Category Archives: Opinion

General discussion and opinions on the Energy, HVAC and the World

BYE BYE NG

Natural Gas has a few drawbacks, some of which are pretty important to consider but often brushed aside.

NG needs a lot of air. This air comes from the outside and passes through the combustion chamber and back outside again. The combustion air and venting up the chimney add to the heat loss and reduces efficiency.

NG exhaust gas is loaded with moisture that condenses into an acidic fluid as it cools. It will stain what ever it touches, ecth into glass and quickly rust away any metal surface it touch’s.

Early Moring New Westminster

The exhaust gas is not toxic under normal conditions but adjust the fuel air ratio a little and it can be deadly. Proper air mixture will result in 0PPM Carbon Monoxide. A high efficiency gas furnace at 98% efficiency must have a bare minimum supply of combustion air to keep such a high efficiency rating and CO levels are typically higher. Choke the air off just a little, and the CO will go through the roof. 2000PPM or more, if this high level CO leaks into the occupied space it can be deadly.

Deadly cases of CO poisoning occur each year from fossil fuel heating systems, but this does little to sway people away from gas or oil heating systems.

Natural Gas another big concern…