Hydronic system question.

[JohnHL]

Suburbia has come to "The Ridge".

And with it, natural gas piping.

For the last quarter century, I have been heating with a woodstove and/or an electric hot water boiler (which circulates through mostly baseboard radiators).

As most of you already know, heating with electricity is expensive.

I have acquired a used gas boiler in serviceable condition and I would like to install it in series with my existing electric boiler so that I can retain the electric as a back-up.

I can wire the system so that a switch will allow only one system or the other to operate.
Not simultaneously.
(In case the gas boiler fails, a flip of a switch restores the heat.)

Any reason why this wouldn't work?

I've searched online and can find no info regarding this idea.

I can't justify installing a whole new system because this is an old, small house and the next owner will probably tear down the house, subdivide the property, and build a small, cramped development of "McMansions".

Opinions, please.

Thanks!

John

 

[rwsmith]

No reason that can't work....

I have aux electric heat built in to my system. No reason in the world you can't wire it as either/or.

The only problem I can foresee is if the units have enough pressure drop across the heating coils so that it would need a stronger blower to allow enough air to pass through both coils rather than one.

 

[JohnHL]

Good point, rwsmith!

Fortunately, I have no air handlers in my system.
Only passive radiation.

Analogous to the air pressure drop question is the capacity of each circulator pump.

My research tells me each circulator has the capacity for the job with the shut-down boiler simply becoming an oddly shaped piece of pipe.

John

 

[oink]

I'm surprised you're just now getting swallowed by the city. I used to live live in St. Peters and work in O'Fallon in 1985 and that area was going suburbia like gangbusters back then. You're on the other side of the river, I'd have figured your area would have transitioned years ago. I had gas back then but most of my heating was with wood with a fireplace insert. I'm sorry but I'm help with your question but thanks for causing me to reminisce.

 

[bigwheelzip]

Is the boiler direct vent? Codes may not allow combining the gas boiler and wood stove in a common flue.

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

Is the boiler direct vent? Codes may not allow combining the gas boiler and wood stove in a common flue.

Ohio code will allow a gas hot water heater and gas furnace to use the same flue, it the capacity is large enough, otherwise you will need a second flue.

I had wood stoves for years. I wouldn't want any gas appliance to share a flue with a wood stove for flue cleaning reasons.

Ivan

 

[joe44va]

Google "transfer switch".

 

[JohnHL]

I'm surprised you're just now getting swallowed by the city. I used to live live in St. Peters and work in O'Fallon in 1985 and that area was going suburbia like gangbusters back then. You're on the other side of the river, I'd have figured your area would have transitioned years ago. I had gas back then but most of my heating was with wood with a fireplace insert. I'm sorry but I'm help with your question but thanks for causing me to reminisce.

Hi, oink!

Glad you have fond memories of the area.
Your recollections are correct.
All of St. Charles County (where St. Peters and O'Fallon are, for the non-locals) has been and still is growing and spreading like a wildfire.
Mostly because the ground is so flat and development is comparatively easy.

Where I am at is a relatively small pocket of ground that is so rocky and hilly, the speculators avoided it because the cost was so high to get the land ready for building.
When the all the better ground was taken, home builders tackled this tract.

And what a horrible time they had.
Some of the biggest earth moving equipment I've seen, weeks of blasting, and millions of dollars spent, before the road was paved.

Two developers went belly-up.
But the economy improved and now the development is just about full.

So that is why it took so long for suburbia to find me and why I might not stay here a lot longer.

John

 

[JohnHL]

Thanks, bigwheelzip and Ivan the Butcher!

Yes, the gas boiler is direct vent and no, flues will NOT be shared.

John

 

[JohnHL]

Google "transfer switch".

I did as you asked and I googled "transfer switch".

What came up was what I expected: Generator transfer switches for power outages.

I'm not sure how that relates to my situation, but thanks anyway.

John

 

[nachogrande]

HMMM?

IMO the electricity will go out WAY MORE than the gas. (if ever) The gas is probly cheaper and cooking with gas, no comparison. You would still have the woodstove in the unlikely event the gas didn't work. Electric isn't widely known to blow up. Unless you are very skilled at such things, running gas lines IS NOT a DIY proposition. (IMO) The cost to convert everything to gas is the big question to me, but preferred to electric in my book. A woodstove, gas, & electric??? Having all 3, not needed.