Home
JAQForum Ver 24.01
Log In or Join  
Active Topics
Local Time 13:11 24 Nov 2024 Privacy Policy
Jump to

Notice. New forum software under development. It's going to miss a few functions and look a bit ugly for a while, but I'm working on it full time now as the old forum was too unstable. Couple days, all good. If you notice any issues, please contact me.

Forum Index : Other Stuff : A Camper’s FAU

Author Message
MacGyver

Guru

Joined: 12/05/2009
Location: United States
Posts: 1329
Posted: 09:38pm 22 Oct 2011
Copy link to clipboard 
Print this post

Crew

As you know, I live in my little land yacht and of late, we've been experiencing somewhat of an unexpected cold snap. My little house came with a great forced air unit (FAU) but the drawback is, it goes through an 8-gallon tank of propane in about 6 weeks. The FAU builds an after-burner sized fireball and uses it to heat a few fins in a heat exchanger, which passes the heat to the surroundings (i.e. my house). Since my hobby is dabbling and flirting with energy, I decided 8 gallons was too much fuel consumption and set about to create my own heating system, which would of necessity, be WAY more efficient.

That's what we have in the picture. This gadget sits on my only stove burner and "cooks" for about 5 minutes. That's enough time for the HUGE thermal mass of the solid aluminum base as well as that of all the aluminum tubes to absorb enough energy to heat my house. The fan behind the unit is only temporary. It was more of a "proof of concept" thing and I intend adding a 12-volt fan into the back side of this contraption in the near future.

Since I don't want to blow combusted propane fumes around my house, I cook the contraption using the range hood's exhaust system and the burned gasses exit to the outside just as they would if I were cooking a meal. Once things are roastie-toastie hot, I douse the flame and switch on the fan, which gathers cool room air and stuffs it through the tubes. The tubes exchange their heat with that of the air flowing through them and within minutes, my little house is warm and cozy. As heat is extracted from the aluminum tubes, more heat is captured by conduction from the large, solid aluminum base, which boasts a ginormous thermal mass.

Using only the amount of fuel it takes to make a cup of instant coffee, I can heat my entire house (albeit small). I foresee an 8-gallon tank of propane lasting me a year or longer at that rate!

What could be simpler?




As soon as I install the 12-volt fan I PROMISE to get busy on that off-the-shelf axial flux build; really!

Edit: Misspelled my own name!


. . . . . Mac
Edited by MacGyver 2011-10-24
Nothing difficult is ever easy!
Perhaps better stated in the words of Morgan Freeman,
"Where there is no struggle, there is no progress!"
Copeville, Texas
 
yahoo2

Guru

Joined: 05/04/2011
Location: Australia
Posts: 1166
Posted: 03:04am 23 Oct 2011
Copy link to clipboard 
Print this post

Nice concept Mac, I'm guessing you will play with the heatsink mass to fine tune things. we were just talking last week about how the new slow combustion stoves have so much insulation they wont heat a house. I suggested we find an alloy air cooled motorbike engine block and build a drop in heatsink to replace one hotplate. Yours is heat storage, this would be heat transfer but its a similar solution.

I am not sure at what point "proof of concept" becomes stuffing about on Sunday but I reckon I am there, I slipped down the shed this morning and got distracted and this is the result.




It's mark2 sump oil burner.

I took the photo a bit early its still heating up. this is atomised oil and compressed air. the goal is to make a double sleeve burner and vaporise the oil instead. Its loud when I lean it out, I had earplugs in but that wasn't enough.

yahoo
I'm confused, no wait... maybe I'm not...
 
Oscar4u

Regular Member

Joined: 23/02/2011
Location: New Zealand
Posts: 42
Posted: 08:08am 28 Oct 2011
Copy link to clipboard 
Print this post


It's mark2 sump oil burner.


I have been known to put the old sump oil in the diesel tank of the truck it came out of. Gave me slightly more power as well. The canter is gutless at the best o times. I had a station wagon that was faster at the top of a hill then the truck was at the bottom! Thought I would share this with you all. Cheers
Oscar
Oscar4u - for all your rotary cowshed repairs
 
Oscar4u

Regular Member

Joined: 23/02/2011
Location: New Zealand
Posts: 42
Posted: 07:36am 31 Oct 2011
Copy link to clipboard 
Print this post

Hello Alan
time you flush you pm box. Cheers
Oscar
Oscar4u - for all your rotary cowshed repairs
 
Print this page


To reply to this topic, you need to log in.

© JAQ Software 2024