed on your project. Good luck.

[Chaz]

Hey guys,
  Thanx for your time. I really would like to build a pressure or siphon system but in reading some of the posts on Altfuelfurnace worries me a bit. I'm by no means afraid to jump in on something but I prefer to have some sort of "baseline"  info/knowledge under my belt. I have none. I haven't even found detailed plans to do it. From plans, I would be more comfortable. But then, the diagnosing after it's built seems a little daunting.
 I also seen where if I were to just purchase the parts instead of trying to fab it myself, I was looking at somewhere around 600.00 to convert. (ouch)
 I will check out your system, Russ,  before I fire up the plasma. It's just that I am so totaly inexperienced at it, it bothers me a bit. Wish there were others around here, of like mind, that I could go and get a "hands on" crash course from. The internet is an awesome tool with an infinite amount of info, but I still like "hands on". 
 Either fortunately or unfortunately, I do have a filter system already built that I can use to clean my oil. It would be a waste with a "drip system", I know. It's a  (Dieselcraft) centrifuge setup in a 55 gallon drum. It was originally intended to clean wvo. I thought it would be cool to run my wmo thru it if I were to make a pressure system.

 Thanx again for your time guys. I will see if I can find Russ's setup. (plans?)
  Thanx,
  Chaz

[doug]

Chaz,
This is what helped me build my siphon heater.http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=24280
Not step by step but a lot helpful information.
Also ckBurner was very helpful.

[Russ]

Check out my project here:
http://wasteoilheaterforum.com/index.php?topic=36.0

Yea, the ckburner kit is nice, but a little pricey.

Let me know if you have any questions.

[Chaz]

OK, well, I called a guy who knows a little about these fuel oil furnaces like I have and he thinks he might be able to give me a hand with the conversion.
Here is the first obstacle that could kill it before I even get going:
We took the gun out and inside the steel "tank", "drum", whatever, there is a fire brick, ummm,  ....... almost like a two piece tube/ring  (verticle like the "tank")  that the gun shoots into, about 12" tall or so. From the tip of the gun to the back wall of that fire brick tube, it is only 8". I understand I need 12". That's using the stock blast tube which is 7.75" long. Can I just back the blast tube/gun assembly out 4" and set fire brick around the blast tube instead of the refractory wool that they have around it? I can re-mount the gun then without any problem. Or do I have to gut the fire brick tube out of the tank and put some other fire brick in against the wall?

If that issue can be worked around, I guess the next thing is to start buying parts.  The CK stuff IS nice but I need to save a buck where I can. Any other suggestions?

Thanx for the sites, Russ and Doug. I went thru them once but need to go back again since my friend gave me some info on what I have and how it works. That will help in understanding what I'm reading. I'm hoping there are some good parts info there. If I just had more experience with this, I'd make "some" of it as I have a welding/fab shop. I'm just not sure what's going on yet. For the next furnace - if there is one - I could probably save a bunch more money building parts.

Thanx for the encouragement guys. Unfortunately, I think I will be bugging you all a bit. But I will at least be using the furnace in a better way................. I hope. 
  Chaz

[Russ]

No problem, your not bugging us.  Thats what the forum is for, to share information.  My furnace has a very small combustion area also.  It is an oval shape, that sits vertical.  The inside is lined with some sort of fire resistant material.  I dont actually have bricks in mine, but from what I understand, this material gets red hot and helps with the combustion.  I know mine isnt very far from the blast tube to the back of the furnace.  I doubt it is 12 inches and it works just fine.  I played around with different tip angles and ended going with a wider angle tip (I think. It has been a while).  Its maybe not the optimal distance for burning waste oil, but I think it should work fine for you.  I would concentrate on getting a heater block made, get a cartridge heater, PID controller, and thermocouple.  Heat that oil up and shoot it in and see what happens.  That is if you were thinking of staying with a pressure system. 

One other question, how are you going to use the furnace?  Will you just use it to heat up the garage once in a while, or are you going to want it to maintain a temp and leave it run all the time. 
I just use mine to heat the garage up every so often.  Sometimes every night.  I start it and leave it run until it is 75 or so, then shut it off.   Mine wouldnt work on a thermostat too well, as it requires a little hotter temp to get it started, then I manually turn down the controller to the normal temp.  I think a siphon system might be a little better in that department.

[doug]

Hey Russ,
I was willing to pay the price for the ckBurner kit. I don't have any friends at all let a lone one that would machine a block for me. What would be some alternatives or ideas to getting a cheap block heater for a pressure system.

[Dead Eye]

 The ck kit is a work of art and worth the money for a siphon system(oil and air), to pressure feed you need to only heet the oil.  Find an aluminum block (or brass) 7" long 1'wide by 2" high.  Drill two holes 3/8 inch. one hole all the way through with one end tapped 1/8 npt the other tapped for the nozzle. Other hole only 6"deep its for the cartridge heater. This will heat the nozzle as well


  Or you could use two brass pipe nipples 1/8 npt. one 8 inch long the other 6 inch but without threads.
Put a standard nozzle holder one one end of the 8". Clean and flux outside of pipe with sta silv. clamp the pipe together side by side and silver braze the together.

[Chaz]

I was planning on heating my shop - thru the night if it seems possible - once it's going. I wasn't going to heat over night with the "drip" but if I'm going to go thru with a more elaborate system, I may as well go for broke and do a siphon and try to use it 24/7. I have access to enough oil. And I have a couple air compressors. 
I am going to buy what I can from ck. I would normally be adament about doing exactly that if times were "normal", as I like to patronize people who truly help us out as well,  but money is a little funny (I'm a metal sculptor). But my problem is, I just don't know what I need to buy exactly. Like part no#'s, etc. I know you mentioned relays, thermocouples, controllers, etc., but are there only one type/kind/size? I'm sorry, but I have no idea what exactly to use. Heck, maybe it doesn't even matter, but I don't know.

I read about the 12" distance on the ck site. I guess I can ask them about it. It sounds as tho they could be good people to help with stuff like that. My guess is they are still small and caring. I like that and patronize such people as much as I can.
 
Thanx for the help so far!!!
  Chaz

[Dead Eye]

For cheap do this.

Im glad you work metal

[Dead Eye]

I read about the 12" distance on the ck site. I guess I can ask them about it~


Thats the chamber depth

 Pull out the burner from your furnace,stick in a tape measure in the hole till it hits the back of chamber, read measurment at lip of refractory. If you have 12 or more you are good to go, if not then the chamber is to small for waste oil. Waste oil burns slower therefore creates longer flame pattern than 1 or 2 oil.