This isn't boiler-specific, but I find that those most familiar with whole house systems gravitate to the Boiler Room.
My Econoburn 150 and associated system (water to air HX in preexisting ductwork, with air moved by the blower in the preexisting ThermoPride oil warm air furnace) are heating my (previously hard to heat) 19th century VT farmhouse superbly.
I can actually run temperatures warmer than I could have ever thought of before; the only downside is that my air is-- correspondingly-- dryer than before (and since it's no longer worth trying to add heat with my wood cookstove, I no longer have a steaming pot on the cookstove to add moisture to the air).
A friend has given me a nice quality/condition bypass-drum humidifier.
I know that these are typically installed in a manner where they go between the return duct and the warm air duct; I don't want to do that in my install, as I figure that's inviting moisture to condense on the steel innards of my oil furnace, which is on the cold side of my wood system's HX.
I am toying with the following ideas--
(1) bypass HX in the warm air duct with a muffin fan to pull air through the bypass humidifier (although I hesitate to put a muffin fan in the heated airflow, as that's probably above it's temp ratings; or
(2) a "take off" feed from the warm air duct that has a "scoop" inside the duct to steer some airflow into the humidifier.
I'm leaning towards (2)--- anyone have any experience or other feedback on how well this might work, or effective and simple ways to arrange it?
Finally, any nominations for effective but affordable "smart humidistats" that take outdoor air temps into account? Or other affordable but reliable humidistats?
Thanks, as always, for the opportunity to solicit input from the Boiler Room's collective minds.
My Econoburn 150 and associated system (water to air HX in preexisting ductwork, with air moved by the blower in the preexisting ThermoPride oil warm air furnace) are heating my (previously hard to heat) 19th century VT farmhouse superbly.
I can actually run temperatures warmer than I could have ever thought of before; the only downside is that my air is-- correspondingly-- dryer than before (and since it's no longer worth trying to add heat with my wood cookstove, I no longer have a steaming pot on the cookstove to add moisture to the air).
A friend has given me a nice quality/condition bypass-drum humidifier.
I know that these are typically installed in a manner where they go between the return duct and the warm air duct; I don't want to do that in my install, as I figure that's inviting moisture to condense on the steel innards of my oil furnace, which is on the cold side of my wood system's HX.
I am toying with the following ideas--
(1) bypass HX in the warm air duct with a muffin fan to pull air through the bypass humidifier (although I hesitate to put a muffin fan in the heated airflow, as that's probably above it's temp ratings; or
(2) a "take off" feed from the warm air duct that has a "scoop" inside the duct to steer some airflow into the humidifier.
I'm leaning towards (2)--- anyone have any experience or other feedback on how well this might work, or effective and simple ways to arrange it?
Finally, any nominations for effective but affordable "smart humidistats" that take outdoor air temps into account? Or other affordable but reliable humidistats?
Thanks, as always, for the opportunity to solicit input from the Boiler Room's collective minds.