Direct-Vent Boilers
Has anyone heard of a direct-vent boiler/furnace, and could anyone tell me: 1) Do they meet code in NYC? 2) Are they noisy (inside and/or outside)? 3) What are the best makes and are there any makes one should avoid? 4) What’s the best way of venting them? 5) Are there any difficulties with respect…
Has anyone heard of a direct-vent boiler/furnace, and could anyone tell me:
1) Do they meet code in NYC?
2) Are they noisy (inside and/or outside)?
3) What are the best makes and are there any makes one should avoid?
4) What’s the best way of venting them?
5) Are there any difficulties with respect to window clearances?
6) What are any other perils and pitfalls I should be aware of?
1. Most direct-vent and sealed combustion boilers are NYC Building Code compliant.
2. Typically make a low decibel, uneven whir sound. You’ll know when it’s running if your within 15 feet or so of it.
3. Many brands have come and gone quickly. Rinnai, Bosch, Buderus seem to be sticking around.
4. Through the wall they hang on.
5. Not on a typical residential installation
6. When they cease to function, very often parts are mailed from far away lands taking days to arrive.
Good luck.
Check out a site called Al’s Heating, located in Maine, and the Rinnai direct-vent heater, manufactured in New Zealand. Don’t know about NYC code, but legal in NJ.
They are infinetely better designed and engineered, small, a whole lot more efficient and you will never run out of hot water again.
My old apartment had one. It was a circulating hot water system with baseboard radiators. It was small, about 36”x20”x12” deep and vented out the back brick wall through an internal flue. It ran on natural gas, was very quite, even when the pump came on to move the water. They had it mounted to the wall and did not touch the floor. In the years that we were there, we had only one problem, and that was, mainly due to no maintenace by the super, the relief valve began to leak and stained the floor. It had no filters to change, was very clean, and did not seem to give off any fumes of any kind. The flame inside, which was visible through a glass window was no biger than your broiler on your stove. I think you can call Brooklyn Union to find out more and also to see if they have any rebates or certified installers in your area.