BAC Forum
General Boards => Technical Support => Topic started by: Jeremy Parrett on January 17, 2014, 04:52:11 PM
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My Hurricane furnace exhaust has a 90 deg elbow where the exhaust exits the bottom of the unit. It is 1 1/2 inch in diameter. It has a big hole burned in it !! Can I install a regular exhaust elbow or is this made of something special?? Thanks, Jeremy
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Get a good muffler shop to make up a replacement, might have one on the shelve.
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Thanks Lee. Cutting this unit off is going to be fun!!
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Ok. I have cut the elbow off. It is made of solid copper with sleeves where it is clamped to the muffler and the furnace.
Question is ...'can I replace this with a steel 1 1/2 inch 90 deg elbow' ?
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Jeremy,
I thought it looked like cu pipe fittings, trouble is cu pipe fittings have their own size. 1 1/2" cu pipe is 1 5/8" OD. Iron/Steel pipe is a completely different animal, exhaust pipe/tube might work. I'm not sure on exhaust tube sizes but I think they have a 1 5/8". A good shop could make up anything you need, they can expand or re-size to what you need.
I would bet that the elbow is brazed onto the down pipe, is the down pipe cu also? May have created a mess by cutting it off,,,,,hope not.
Good luck.
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Hi Lee,
the 90 deg elbow was clamped and screwed to the downpipe and the muffler. The downpipe is an alloy......nickel maybe but very hard.....the muffler is mild steel. I have a local shop here that, come Monday ,are going to make me an elbow out of steel exhaust tubing. It needs to be 1 1/2 in ID at both ends with a total length of 6 3/4 inches.
ITR who make the Hurricane Furnace tell me they use steel exhaust tubing for the new heaters but can custom make one out of stainless steel for around $60
Thanks, Jeremy
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Jeremy,
Sounds like you have a handle on it.
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Jeremy,
The original elbow was a copper fitting from a home plumbing supply house. You can go to any large home plumbing supply house and buy a direct replacement off of the shelf. The problem with exhaust tubing is that the bend will not be as sharp and that will make the exhaust hang down too low where it will drag on the ground at times.
Gerald
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Hi Gerald,
that make a lot of sense. I will go buy the plumbing fitting and then get the tube fabricator to replicate it in steel;maybe stainless steel. Thanks, Jeremy
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Jeremy,
I don't think a exhaust tube bender will make a 90 degree elbow with that short a radius. Could you just go back with the 1 1/2 cu elbow and clamp it in place, probably will last for years.
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Jeremy,
Your original copper elbow lasted 14 years, therefore I do not see the reasoning in trying to improve it with a better replacement. Just install another copper elbow and it will probably outlast you. Why reinvent the wheel?
Gerald
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Gerald you are right of course. AC Automotive here in Vero Beach are certain they can reinvent the wheel !! I am curious to see the results !!
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Jeremy,
Pleas post pic's of what the wizards come up with, this could get interesting.
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Jeremy,
I had the exact same issue with our Hurricane, the hole is in the same spot. What I found out was that a replacement muffler was available from the manufacturer http://itrheat.com/.
I ordered the replacement muffler including the 90 degree elbow for about $100.00 with shipping and tax. The new model is made of Aluminiumised metal. Receive the replacement in a couple of days.
I replaced the muffler and the exhaust pipe (also Aluminumised) to the same spot for about another 75.00. Works great.
Give these guys a call 1-800-993-4402.
Hope this helps,
Safe travels,
Bill
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FYI ITR told me they could make an elbow from stainless steel for $60. My muffler shop cannot make a replica so I am going with Gerald's suggestion and replacing the copper pipe elbow with same !! Ta da !!
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When I was getting my comfort hot installed by Jim Rixon he mentioned something about the original elbow installed by Beaver was a bit of a problem in that soot tended to clog them. He was offering a replacement with has more of a sweep I believe. This was a passing comment and I might not recall it exactly but it might be worth a call. Jim was the original supplier of Hurricanes to the RV industry before ITR....know Beaver installation as well as anyone.
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FYI. I changed my mind about using a copper elbow .I bought a thick wall stainless 1 1/2 inch elbow that is an exact radius match to the copper original. It is 1 1/2 OD so, I made sleeves to fit over the ends of the elbow where it joins the furnace and the muffler. I cut splits in the sleeves (1 1/2 inch ID muffler pipe) to facilitate fitting. I had to trim 1/4 inch off the SS elbow both ends and 1/4 inch off the sleeves. Using some persuasion..lol.....I got the elbow in place and moved the sleeves to middle the joints and then double clamped both ends. I intend to make 2 thin wall 1 1/2 inch ID stainless steel sleeves to replace the muffler steel ones and have them welded to the elbow.
This will reduce the clamps to 2 and make the unit look more presentable .It isnt a priority right now.
The furnace seems to run more smoothly.
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Great job, Jeremy, and thanks for providing pix. It is evident already that that elbow absorbs a great deal of heat in the bend, accelerating deterioration right at that point.
It's been 9 or 10 years, but when I had to replace the leaky/noisy header to exhaust tube fittings on our old Pace Arrow, I had a devil of a time getting the nuts and bolts removed. One or two bolts had broken from heat expansion, and the others had nuts that had to be cut or cracked off when penetrating fluid wouldn't work.
Countless heating and cooling cycles and corrosion can even affect stainless fasteners and components. You don't want these fittings to leak toxic gases, but they have to be made of composites that won't get brittle and crack over time, and flex to maintain the seal. Memory fades, but seems like before remounting the replacement couplers, a muffler shop clued me into coating the bolt threads with something to facilitate future removal, basically high temp Anti-sieze Lubricant. I think I got it at NAPA.
Joel
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Hi Joel,
you are correct. The elbows very tight radius absorbs an incredible amount of heat.
I could swear it actually glows !!
The original copper elbow is a definite weak link . The thick wall stainless steel elbow I used is made in Israel and available on line.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1-5-Stainless-90-Elbow-Mandrel-Bend-Exhaust-pipe-tubing-304-New/181329613867?_trksid=p2047675.c100011.m1850&_trkparms=aid%3D222006%26algo%3DSIC.FITP%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D19852%26meid%3D5040090781720496060%26pid%3D100011%26prg%3D8938%26rk%3D2%26rkt%3D10%26sd%3D171239845891
A good Dremel tool made removing the old copper part and clamps a breeze . The Hurricane exhaust is made of a hard bronze like metal. I had to trim 1/4 inch off the Hurricane exhaust ,the muffler, and both ends of the elbow for a good tight fit.