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yes

5 (38.5%)

no

8 (61.5%)

Total Members Voted: 13

[kjw58]

just wondering if it is a good idea to incorporate some kind of antifreeze protection in my owb.  I like to get away and go snowmobiling for a few days and don't have someone to keep it going there could be a problem.  Is a glycol mix a good idea ?  I've also heard that dowfrost is another option,  anyone have any experience with this stuff ??

[willieG]

just wondering if it is a good idea to incorporate some kind of antifreeze protection in my owb.  I like to get away and go snowmobiling for a few days and don't have someone to keep it going there could be a problem.  Is a glycol mix a good idea ?  I've also heard that dowfrost is another option,  anyone have any experience with this stuff ??

KJ, antifreeze protection will work fine...i have heard some say that antifreeze solutions willnot transfer heat as good as plain old water.....i say  Crap..it would be so small you  would never notice. especially if you keep the solution weak (just enough protection you think you need)
the only concern you should have is..if you use automobile antifreeze it will be reasonable cost but if you spring a leak you could be liable for any envirenmantal damage that occurs (like all that antifreeze getting in the water) and if you use envirenmental friendly antifreeze, the cost will be astronomical i think. but as far as will it harm your stove...NO...but if you are using your stove to make domestic hot water..a leak in your  side arm or heat exchanger to the domestic water could be poisoness..but if you are using chemicals in your water now they likely are anyway. (and i would think you would notice the smell or taste in the water 9as well as see your OWB getting low on fluid)
I do a few guys here in the back woods that use auto antifreeze and have never had a problem but i still use just water..if i go away for a week i just drain it adn start fresh when i return

[willieG]

i didnt vote because i guess i would vote yes ..for i believe it wouldn't hurt your system and then i would also vote no because i don't u st it...lol
i guess i'm sitting on the fence!

[unaslob]

i havent personally put any in this year but this is my rookie season and I dont go anywhere.. to the chance of a freeze is low.. however my father put antifreeze in last spring when he shut down just in the off chance we got a cold spell and something would freeze... i dont know how much is enough per say 50 gal of water is needed to truely protect... but the more you put in... the less efficient of a heat transfer you get... the glycol in essence acts as an insulator.    for just a few days problem i dont see why you couldnt just let the circulator pumps run... for running water to freeze it would have to get pretty damn cold.. for example you let the water drip on a faucet that you dont want to freeze right?  

[willieG]

i believe i read somewhere that a 50/50 solution will decrease your waters ability to transfer heat by less than 2%..and 50/50 would be near -40 so if you lessen the amount of antifreeze to say 1/3 you would still be protected to about 0 F and your heat transfer would be minimully affected

the effect on your system would not even be noticable unless your heat transfer equipment was allready undersized (your heat exchangers--water to water or water to air )

your biggest concern should be that auto antifreeze is poison..to you  or to any life form  that may become in contact with it due to a leak into your water system or the water table or ditch near your home

remember your car can cool the water quick enough in its rad and the whole system is only measured in quarts not hundreds of gallons, i would say the heat transfer is still working quite well

there is a chance that auto antifreeze used in eccesive amounts could seperate polymers from the antifeeze and cause your system (if sat idle to long) to gel and clog your pipes.

and if i am thinking along the right lines (maybe not) event the 2 % just means it would take 2 % more water to collect the heat and releae it..you have plenty of water for that and if your system was undersized it would mean you would just have to move that water  faster...i believe we move the water plenty fast now and we have lots of extra gallonage, most systems are only dropping 10 degrees or so on a round trip

[rosewood]

well if u look at what antifreeze does for a engine, it provides  freeze / corrosive protection raises boiling point of coolant system.  with that said your furnace [in theory] would have to work harder to heat, same with hx,  the coolant would expel or repel heat thats what it supposed to do. but thats in theory. i would stick to plain water for the other reasons mensioned,and maybe think of a block heater with circulation.

[willieG]

found this on the net for what it is worth..it says do not exceed 70%

Next you need to check your
antifreeze strength. You can
use a refractometer, hydrometer,
or test strips that
change color to indicate antifreeze
strength. Before starting
this test make sure that
there is adequate antifreeze
in the system.
As a rule, a 50/50 mixture of
ethylene glycol antifreeze and
water will provide boiling
point protection up to 255
degrees with a 15 PSI cap,
and freezing protection down
NEVER exceed 70% because
too much antifreeze actually
reduces the coolants ability
to carry heat. This ultimately
will increase the risk of overheating
in a system that otherwise
has a marginal capability.
Since both types of antifreeze
have different specific gravities,
it is important to point
out the use of the right tools
for the job. Know which type
you have before you start.

[willieG]

Some might need it if the boiler is left unattended. Like others have said, I don't see a need if I am always around. That block heater idea sounded pretty good too.

my system (and many others) consist of a water to air exchanger in the plemum of the home heating system..my blower runs 24/7 and my OWB is set at 72..the indoor heat system is set at 68 so if the OWB goes cold...and teh indoor furnace kicks in..the pump is now circulating the OWB water through the rad because the zone valve is in the open position because the OWB thermostat is calling for heat and will do so untill the room is 72...this way (although it is costing money) the indoor furnace would infact keep the OWB water well above freezing

I think anyway..lol

[ARE]

I voted but thought u just wanted to know who uses what. I filled up the OWB as full as I could and left for 3 days. Wasn't sure how long it would last. I knew the forced aie LP furnace would kick in at 55 and would also keep the boiler from freezing up. Was still over a hundred on the OWB when I got back but temps were in the 20 - 30 range at the time. Was amazed at how long the water maintained temp. Had temp. in house set at 60-F. I know every situation is different but had to experiment. Good Luck.

[willieG]

I voted but thought u just wanted to know who uses what. I filled up the OWB as full as I could and left for 3 days. Wasn't sure how long it would last. I knew the forced aie LP furnace would kick in at 55 and would also keep the boiler from freezing up. Was still over a hundred on the OWB when I got back but temps were in the 20 - 30 range at the time. Was amazed at how long the water maintained temp. Had temp. in house set at 60-F. I know every situation is different but had to experiment. Good Luck.
[/quote

it is quite possable your LP stove was heating your OWB to the 100 you saw ral...even though you only had your home set to 55 your LP would likely be heating your plenum to near 140 or 160 and passing a great deal of that heat to you OWB

most gas and oil furnaces don't turn the blower on (or up to heat speed) untill the plenum is around 160 and then blow even when the fire goes off until the plenum cools to about 130 or so

well that was older furnaces...i am not up on new ones perhaps they are different now

my heat system on the other hand is an in ground water furnace (heat pump) and only produces heat to about 7 to ten degrees above room temp so my OWB would reach only 7 to 10 degrees above what my thermostat was set at.

[Smokey]

The function of antifreeze in a car is to absorb heat from the engine and release it through the radiator. Exactly what we are doing. You can get bulk used antifreeze from salvage yards cheap. i got it for a $1 gal. I built and programmed a micro controller to shut my pump down if the water temp gets too cold for what ever reason. If I have to use gas, Im not using it to heat 200 gal of water outside my house.  I would have to have a major problem to have an underground leak, because I have no joints there. only ones are on the boiler and in the house.

[woodywoodchucker]

What about the RV anit freeze stuff.I used it to winterize my boat up here in Maine as does everyone else.Never heard of a problem and its non tox so wouldnt that work?

[maine owb]

Being in the heating business I am asked this question all the time, my answer for an oil system is not unless you have to, people don't tend
to keep ths glycol at the correct levels and it causes seals to leak and can be corrosive. But in a OWB I say yes. Cheap insurance, I run a 30%
mix, mostly for a lower burst point. Never go over 50% in my opinion, plus the cost gets too high.