Grow House-Heating

[RobC]

Does anyone know what's happening here.

Download Attachment: Heating-GrowHouseFurnace_M.jpg

66.36 KB

Download Attachment: Heating-GrowHouseVent_M.jpg

73.93 KB

I've got the electrical figured out, talked to the electrician that made the repairs.

Maybe someone out there could enlighten me on the heating/ventilation requirements of a grow house and what alterations are done to the various systems.

Do they disconnect the vent connector and vent the furnace directly into the grow area?

Do they leave the attic hatch open?

ETC..

Found lots of mold like stuff on the attic decking, as suspected, otherwise it LOOKED like a normal home- on a busy street in front of a bus stop, if you can believe it.

[charlieb]

Rust is the symptom

Condensation is the cause

Bad flue design is the problem.

Length, negative slope, clearance to combustables etc

Others will chime in on the configueration---We never see flues joined in the south and I really did not look but a moment[]

CALL the HVAC man in.[:-dev3]

Charlie

[Brian G]

Originally posted by charlieb

We never see flues joined in the south and I really did not look but a moment

Strange but true. I've never seen flues joined here, not even on old houses. They all go up and out by themselves.

Brian G.

[crusty]

Bad flue configuration is the problem. The products of combustion appear to be cooling too fast and the resulting condensation in the flue pipes cause the efflorescing. Charlie said it all. T

When joining 2 flue connectors 1) They must be on the same floor.

2) They must enter the flue as high as possible.

3) The flue size must increase in size to an area equal to the size of the larger + 1/2 the area of the smaller.

What is a grow house?

st

[Paul MacLean]

Originally posted by Brian G.

Originally posted by charlieb

We never see flues joined in the south and I really did not look but a moment

Strange but true. I've never seen flues joined here, not even on old houses. They all go up and out by themselves.

Brian G.

Same here. Every gas appliance has its own flue. I never see flues connected even when the appliances are sitting side-by-side.

[RobC]

A 'Grow House' is a home used as a green house to grow pot, generally in the basement.

The electrical meter is bipassed and the furnace altered along with various other things??. Often times, structural alterations are made to accomodate venting.

From the outside, the home 'looks' normal with (new) furniture sparsely populating the main floor, a common feature is an attached garage to load and unload undetected.

Needless to say, the home suffers damage from extreme moisture resulting in mold and MDF trim swelling etc..

IAQ is another concern as chemicals are used and other substances that I haven't researched.

As is evident from the photo above, the furnace vent has been altered and the draft inducer will not proof the vent, there is rust and mineral buildup on both the furnace and the water heater.

I'm not too concerned with what we see,

My question is more related as to the WHY these alterations were made and HOW they relate to this grow operation.

Or for that matter, any other curious bits of facts you may have would help.

NO, I'm not changing profession, althought the math is tempting

7 weeks for a plant to mature

$1,000.00/ plant

500 plants/home

All for the cost of a few months rent.

[Chad Fabry]

An efficient furnace produces almost exclusively carbon dioxide and water as an emission. Plants like carbon dioxide and water both. Venting the furnace into the home would create a very "tropical" environment.