Furnace question

[Roly]

Greetings. My first post here..

I'm Roly and I have owned a '98 Premier for a year and a half. I want to ask about removal of my Suburban propane furnace for overhaul. It worked for a year but all I get now is the fan with no ignition. Maybe a Dinosaur control board is called for.

However I see that it is installed such that it looks taller than the access opening behind which it is mounted.

What magic tricks are there to do for removing the thing from under the swivel chair?

Thanks, Roly

[Manitou]

Welcome to the forum. As you stated in a different thread though, you already found the answer in one of Blue's posting.

[Blue~Go]

Just for future reference then, here is a thread wherein I took the furnace out from under the forward club chair in my '99 Concourse.

viewtopic.php?f=4&t=13&hilit=furnace+remove

Not only is it RIGHT up under the club chair base (although there is the specified furnace clearance and then some), but Chinook "excavated" the 2" plywood floor to only 1" under the furnace to make it fit. Talk about tight!

I am reconsidering a "blown air" furnace again, but looking at a Propex vs. reinstalling the Suburban as it will take up about 1/3 the space and the ducting is smaller. If I do this I will also run one duct back to the bathroom/hallway area. Thing is, I only even think about it in January; the rest of the year I'm fine with just the Wave or the like (ahhh, quiet and power sipping). A furnace would only be for extreme laziness in January, so I could reach up (without getting out of bed) and turn the thermostat and then let the noisy/ducted heat super warm the Chinook for a half hour or so (then back to the Wave). But then there's nothing wrong with extreme laziness in January! Oh well, it's almost February

[Roly]

Thanks Mr. Blue.

As I look around this forum I see that you have contributed much along the lines I have been considering.

From my experience long ago, as a Navy trained marine electrician, mostly on nuclear submarines, I appreciate a bulletproof. efficient approach. Before that career, I worked for a yacht broker outfitting motor and sailing boats. How about that?

Regarding the forced air furnace, and keeping on this thread, I wonder about the minimum venting needs of a non-vented propane heater, should I remove the Suburban and go that way. Did you connect the non-vented heater to the main propane tank?

My regular area of travel is the West coast from Northern California to Puget Sound, so I need some heat sometimes.

Thanks, Roly

[Blue~Go]

Hi Roly,

How fun that you also worked in the boat outfitting world! I look forward to reading your contributions.

I wonder about the minimum venting needs of a non-vented propane heater, should I remove the Suburban and go that way. Did you connect the non-vented heater to the main propane tank?

To answer in reverse, yes, I hooked the Wave heater up to the main propane tank. In my case, having replaced the absorption (propane) refrigerator with a compressor unit, I have propane galore. Since I wasn't sure where/if I wanted to mount the Wave, I got the optional legs (although I would recommend making your own as the Wave legs stick out unnecessarily far in the back and don't fold for storage). And I put on a 9' flexible hose. So I can move it around to suss things out. I used the furnace line (3/8" female flare), but there are other options.

On the venting, Wave specifies exactly how many square inches of venting is required (24" in my case, IIRC). Best if it's in two places opposite, but not 100% required that it be that arrangement. In my case it means one side window cracked 1/2" (that's 12 square inches) and the hatch slightly cracked. Now you might think, "but it's heating weather and now I have to have a window open so I'm heating the outdoors!" True, but since the built in furnace is only like 75% efficient, and since it has a "chimney" to the exterior, the outdoors is being heated that way too. Not saying the Wave is perfect - it has its "things" too, just like any choice; but it can be a good option.

My regular area of travel is the West coast from Northern California to Puget Sound, so I need some heat sometimes.

The Wave might do you just fine then. If I were buying one again I'd consider the Wave 6, but that kind of depends on how warm you like it, exterior temps, etc. If I were to go back with a blown air furnace, it would be to quickly heat the place in the morning, then take over with the Wave. But even with the Wave 3, I've been reasonably comfortable and maybe a 6 would be all I'd need. It sure is nice having it be silent.