Gas Furnace Components 3 | HVAC Heating

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Gas Furnace Components 3Gas Furnace Components 3 - Gas furnace ignition controls vary from furnace manufacturer to furnace manufacturer. Some are proprietary and some are from an engineering company that specializes in gas furnace ignition controls. Honeywell being a major manufacturer of controls for HVAC also makes several gas furnace ignition controls.

Gas furnace ignition controls have advanced by leaps and bounds over the last 20 years. The standard was standing pilot ignition. Solid-state ignition controls are safer and more efficient than ignition controls of yesteryear.
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Honeywell Temperature Fan Limit Switch Control

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Honeywell Temperature Fan Limit Switch Control for Gas or Oil HeatingHoneywell Temperature Fan Limit Switch​ Control – The fan limit control turns the fan on and off in furnace applications. It works off of temperature and also provides a high-temperature safety limit. This is a switch, actually two switches, which turns the furnace blower on and off based on the temperature of the heat exchanger.

A helical bi-metal probe extends from the back of the fan limit control. This probe is located inside the heat exchanger and the bi-metal of the probe reacts to temperature.

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Electronic Ignition Gas Furnaces | HVAC Heating

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gas furnace ignition control boardHigh Efficiency Electronic Ignition Gas FurnacesHigh-Efficiency Electronic Ignition Gas Furnaces are here. They are the next step up from the standing pilot gas furnace. These gas furnaces are more efficient than the standing pilot furnaces but more complex in design. There are three types of electronic ignition gas furnaces: the intermittent spark pilot, the intermittent hot surface ignition pilot (Honeywell Smartvalve and ignition assembly), and the hot surface ignition furnaces.

While the three are different they all offer higher efficiencies and are both controlled by solid-state circuit boards. Many of these furnaces also have higher efficient heat exchangers.
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White Rodgers and Honeywell Thermostats | Thermostat Selection

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White Rodgers and Honeywell Thermostats | Thermostat SelectionWhite Rodgers and Honeywell Thermostats - Which type and brand of thermostat do you get when selecting a new thermostat? To do that you have to know what kind of HVAC system you have installed for your heating and cooling system. Do you have a hot water boiler with baseboard heating or radiators with the boiler combination?

In addition to the boiler do you have an air conditioning system with ductwork or a mini-split ductless system? Do you have a heat pump system? Do you have electric baseboard heating? Do you have an air conditioner system with electric heat? It is important to know the answers to what kind of HVAC system you have installed in your home. (more…)

Heat Pump Thermostats | HVAC Heating and Cooling

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Heat Pump ThermostatsHeat Pump Thermostats - To the average person a heat pump thermostat can be a very complicated thermostat compared to the typical thermostat which serves an air conditioning system with gas, electric, or an oil furnace. Of course, the heat pump thermostat typically has more wire terminations than the regular thermostat.

It has more switches to control emergency heat, and some even have lights, which will indicate that the auxiliary heat or emergency heat is functioning. Most heat pump thermostats are two-stage thermostats for the heating mode and a single stage for the cooling mode.

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Troubleshooting Broken Thermostats | HVAC Control

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What you will learn from the Troubleshooting Broken Thermostats article:

  1. One of the most common trouble calls for HVAC heating and cooling
  2. Basic checks of the HVAC System thermostat to see if it is broken or?
  3. The basics of the thermostat for an HVAC system
  4. Learn what a heating anticipator is and what type of thermostat uses them.
  5. Fixing a Broken Thermostat for an HVAC System
  6. Finally, lots of related useful links to help you learn your heating and cooling HVAC system

Troubleshooting Broken Thermostats - The main connection between the air conditioning and heating system and the end-user is the thermostat. Beyond the air conditioning and heating thermostat, many people know nothing about the HVAC systems that keep them comfortable year-round. While the thermostat may be the problem, make sure you eliminate other possible heating and cooling problems.
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Dual Two-Stage Split System with a Dual Slab Coil

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Dual Two-Stage Split System with a Dual Slab Coil. Huh?

Dual Two-Stage Split System with a Dual Slab Coil
Richard - Very nice site!- Dual Two-Stage Split System with a Dual Slab Coil - I have a question; my home was fitted out by the previous owner with a twinned system, and a thermostat (Totaline P374-1900) which was not designed to control discreet, paired units. I confirmed this with Totaline. The result is only one unit runs, and the second unit is never activated. It functions, but not automatically.

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Electronic Ignition Gas Furnace Problems Troubleshooting

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Electronic Ignition Gas Furnace Problems Troubleshooting

White Rodgers Gas Furnace Ignition Control Board

Electronic Ignition Gas Furnace Problems Troubleshooting - Gas furnaces are a prevalent form of heat for homes and businesses, and occasionally a gas furnace needs to be repaired because of a problem with the gas furnace.

Since there are many different types of gas furnaces, it is difficult to cover every single possible gas furnace problem that can occur with a gas furnace in one article. We are going to break this theme “gas furnace problems” down into a series of articles with the first one being gas furnace problems with electronic ignition gas furnaces.
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Wireless WIFI Smart Thermostats | HVAC Control

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wireless wifi smart thermostatsWireless WiFi Smart Thermostats - The future of wireless thermostats have already arrived as there are a handful of wireless thermostats available on the market now. These are the forefathers of wireless thermostats and offer basic functions that the average wired programmable thermostat has to offer that are currently available on the market.

As we progress and the thermostat manufacturers tweak and improve on their thermostats, the thermostats will grow far more complex than the wireless thermostats offered today. This new breed of the wireless thermostat is a far cry from the once state-of-the-art thermostats that offered touch screens and adaptive recovery features that the current breed of thermostat offers.

As we move into the future, we see new features and options that will offer us more control, monitoring, and energy savings. All the manufacturers have something in the pipeline for wireless thermostats including Venstar, Emerson (White-Rodgers), and Honeywell to name a few thermostat manufacturers. (more…)

Changing a Standing Pilot Boiler to Electronic Ignition – Conversion Upgrade

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Changing a Standing Pilot Boiler to Electronic Ignition

The Honeywell Y8610U Intermittent Pilot Retrofit Kit

Changing a Standing Pilot Boiler to Electronic Ignition - Conversion Upgrade - How many times have you spent time in the cold trying to light a pilot light on a standing pilot gas system?

I am certain if you are a service technician, then the previous sentence can be qualified with “How many frustrating times.” You go on a service call and find the old standing pilot gas system. Whether it is a water heater, furnace, or boiler, and you find the thermocouple is bad. Or some other reason that is keeping the pilot light from staying lit.

You clean the pilot burner and replace the thermocouple and walla…………..it lights and stays lit. The magical standing pilot works again. There is another option for you and your customer. And while it is not recommended in every situation it can help eliminate those pesky repeat service calls.

Calls where the pilot continues to go out for whatever reason? The sudden ghostly draft is one of the big reasons. Honeywell produces an electronic ignition retrofit kit that is ideal for residential and light commercial gas furnace systems. Gas systems that are eligible for an upgrade from standing pilot to electronic ignition (covers BTU ratings up to 270,000).

Honeywell Y8610U6006 Gas Valve Intermittent Pilot Retrofit Kit Available here

Changing a Standing Pilot Boiler to Electronic Ignition | Conversion Upgrade

The Y8610U Intermittent Pilot Retrofit Kit from Honeywell comes complete. It comes with a gas valve (Natural Gas to Propane (LP)) conversion kit in the box), ignition control, electronic spark assembly with flame sensor, ignition wire, and wiring harness. A seasoned technician will find wiring this a snap. Out of the box the gas valve can be used with either ½” or ¾” pipe so this will work with little changes made to the gas pipe.

From Standing Pilot to Electronic Ignition - Changing a Standing Pilot Boiler to Electronic Ignition

I recently upgraded my boiler from a standing pilot to this electronic ignition control. It reminded me of all those standing pilot furnaces and boilers out there that have been changed to electronic ignition by me when I was working in the field. I had recently purchased a new – old house (1920) that has a steam boiler in the basement. All summer, I kept thinking about upgrading the boiler to electronic ignition from a standing pilot.

Especially after a nasty springtime encounter with lighting the pilot light that reminded me of all the frustrating experiences. Finally, fall arrived, and it was time to start up the old boiler so we can have some heat. That is when I ordered the Y8610U Intermittent Pilot Retrofit Kit.

Throwing the Switch - Changing a Standing Pilot Boiler to Electronic Ignition

The intermittent pilot retrofit kit arrived, and immediately, I took it down to the boiler to make the new introduction. About an hour and a half later, I threw the switch for the main power. The boiler and the new electronic ignition module came to life by sparking. I couldn’t see it, but I could hear it.

About a second or two of sparking and I heard the pilot fire. A second later, the main burner’s fired and the old boiler (approximately 30 years old) got a taste of modern technology. Another hour in the basement was taking care of the boiler and doing annual boiler maintenance, and I can feel comfortable. Comfortable with the reliable heat this winter and the colder days of fall and spring.

Installation Made Easy by Honeywell

The manifold side of the gas valve is a ½ inch, but the kit comes with a ¾ inch flange if the manifold side of the gas valve requires ¾ inch. The gas supply side of the gas valve is a ¾ inch, but Honeywell includes a ¾ inch to ½ inch reducer bushing.

That makes it possible to use the include gas valve for either ¾ inch pipe or ½ inch black iron pipe. The most difficult part of the installation for me is usually not the piping or even the wiring but getting the pilot burner in the correct position to light the main burners.

The pilot burner is usually installed in a tight space, and you have to get it exactly right, so the main gas burners light right away when the main valve in the gas valve opens to feed gas to the main burners. We do not want any “whoosh” main burner ignition.

That means the pilot light is too far away from the main burner. That allows gas build-up, which can be dangerous. Make sure you get the pilot light in the recommended position per the manufacturer’s recommendations or guidelines.

Installation Tips

A few installation tips and features include the control only needs to be supplied with 24 VAC – no line voltage needed – you tap into the 24-volt transformer that should be with the boiler. Make sure you wire through all the safeties, so the control loses power when one of the safeties trips.

When the controller loses power, the burner shuts down. Always follow all the instructions when installing anything. Good luck with any future upgrades you decide to make concerning this retrofit ignition control kit.

Honeywell Y8610U6006 Gas Valve Intermittent Pilot Retrofit Kit Available here

High Performance HVAC

Changing a Standing Pilot Boiler to Electronic Ignition

Resource: The Home Comfort Book: The ultimate guide to creating a comfortable, healthy, long lasting, and efficient home