Terminal Heating and Cooling Units > High Efficiency Furnace

Existing Conditions

Two low efficiency atmospheric style furnaces supply heating to the curling area and pool change rooms. This type of furnace is a low first cost item, but is expensive in long-term energy consumption. The inability to properly control combustion air results in low efficiencies.

These furnaces are also limited, as they are not designed to cope with the acidic water that can condense out of the flue gas. As a result, the flue gas temperature must be kept high enough to avoid condensation. This heat lost out the stack adds to the inefficiency of these furnaces. The overall efficiency on a seasonal basis is between 65% and 70%.

These furnaces are designed to draw air from the mechanical room, past the combustion area, through the heat exchanger, then exhausted through the stack or vent pipe. Certain conditions can force the combustion gas backwards into the mechanical room. This problem can be dangerous, as it exhausts combustion by-products into the building. These by-products can include CO (carbon monoxide) and VOC’s (volatile organic compounds) that can be especially dangerous in exercise areas.

Retrofit Conditions

We recommend replacing the existing furnaces with new high efficiency condensing furnaces.

We recommend condensing furnaces because:

They are specifically designed to withstand the acidic condensate in the combustion air.

They use PVC piping for venting, which can go out the side wall of the furnace room instead of up through the ceiling.

They use PVC piping for drawing combustion air from outside. This makes them a sealed combustion unit, which is much safer than an atmospheric burner. Storing combustibles in the vicinity of the furnace is no longer a concern since there is no direct contact with a flame.

Further Benefits

Application Details

Issues and Concerns

References

Analysis

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