Heater Hacking, 2014 style

[MadScientist267]

I've been tinkering with a highly modified propane heater recently... trying to bring some excellent concepts together in one tiny package.



This was the basis for everything to this point... but infrared heaters are borderline useless in my opinion... so I set out to improve on it and see what I come up with.



Lampblacking the fins of a heatsink isn't easy... but I got this one well covered in about an hours time. Had to keep stopping to let it cool down some so it could be handled, and had to redo a spot where it slipped off my knee and I grabbed it in panic, removing a nice swipe across the top. It came out well in the end, despite the difficulties.



Then I stopped with all the temp propping for fear I may damage some of the soft aluminum gas lines that run here and there... so I made 4 legs and mounted it so it would be facing more or less straight up.



The identical but non-lampblacked heatsink that carries the heat away isn't [yet] thermally bonded to the IR/Convection sink. I'm pondering this as a last step if there is to be something between them.

A blower sits on top and carries the heat away and into the room.



The front, where the heat pours out...




Another shot from the side.

The end goal is to completely vent this, breathes outdoor air and exhausts to the outdoors as well, leaving nothing but a hot sink on the inside to heat the room... but even as it sits, it's actually *cleaner* than it was in OEM configuration, and does a MUCH better job of heating than originally as well. My eyes don't burn and itch in the morning, and neither does my throat. Condensation now is minimal, and I'm only seeing it on cold rainy nights...

More as it comes...

Steve

[Norm]

Steve.....Why didn't you just use black liquid shoe dye/polish ? then gently warm
until the polish fumes were driven off ?
  I remember that they even had stove polish that my old aunts and uncles and
Grandma used to use on the stovepipes in the wood burners to make em look brand new .... fairly warm day that they could open the windows and doors for an hour or so to dispel the fumes from the hot stove blacking ....: )
  Well too late the job is done for you : )
Norm.
Oh by the way I started my last job that I retired from ....lasting 22 years
when I was  38 and was told that they didn't usually hire ones that old !

[MadScientist267]

Norm -

I briefly considered other options, but I had a hurricane lamp up in the attic of the garage, already filled up and looking for something to do... it was easier than several other ideas I came up with, and is an ideal substance for the job.

There was however a brief "cook off" period when I first lit it up after blacking the fins.. the whole truck smelled like lamp oil (door was still wide open).. but now it's gone and only the normal odor associated with starting any propane burner emits from it. Once the catalyst gets hot, there's no odor whatsoever anymore.

I have done a little more to it, need to get another pic to put up and post more of my findings... but I can tell you that conceptually, the entire idea is solid as an unvented design, and is staged to be a very robust basis for a vented design with a few other modifications.

I probably won't be taking this particular one to vented for a few reasons, but who knows.

More when I get the pic etc...

Steve

[DaveW]

  Looks like your having fun Steve.

[MadScientist267]

Indeed Dave.

I've more or less completed this version... it's blacked but even low erodes the coating... the catalyst isn't ideally positioned... maybe if I find some time in between I'll work it down more and find the sweet spot... in the mean time, here's where it stands:






Till next time...

Steve

[Norm]

Norm -

I briefly considered other options, but I had a hurricane lamp up in the attic of the garage, already filled up and looking for something to do... it was easier than several other ideas I came up with, and is an ideal substance for the job.

There was however a brief "cook off" period when I first lit it up after blacking the fins.. the whole truck smelled like lamp oil (door was still wide open).. but now it's gone and only the normal odor associated with starting any propane burner emits from it. Once the catalyst gets hot, there's no odor whatsoever anymore.

I have done a little more to it, need to get another pic to put up and post more of my findings... but I can tell you that conceptually, the entire idea is solid as an unvented design, and is staged to be a very robust basis for a vented design with a few other modifications.

I probably won't be taking this particular one to vented for a few reasons, but who knows.

More when I get the pic etc...

Steve

well however ya did it and it works .....results what counts ....aye ? have fun Steve .....Norm

[philb1]

That's a nice stove and an idea. I thought about something similar a few years back with a defuncted Empire store. I think the O2 sensor was not working properly. Anyway, I wanted to separate one burner from the other 3 and take all the automatic sensors off. That wasn't a major chore. Next, I wanted to set the burner upright, about the same way is was when it was in original condition. Than enclose it in a 1/4" box of mild steel. I'd leave holes for outside fresh air and for the exhaust. That would make my little camper very comfortable in the winter. It should generate enough heat to boil water and maybe enough for frying eggs. There, it does double duty. heats the camper and breakfast without wasting heat. What do you think?

[MadScientist267]

This one doesn't function as a stove, although the top plate could probably keep a cup of coffee warm, but that's about it.

I'm not entirely clear on what you've got in mind Phil, although the end result sounds good. Any time you can make heat do more than one useful thing at a time, it's a good thing.

I've ditched the lampblack for the latest version, as I discovered it was one of the sources of CO as the blacking burned off. If I try a vented version I'll give it another go to keep efficiency up, but unvented, the main benefit is faster warm up. Not worth sacrificing the safety margin IMO.

It also now includes an extra fan to help disrupt drafts, and works very well. The heatsinks now have goop between them, and the pilot issues have been sorted out by a carb modification. I'll get a couple pics up of the recent mods here shortly.

I'd like to put a solenoid valve in it now so I can control it with a thermostat... May or may not happen, depending on whether I find one suitable and for the right price.

More as it comes...

Steve

[MadScientist267]

The pics...



On the left, the CO detector and fan control... the new fan is visible below the heatsink set. It collects a portion of the discharge and routes it straight at the floor where it mixes with and neutralizes drafts. A piece of flashing also covers the front side of the lower heatsink now, reducing drafts in the combustion chamber, reducing CO output even further.



The pilot carb hack. Small piece of aluminum flashing that shields and richens the pilot. It's very stable now.

Since these last mods, there hasn't been any indication of CO from the CO detector.

Next step in mind is a solenoid to control the main jet.

Steve