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[loneryder]

Anybody use one of these?  I bought a $30 Infrared temp scanner and I can't get a decent reading.  When I point it at the pex pipe I get no higher than 135.  I have an 85' run of CB's expensive pec pipe and it trying to tell me I have a 40 deg drop from the boiler to the house???  The only place I can get a somewhat accurate reading is shining it on the pump impeller housing.  Everywhere else it's not even close.  The thing may be a cheap pos that just doesn't work.  Can anybody reccomend one that works?  Will they pick up temps on plastic?

[muffin]

Anybody use one of these?  I bought a $30 Infrared temp scanner and I can't get a decent reading.  When I point it at the pex pipe I get no higher than 135.  I have an 85' run of CB's expensive pec pipe and it trying to tell me I have a 40 deg drop from the boiler to the house???  The only place I can get a somewhat accurate reading is shining it on the pump impeller housing.  Everywhere else it's not even close.  The thing may be a cheap pos that just doesn't work.  Can anybody reccomend one that works?  Will they pick up temps on plastic?

These tend to read differently depending on what you point them at.  Pex vs, metal . . . .  The best use for them is to determine differentials, not actual temperatures.  If you look at a differential on the same material, you should get a pretty accurate reading.

A meat thermometer, well insulated to the pipe, will give you a pretty good real reading.  I use metal tape to attach it to the pipe and then the pipe foam around it to insulate it from the air.

[Roger2561]

Anybody use one of these?  I bought a $30 Infrared temp scanner and I can't get a decent reading.  When I point it at the pex pipe I get no higher than 135.  I have an 85' run of CB's expensive pec pipe and it trying to tell me I have a 40 deg drop from the boiler to the house???  The only place I can get a somewhat accurate reading is shining it on the pump impeller housing.  Everywhere else it's not even close.  The thing may be a cheap pos that just doesn't work.  Can anybody reccomend one that works?  Will they pick up temps on plastic?

These tend to read differently depending on what you point them at.  Pex vs, metal . . . .  The best use for them is to determine differentials, not actual temperatures.  If you look at a differential on the same material, you should get a pretty accurate reading.

A meat thermometer, well insulated to the pipe, will give you a pretty good real reading.  I use metal tape to attach it to the pipe and then the pipe foam around it to insulate it from the air.

Muffin - That may explain why I had a 30 degree temp difference in readings from what my digital display said on the OWB to what my digital thermometer said indoor while touching the pipe.  My OWB is a CB E-classic 1400.  I'll get some metal tape and insulation over the weekend to see if that helps.  I too have the CB underground piping to my house.  It's only 45 feet from the OWB to the house.  Thanks for the tip.  Roger

[loneryder]

I took some readings tonight and it seems to read off the pex but no metal.  There was a 30 deg difference between the inlet and outlet tube of the heat exchanger...165 to 130.  Does this sound about right?  Blower running.  I will try the meat therm.  The in tube in the basement reads 165.  Can't believe I'm losing 10+ degrees from boiler to house.  But I haven't been able to get a decent reading at the boiler.

[muffin]

I took some readings tonight and it seems to read off the pex but no metal.  There was a 30 deg difference between the inlet and outlet tube of the heat exchanger...165 to 130.  Does this sound about right?  Blower running.  I will try the meat therm.  The in tube in the basement reads 165.  Can't believe I'm losing 10+ degrees from boiler to house.  But I haven't been able to get a decent reading at the boiler.

Someone else said they had issues reading off metal, perhaps the reflectivity messes it up.  Someone else had said their IR had a setting as to what you were reading on.  Mine doesn't.  30* is pretty large.  From what I have heard you want 15*.  Can you increase your flow rate.

[husky 555]

My IR gun, for whatever reason cannot give accurate readings off of stainless steel or copper.  The gun will  give accurate readings off the cast iron pumps and pex. 

What I do is simply hold  the gun directly to the pex for a minute or two to get my readings.  Most of the time the difference at the owb and where it comes into my house (approx. 60 ft.) is less than 4 degrees.

[Rockarosa]

If you  wrap elecrical tape over your copper, a single wrap, then your thermal gun will give you an accurate reading.  Works for me.

[loneryder]

My IR gun, for whatever reason cannot give accurate readings off of stainless steel or copper.  The gun will  give accurate readings off the cast iron pumps and pex. 

What I do is simply hold  the gun directly to the pex for a minute or two to get my readings.  Most of the time the difference at the owb and where it comes into my house (approx. 60 ft.) is less than 4 degrees.

I found the same thing.  It will read on the cast iron of the pump but not copper.  Seems to read on pex. I'm losing 30 deg in the heat exchanger...to the house...when the blower is running.  Anyone think that is too much?

[willieG]

I found the same thing.  It will read on the cast iron of the pump but not copper.  Seems to read on pex. I'm losing 30 deg in the heat exchanger...to the house...when the blower is running.  Anyone think that is too much?
[/quote]
it is possable (from my limited knowledge of central boiler) that you have one of those thermostatic valves that will not let water go back to the stove under 150 degrees. If you have this valve it may be that some of your "feed" water is actually  going back to the boiler before going to the house to keep this valve satisfied?

if you are sending water to the house at a low enough gpm that the return water is less than 150 degrees then the valve is stealing feed water to maintain a return temp of 150

if you know now what your GPM delivery is to the house, you could (if your system can handle it) increase the gpm going to your house that  would deliver more btu  so your in home rad would not lower the return water as far and the thermostatic valve would not have to use any of your feed water to protect your stove? i hope i have made this goofy thought of mine understandable? and then if you dont have this valve this whole thing may not be needed. But i do believe your GPM (or your delivery water temp) is too low

[loneryder]

Understand exactly what you mean.  I didn't install that valve but have an aquastat in the line that stops the flow of water if the temp reaches a certain set point which I believe is about 140.  I am going to try that balck tape trick.

[netwerx-r-us]

so this is one of ways I thought about doing it  , the temp gauges run about 9.00 apiece, there is also a electronic setup that RSI has that you can view from your computer browser , not priced bad at all , there's another x300 i think that's sure pretty,  but so is the price

I'm probably going to do both eventually

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