Had a heat pipe freeze in this pi$$y weather... about -15'F with a wind blowing on affected outside wall. Have modified insulation slightly in hindsight. Despite cranking two woodstoves had "cold corners" in far-off rooms and several pipes burst. Furnace guy, previously totally against putting glycol in system, is now considering adding "a dash".
Will use propylene glycol I think, as the furnace also does domestic hot water from a seperate coil. It's a must-do in case the two should ever mix as his PG is (sufficiently) non-toxic. I'm all for the idea but the furnace guy is hesitant, and a proponent of using the least he can get away with. He says it attacks the rubber gaskets and whatnot.
I feel that furnace antifreeze can't be too far behind automotive technology-- Sierra auto a/f is propylene for example and they've apparently worked out the bugs in that. His stuff comes in a 5 gallon pail and costs more than it should. I have no qualms about changing it out every few years to replenish its corrosion inhibitors. Furthermore if the gaskets go maybe glycol-tolerant ones will replace them. Plus, they're easy to get at and fix in the basement.
There's copper pipe, two zones, and some of that newfangled red plastic burst-resistant stuff. Oil fired furnace has two zones and domestic hot water and is approx 15 years old.
Am I correct in assuming that a small amount of PG adds burst resistance (by turning to slush) while a bit more will help the system continue to flow under extreme circumstances?
Is the lower heat transfer a real problem? I figure if it doesn't give up all its heat on the first trip through the house it'll just go back to the boiler and start again.
Has anyone run this PG and had any ill effects? I'm thinking like a car chemical guy regarding my house now.
PS the mobil 1 0w30 under the hood, in the driveway, is the shiznit.
Will use propylene glycol I think, as the furnace also does domestic hot water from a seperate coil. It's a must-do in case the two should ever mix as his PG is (sufficiently) non-toxic. I'm all for the idea but the furnace guy is hesitant, and a proponent of using the least he can get away with. He says it attacks the rubber gaskets and whatnot.
I feel that furnace antifreeze can't be too far behind automotive technology-- Sierra auto a/f is propylene for example and they've apparently worked out the bugs in that. His stuff comes in a 5 gallon pail and costs more than it should. I have no qualms about changing it out every few years to replenish its corrosion inhibitors. Furthermore if the gaskets go maybe glycol-tolerant ones will replace them. Plus, they're easy to get at and fix in the basement.
There's copper pipe, two zones, and some of that newfangled red plastic burst-resistant stuff. Oil fired furnace has two zones and domestic hot water and is approx 15 years old.
Am I correct in assuming that a small amount of PG adds burst resistance (by turning to slush) while a bit more will help the system continue to flow under extreme circumstances?
Is the lower heat transfer a real problem? I figure if it doesn't give up all its heat on the first trip through the house it'll just go back to the boiler and start again.
Has anyone run this PG and had any ill effects? I'm thinking like a car chemical guy regarding my house now.
PS the mobil 1 0w30 under the hood, in the driveway, is the shiznit.
