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Tool Talk Discussion Forum

Genny set up for power

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old

01-12-2007 19:28:20




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Ok heres one for you guy. I have a back up genny incase I loose power, its water cooled so. Could I maybe plumb something so I could heat the house with the cooling system on this thing?? I'm thinking it could be use sort of like a heater in a car would be use, ya it wouldn't heat the whole house but when the power is off any little bit would help.

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Ozlander

01-13-2007 19:33:57




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 Re: Genny set up for power in reply to old, 01-12-2007 19:28:20  
If the generator is running, why not run your furnace?

Ozlander



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Ozlander

01-13-2007 19:32:33




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 Re: Genny set up for power in reply to old, 01-12-2007 19:28:20  
If the generator is running, why not run your furnace?

Ozlander



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Ryan - WI

01-13-2007 14:18:21




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 Re: Genny set up for power in reply to old, 01-12-2007 19:28:20  
The only problem I can see is if with the extra coolant it doesn't allow your engine to reach the proper running temp. Kind of like running an engine without a thermostat. Depending on how much coolant you have in the system it may never reach 200 degrees.



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Yugrotcart

01-13-2007 09:42:35




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 Re: Genny set up for power in reply to old, 01-12-2007 19:28:20  
Old,
An Amish fellow I know has heating pipes in the floor of his machine shop. He has a large diesel generator and has the coolant from the engine pumped through the pipes. Works real well, plenty of heat for his shop.

Paul



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mj

01-13-2007 09:16:04




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 Re: Genny set up for power in reply to old, 01-12-2007 19:28:20  
How 'bout runing the coolant thru insulated pipes into a car/truck radiator in the house with a box fan behind it? You'll probably have to let the wife decorate it, though. :-)



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KEB

01-13-2007 08:31:01




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 Re: Genny set up for power in reply to old, 01-12-2007 19:28:20  
Only problem I see with a separate bus/motorhome/etc. heater is that they're designed to be fed with a heater hose, and you'd only have some small portion of the generator coolant going through them.

I would think any of the water to air heat exchangers designed for domestic hot water heating would work. Pressure in an engine coolant system is less than domestic water pressure, so don't see any problems there.

I had a house once that had hot water baseboard heat, and other than potential pressure drop with long pipes I don't see why you couldn't run the coolant through a couple of these before it goes back to the radiator. May also need an auxillary pump to move enough coolant depending on pipe size & distance...engine water pumps are design to move large quantities against low head pressure.

May want a bypass so you're not dumping heat into the house unless you need it.

Interesting project. Keep us posted on how it goes.

Keith

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Bob

01-13-2007 10:56:32




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 Re: Genny set up for power in reply to KEB, 01-13-2007 08:31:01  
It's not uncommon for bus heaters to be fed with 1" hose.

A good flow through 1" hose to a functioning heater will get rid of quite a bit of engine heat!



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in sticks

01-13-2007 06:11:39




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 Re: Genny set up for power in reply to old, 01-12-2007 19:28:20  
what if you left rad plumbed for normal running,then valved unit so you could send hot water to wherevere through insulated pipe to one of those old cast iron raditors like in some houses then back to unit?



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frankiee

01-13-2007 05:20:05




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 Re: Genny set up for power in reply to old, 01-12-2007 19:28:20  
The idea of old bus heaters or vehicle heaters is good. Suburbans have heater units in the back. It is a very good idea. On a cold winter night when there is no power, the device could be used for a heat source or a tractor block heater or what ever.
Fumes could not be allowed to enter house so that means very good sealing of any holes made.
Instead of getting generator close to house to minimize heat loss from long heater hose length, I would find a way to insulate them for minimum heat loss. That way you don't have to worry about exhaust fumes trying to get into the house however they can. Likely a minimum distance a person has to keep a generator away form house but I don't know it.
On one of the ships I was on it was done that way.
The heat of the jacket water of the main engine was piped out to various areas and used as heat.
I would like to hear of updates from time to time on the project.

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frankiee

01-13-2007 08:01:05




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 Re: Genny set up for power in reply to frankiee, 01-13-2007 05:20:05  
Link

The link attached is for an exhaust heat exchanger to water for a generator.
Good idea old.
I am very interested in this
Thanks



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Steve Crum

01-12-2007 21:41:12




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 Re: Genny set up for power in reply to old, 01-12-2007 19:28:20  
The Waverly school district recently shutdown their co-generation project in which they had I believe 4 large generators powered by natural gas fired Chevy 454 engines. This project ran for about 20 years. The school district bought large contracts of natural gas and most utilities were required to buy excess power at high rates under the non-utility generation laws that were in place. As I understand those laws have been beaten down by the utilities and coupled with major equipment overhauls coming due, forced the issue. I haven't heard what the final determination was on this project though

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Gerald J.

01-12-2007 19:53:10




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 Re: Genny set up for power in reply to old, 01-12-2007 19:28:20  
The Bournes plant in Ames (abandoned now) ran natural gas engines for heat and power. The exhaust manifolds and mufflers were also water jacketed to catch more heat. The municipal electric utility wasn't too pleased with them, they only ran a token power line to get them started and bought only water from the city and natural gas from an investor owned utility.

It worked fine for them. Though the btu you will get won't be so drastic there are some. Figure about 100,000 btu per gallon of gas. Figure 3/4 of that will be wasted as heat in the radiator and the exhaust for 25% in the electric generator output. So for 1 KW out, there's 3412 btu/ hour electricity and 10,000 btu / hour heat. Your house furnace probably puts out a peak of 80,000 btu / hr, but 10,000 is a start.

Gerald J.

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buickanddeere

01-12-2007 19:36:59




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 Re: Genny set up for power and heating in reply to old, 01-12-2007 19:28:20  
Like in a co-generation system? It's been talked about at length on the www.listerengine.com . Some folks collect wvo and back feed the grid with a generator for "net billing'. Small hydro bill, cheap fuel and waste heat from coolant and exhaust for domestic heating loads. Takes some time, $$$, experience and tinkering.



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