Installed LP Wall Mounted Heater in 14 X 70
Posted: Sat Dec 26, 2009 2:13 pm
This week I purchased and installed a 20,000 BTU (2 Gas Option) heater in a 14 X 70. It's suppose to heat 700 sq. ft.. The heater was purchased from Lowes.
The heater is a Feature Comforts brand and can be set on the floor or wall mounted. I fabricated a wall bracket out of wood with a 3/4" thick vertical piece of wood and two horizontal 1" X 3" pieces of wood attached to the vertical piece to accomodate the stamped metal brackets supplied with the heater.
I decided on fabricated a mounting arrangement for two reasons:
1. I wanted to put the (3) 2" deck screws thru the vertical piece of wood, and into a groove in the paneling that had a stud behind it, rather than bore holes into the paneling and permanently deface it. (I could have just bored big holes thru the decor face of the paneling and used the supplied toggle anchors with the stamped brackets.)
2. I wanted to space the heater off of the wall so as to avoid heat damage to the paneling and provide more air flow to the heater fan. But, now that it's in, I noticed it hardly gets warm behind the heater, on the back side.
I mounted the heater about 12" off the floor (to the bottom of the heater), and placed on the back wall right in the middle of the great room, between the dining area and livingroom.
Here is an itemisation of the costs (numbers are rounded to nearest dollar), tax included:
20,000 BTU Heater $211.00
100 lb. Propane Tank $138.00
16" Sq. Cement Pad (Place tank on) $ 4.00
11 - 14 inch Gas Regulator $ 16.00
Gas Type Ball Valve $ 7.00
3/8" I.D.(.50" O.D.) Soft Copper Tubing (10') $ 21.00
3/8" NPT Pipe Fittings $ 16.00
1/2" Flared Fittings (Brass) $ 8.00
Flaring Tool for Copper Tubing $ 21.00
Spring Type Tubing Bender $ 8.00
Gas Type Thread Sealer $ 3.00
Fill Propane Tank with LP $ 78.00
TOTAL: $531.00
After everything was installed, I tested all the connections twice with soapy water to ensure no gas leaks. I did not see or smell anything. I then fired up the heater for the first time. It took way longer to purge the air from the system than what the instructions stated. But once the air was out, the pilot lighted and the main burner came on when actuated.
There are certain smellls associated with a new unit. I ran it briefly for two days and the smells went away. Actually, it took several runnings to purge out all the air. When there is air in the line, the main burner makes a moaning sound until the air is gone.
It's worked fine all week. I do not use it as the main heat source. I bought it so if the power goes out, I'll have heat this winter. I do use it in the morning and evening to knock the chill off, which it does quite well. There is now no smells or noise coming from the unit other than the automatic fan that works well.
I noticed on my programmable thermostat, that the furnace is now running 30 - 45 minutes less per day. I only run the LP heater about 20 minutes per day. (The Coleman electric furnace runs about 2 hours per day. Cost per KW for the Coleman is $.09.)
I'll post some pictures in the albums, if that is still possible.
The heater is a Feature Comforts brand and can be set on the floor or wall mounted. I fabricated a wall bracket out of wood with a 3/4" thick vertical piece of wood and two horizontal 1" X 3" pieces of wood attached to the vertical piece to accomodate the stamped metal brackets supplied with the heater.
I decided on fabricated a mounting arrangement for two reasons:
1. I wanted to put the (3) 2" deck screws thru the vertical piece of wood, and into a groove in the paneling that had a stud behind it, rather than bore holes into the paneling and permanently deface it. (I could have just bored big holes thru the decor face of the paneling and used the supplied toggle anchors with the stamped brackets.)
2. I wanted to space the heater off of the wall so as to avoid heat damage to the paneling and provide more air flow to the heater fan. But, now that it's in, I noticed it hardly gets warm behind the heater, on the back side.
I mounted the heater about 12" off the floor (to the bottom of the heater), and placed on the back wall right in the middle of the great room, between the dining area and livingroom.
Here is an itemisation of the costs (numbers are rounded to nearest dollar), tax included:
20,000 BTU Heater $211.00
100 lb. Propane Tank $138.00
16" Sq. Cement Pad (Place tank on) $ 4.00
11 - 14 inch Gas Regulator $ 16.00
Gas Type Ball Valve $ 7.00
3/8" I.D.(.50" O.D.) Soft Copper Tubing (10') $ 21.00
3/8" NPT Pipe Fittings $ 16.00
1/2" Flared Fittings (Brass) $ 8.00
Flaring Tool for Copper Tubing $ 21.00
Spring Type Tubing Bender $ 8.00
Gas Type Thread Sealer $ 3.00
Fill Propane Tank with LP $ 78.00
TOTAL: $531.00
After everything was installed, I tested all the connections twice with soapy water to ensure no gas leaks. I did not see or smell anything. I then fired up the heater for the first time. It took way longer to purge the air from the system than what the instructions stated. But once the air was out, the pilot lighted and the main burner came on when actuated.
There are certain smellls associated with a new unit. I ran it briefly for two days and the smells went away. Actually, it took several runnings to purge out all the air. When there is air in the line, the main burner makes a moaning sound until the air is gone.
It's worked fine all week. I do not use it as the main heat source. I bought it so if the power goes out, I'll have heat this winter. I do use it in the morning and evening to knock the chill off, which it does quite well. There is now no smells or noise coming from the unit other than the automatic fan that works well.
I noticed on my programmable thermostat, that the furnace is now running 30 - 45 minutes less per day. I only run the LP heater about 20 minutes per day. (The Coleman electric furnace runs about 2 hours per day. Cost per KW for the Coleman is $.09.)
I'll post some pictures in the albums, if that is still possible.