US3171402A - Gas heating structure - Google Patents

Description

March 2, 1965 R. E. CARLSON GAS HEATING STRUCTURE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 11, 1962 @/cA/Qeo 5. 00em/v I N VEN TOR.

,qroe/va/ United States Patent Cflce 3,l7l,402' Patented Mar. 2, 1965 3,171,492 GAS HEATING STRUCTURE Richard E. Carlson, '768 N. Almansor St., Alhambra, Calif. Filed .lune lll, i962, Ser. No. Zlllflll 6 Claims. G3i. l26-ll6) This invention relates to gas lired heaters with sealed combustion chambers especially for house trailers, cabins, yachts, homes, cabin cruisers, sailboats and the like. With such heaters, combustion air to supply the gas burners in the sealed combustion chambers is drawn `from the outside air rather than from the interiors of the spaces being heated. With such heaters it is also the practice to vent the combustion chambers laterally from the upper portions thereof out through the buildings sidewalls, and to draw the outside combustion air through a concentric air pipe surrounding the vent pipe.

Lateral venting with concentric horizontal piping lhas heretofore been deemed to be the only satisfactory construction for heaters with sealed combustion chambers, apparently because it has been thought that fresh combustion air how to the combustion chamber could be satisfactorily accomplished only by horizontal how from the exterior of the structure to be heated.

However, such heater constructions have various objections, including side-wall venting, Variable draft conditions, and hot vent caps at low levels outside.

It is a general object of this invention to provide a space heater which eliminates all such objections and adds desirable features.

It is a particularly object of this invention to provide a space heating structure which is vented through the roof and at the same time retains the concentric piping arrangement, the outside combustion air being brought down around the hot vent pipe from a position above the roof and into the lower portion of the combustion chamber.

A further Object of the invention is to produce a gas red heater structure with which the heating capacity may be increased materially without enlarging either the structure of the heater or its burner, the top of the heater structure extending through the roof, the combustion gases being vented from the top of the combustion chamber through an inner vent pipe, and the outside combustion air being brought down into the bottom of the combustion chamber through an outer concentric air pipe.

Still another object of the invention is to transfer the typical vent cap to an elevated position so that such vent cap, which often becomes quite hot, is not in a position to burn persons passing the side of the building, as where horizontal piping is vented.

A stillfurther object of the invention is to increase the efficiency of such a heater f a given size over that attained by horizontal venting and piping, by employing vertical venting and piping whereby to improve draft conditions for the heater, the draft being in some manner partially choked where horizontal venting and piping are employed, such choking disappearing with the present vertical venting and piping system.

A still further object is to provide a vertical venting and piping arrangement extending through the roof wherein a vent cap structure is employed which not only diverts rain or water spray from entering the exhaust venting pipe, but also covers the cool air intake pipe to guide it against the entry of rain or spray.

An additional object of the invention is t-o provide a gas fired space heater which may be located in an interior wall, the venting and piping arrangement through the roof making possible such interior location, as distinguished from the enforced location of a similar heater adjacent an outer Wall when the piping and Venting are horizontally disposed.

Briefly outlined, the present improvement inc.udes an upstanding two-element heating member disposed vertically in a shallow casing or housing often known as a linen The forward element of the heating member constitutes a sealed re box or combustion chamber at the lower end of which a burner is positioned and at the upper end of which there is an outlet passage to a vertical ilue or vent pipe mounted on the heating member and extending up through the buildings roof to vent the combustion gases. The other element of the heating member' is a flattened air chamber element disposed behind the lire box or combustion chamber, both elements being `attached to an intervening radiation partition. This ilattened chamber element is in the form of an air supply chamber enclosed on all sides and at its top and bottom, except that its top provides an intake opening for cool air and its forward wall at the bottom provides an opening connected by an air duct to the lower portion of the combustion chamber to feed such cool air to the burner to support combustion. The upper end of the air chamber is provided with an air intake duct which leads downward from an annular space wit in a collar upstanding from the heater member and receiving the lower end of an outer concentric air intake pipe leading down from the roof around the exhaust pipe. Above the roof, the top or" the exhaust pipe carries a vent cap under which the spent combustion gases are discharged, such cap excluding rain or spray from the exhaust pipe and also overlying the upper end of the air intake pipe to exclude rain therefrom. Thus, pre-warmed cool air is fed from above the roof down through the annular space between the exhaust pipe and the air intaire pipe Where it enters the upper end of the air chamber whence it passes to the lower end of the combustion chamber, the spent combustion gases then rising through the outlet from the combustion chamber into the central exhaust pipe by which they are ydischarged through the roof. Convection air rises around the combustion chamber in front of the radiation partition, and also rises around the intake air chamber which is heated by radiation from the combustion chamber via the radiation partition, such heated air passing forward and outward through the upper portion of a grill or front panel into the living space of the building, radiation heat being projected directly forward from the combustion chamber .through the grill into such living space.

Further objects and features of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reference to the following specication and the accompanying drawings wherein a presently preferred form of the invention is disclosed.

In the drawings:

FlG. l is a perspective view of the heating structure of this invention disclosed as installed in a wall of a small building, portions of the wall being broken away;

FIG. 2 is a vertical section from front to back taken as indicated by the line 2 2 of FIG. l;

FIG. 3 is a front elevation of the heating element as indicated by the line 3 3 of FIG. 2, the grill being removed and a portion of the front Wall of the combustion chamber being broken away;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional detail taken on the line 4 4 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a cross section taken on the line 5 5 of FlG. 3; and

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary cross section taken from the line 6 6 of FIG. 3.

The present improvement is shown especially in the upper portions of FIGURES l and 2, which illustrate the arrangement of the air supply and exhaust pipes upstanding from the top of the heater and in their relationship to the upper portions of the heater elements.

As indicated, the entire heating structure is arranged for installation within a wall of a house traileror the like in which it is to be used. Whereas laterally vented gas Yheaters must be disposed in an outer wall, the present structure, being vented through the roof, may be mounted in an interior wall.

With particular reference to the drawings, a wall strueture is illustrated as including a typical rearward wall panel 1t), a forward or inner wall panel i2, a roof panel Y 14 or other roof structure, and a pair of upstanding supl- Y porting and spacing studs 15, all of which are carried on an appropriate oor structure i8.

A primary heating member or unit generally indicated at.20, which is illustrated asan upstanrlingV gas fired sheet metal structure, is supported in .a rectangular housing or 28 affording an annular cold-airlconducting channel Desirably there is also an intervening concentric radiation pipe 32 which provides an inner annular air channel 34, whereby further to reduce the tempera-ture of the air pipe28. These pipes 26, 28, and32 are iixediy carried by the top of the heater unit 20.

' The heater unit 20 includes two spaced upstanding connected elements. The forward element 35 provides an enf closed combustion chamber36 having a forward upper wall portion parallel to forward and rearward parallel walls of a rearwardY element 38 vwhich-provides an enclosed cold-air supplying chamber 39. Both of these elements 35 and 38 are, in general, rectangular in design similar to the rectangular construction of the housing 22,

" tions 54C.

:port 4S the airV chamber 39 in the rearward element 38 is supplied. Thus, the approximately square plate 54 affords ywithin thercollar 56 a narrow forward shelf 54a, as indicated in FIG. 4, .which is immediately forward of kthe Vent pipe 26V and ,desirably tangentially contacted thereby. Lateral shelves 54b are similarly formed. The inward edges of these shelves are welded to the top edges of the vertical walls of the box 44, as are the outlying por- In order to centralizethe lower end of the radiation pipe 32, a set of spring spacing clips 68 is provided, either on 4the inner wall of the collar v56,-or mounted on the lower end of the radiation pipe 32 as shown.

For mounting .the upper end of the outer air pipe 28 in the roof 14, a collar 62jiianged at 62a, as seen in FIGS. l and 2, Iis mounted and calked at 61 on .top of the roof 14, and an upper end portion of the outer air- L pipe 28 extending above the roof is within .the collar.

but they are appreciably smaller in order to be mounted in spaced relation in the housing 22 andprovide adequate rigid connection is made through the medium of a connecting air tube 40 welded to the opposing walls of the two elements and providing a duct to feed coo-l air from the lower end of the air passage or chamber 39 to, the lower end of thefcombustion chamber 36 which contains at such lower end a burner 42 of `any desired construction. The upper portion of the burner is disposed between two opposed bafiles 43 which control the flame. The upper ends of the elements and 36 are rigidly connected by welding thereto a metal rectangular approximately cubical box 44 (FIG. 6) whose bottom wall 45 is provided with a circular opening constituting a port 46 around which is welded to the bottom 45 the lower end portion of the exhaust pipe 26. Rearward of the circular port 46, the bottom 45 of such box is also provided with a transverse rectangular opening constituting an inlet port 48 which provides an air feed passage into they top of the 'Y air chamber 39 of the rearward element 38.

As probably best seen in FIG. 5, the rearward element 38 provides a vertical elongated rectangular passage con- Y stituting the air chamber 39 formed between a back wall 50 and a front wall 51 of the element 38, such passage extending from the inlet port 48 down to the discharge The back This collar 62 which thus also surrounds the upper ends of the vent pipe 26 and the radiation pipe 32, acts to 'cen- -ter the pipe 28m the corresponding roof opening 63.

yThe vent cap V25 is VshownV as including a short cylinder 64 which acts as a wind-guard and is carried-around an upwardly tapered rain-shedding cap `65 insuitably spaced relation by spring clipsY 66 or Ytheilike.- This tapered or conical cap 65 acts toV distribute the spent gases rising through the vent pipe 26, and also `to exclude rain from the pipe 26 as well as from the pipes 28and 32. For these purposes a sleeve member 68 depends in suitable relationship below the tapered cap 65,' as by depending directly from a spaced large integral flange or annular plate 70 connected to theunderside of the tapered cap 65 byr spacing clips *'72 or the like. VThe sleeve 68 tits over the upper end of the vent pipe'26, any appropriate spacing means, such as spring clips 73 being employed to retain concentric relationships between the sleeve 68, the pipe 26 and the pipe 32. `The, upper end of the collar 62 is secured by clips .74 to the plate 70-which thus irnparts concentricity of thek pipes 26 and 32 with the outer pipe 28.l Of these pipes, the vent pipe 26 is the longest and reaches the plate 70. The V.outer pipe 28 is the shortest and suppliesrcombustion air. The pipe'32 is intermediate in lengthas shown.

By such means, spent combustion gases rising through the vent pipe 26 are dischargedabove the plate 70 and below the cap 65, and cool air is received throughA the annular channels 30 and 34, which air descends through the openings 48'1and 58 `to feed the fresh air to the chamber 39 in the rearward heating element 38 and supply the burner k42V by way of the duct 40 Vleading to the lower end of the combustion chamber 36, as vpreviously indicated. Y Y l In the particular form of heater'illustrated, the combustion element 35 includes a perpendicular rear wall 75 (approximately aligned withr the forward wall of the i a Vbox 44) and aY forward wall 76 which desirably includes way of the-rectangular port 48 and thencevia the duct y has welded on the top thereof a collar 56 over which the' lower end of the outer air pipe 28 ts, as seen in FIGS.

a downwardly and outwardly sloping portion 77 so that the lower portion of ythe combustion chamber 36 is somewhat enlarged. Near the upper end of the chamber 36 a baie 78 is disposed/in transverse relationship whereby to deflect the spent combustionV gases laterally around its ends (which, as seen in FIG; 3, are spaced from the side walls-79 of Ithe element 35) and facilitate heatabsorption by the walls of the heater element 35, as well as icontrol draft. At the middle upper portion of the back wall 75, an outlet 80 is provided above the baie 78. This outlet 80 communicates with a correspondingly narrow partially cylindrical venting channel member 82 (FIGS. 2 and 3) which is welded at its upper end around the circular opening 46 to the bottom wall 45 of the box 44.

In this manner spent combustion gases pass from the chamber 36 by way of the outlet or discharge passage 80 into the venting channel member S2 and thence to the vent pipe 26.

As has previously been indicated, the forward heating element 35, which is in the nature of a combustion chamber, and the rearward heating element 38, which is in the nature of a cool air supplier, are rigidly connected together through the welded tubular duct 40 at their lower ends and through the sides of the overlying rectangular box 54 and also through the medium of its bottom wall 45, at their upper ends.

For the purpose of mounting the elements 35 and 38 in the housing or liner 22, the side -walls of the latter are provided with vertical channel members 85 as best indicated in FIGS. 3 and 5, these channel members providing vertical channels 86 for the passage of a portion of the air to be heated and taken from the living area of the trailer or other quarters in which the structure is installed. This air enters through the bottom of a grill 99 (FIGS. 1 and 2) secured at the front of the housing 22. and rises up around the heater unit itl. That air which rises through the channels 86 serves as an insulating medium to cool the side walls of the housing 22. The channel members 85, which also act as supporting members for the heater unit, carry brackets 92. To these brackets there is secured (see FIG. 5) as by means of screws 93 a transverse intermediate supporting and positioning radiation plate 94, this plate being cut away to accommodate the cool air duct 40 at the bottom of the structure and to accommodate the lower end of the rectangular box 44 and the spent combustion gases discharge member S2.

For the purpose of mounting the heating unit 20, including the forward combustion chamber member 35 and the rearward cool air supplying member 38, upper and lower brackets 95 are welded at their opposite ends to the positioning plate 94 and the back wall 75 of the combustion chamber element 35. Similarly, upper and lower brackets 95 are welded to the back of the transverse supporting wall or plate 94 and to the front wall 5l of the air supplying element 38. When the edges of the transverse positioning or supporting plate 94 are secured to the brackets 92 by the screws 93, the entire heating unit -is rigidly secured Within the housing 22, `and in spaced relation to all of the walls of the housing 22. Thus, air entering the lower portion of the housing 22 from the living space within the trailer being heated, rises partly through the lateral air channels 86, and partly up around the forward combustion chamber element 35, both yforward and rearward of the latter. Some of the air also passes in behind the supporting and radiation wall 94 and rises up around the air supplying element 38 which gathers considerable heat through the supporting and radiation -wall 94. Air which is heated convectionally by the combustion chamber element 3S passes outward through the upper portion ot the grill 99. Radiation heat also passes outward through grill 90.

For the purpose of better controlling the discharge of the heated air from the upper portion of the housing 22, a pair of sloping battles 98 and 99 is disposed above the heater unit 2t). The lower battle 98 deflects the heated air rising around the combustion chamber element 35 outward through the grill 9i). This baiile 98 is disposed between the two channel members 85. The upper bale 99, which also is disposed between the two vertical channel members 85, cooperates with the underlying bathe 98 to provide an air discharge through an upper portion of the grill 99 for that portion of the air which rises around the air chamber member 38. The upper baille 99 extends to the back wall of the housing 22 and thus serves to deect forward above it only that warmed air rising through the air channels 86 at the sides of the heating installation. Both these battles .are notched to accommodate the rectangular box 44.

The construction of the burner 42 is not a part of this invention, and any eicient approved gas burner is usable. It includes a control knob l0@ and, if desired, a pilot light and thermostat control. A swinging door on cap 102 for controlling access to a lighting hole may also be provided :as indicated.

In the operation of the present structure, when the burner 42 is in operation, spent combustion gases rise to the top of the combustion chamber 36 and around the baie 78, whence they pass out through the vent opening and the channel member S2 and thence up through the vent pipe 26 to be discharged above the roof. At the same time cold air enters from above the roof into the outer air pipe 28 and by Way of the A.annular air passages 30 and 34 from below the vent cap 25. Thence the cold air passes down into the rectangular box 44 around the lower end of the vent pipe 26 and enters the rectangular passage or port 4S at the top of the air chamber 3S, whence it travels to the bottom of such chamber and from that point through the duct 40 into the bottom of the combustion chamber 36 to supply the burner 42. By these means, only external air is used to support combustion, and air within the trailer is rccirculated over the heating elements for warming the living area of the trailer or other structure involved.

This arrangement makes it possible to place a gas heater of the indicated type in an interior wall rather than only in an outside wall. In either instance, the heater is installed between the studs 15 which are adequately heatinsulated by the various described rising-air passages between the walls of the housing 22 and the heater elements 35 and 38. In such a heater, the height of the combustion chambers 35 and the air chamber 38, whose individual heights are about equal, is about twice their width; and the height of the box 44 extends such over-all height `about 20% or 25%. For example, in a typical common size, the height of the elements 35 and 38 is about eighteen inches and their width about eight to nine inches, while the box adds approximately another four inches. Here the thickness of each element 35 and 3S at their tops is about one inch, and they are spaced about two inches apart, with the radiation wall 94 disposed about equidistantly between them. This leaves adequate spacing, with a minimum of about one inch, between the heater 20 as a whole `and the walls of the housing 22, which 'housing may have a width of about eleven or twelve inches :and a depth of about six and one-half to seven inches. The vent pipe 26 typically is two inches in diameter, the outer air pipe 28 four inches in diameter, and the intervening radiation pipe 32 three inches in diameter. These pipes extend upward from the top of the heater to a position above the roof, and commonly add another live to six feet in over-all height.

It is thus seen that I have provided an improved sealedcombustion-chamber gas heater for boats, mobile homes, larger homes, and the like, which makes it possible and desirable to vent gas-tired heaters up through the roof and to locate them in interior walls as well as outer walls.

The invention claimed is:

l. In combination in a gas-fired heater:

an upstanding forward heating element providing a vertical combustion chamber to accommodate a gas burner at its lower end and having spaced forward and rearward walls;

a rearward upstanding air chamber element spaced rearwardly from said heating element and having spaced forward and rearward walls;

:a box rigidly mounted upon both of said elements, and having a rearward wall substantially vertically aligned with the rearward wall of said air `chamber element and having a forward wall substantially vertically aligned with the rearward portin of said combustion chamber element, said box having a bottom wall provided with a rst portkcommunicating with the combustion chamber and arsecond port communicating with said air chamber, said box having a top Wall provided with an opening leading to the interior of said box to supply air thereto;

a vertical vent pipe leading vertically through said opening down through saidbox and communicating with y said first port to receive spent gases from said cornbustion chamber;

a vertical air pipe connected to said top said opening for leading air down through saidrbox to said second port and into said air chamber; and

means connecting thelower` portion of said air chamber elementV to the lower. portion of saidv combustion chamberY element to supply air to the latter;

2. In combination inra gas fired heater for a housing structure having a roof:

an upstanding heating element providing therewithina combustion chamber; Y

an upstanding ycold air intake element spaced behind said heating element and havingparallelrspaced forward and rearward walls providing therewithin a cold :air chamber` connected with said Vcombustion charm ber to supply combustion'air thereto,

said upstanding Velements being spacedk from each other by a separating .air space; Y Y

` :a box directly mounted on the ments in sealed relationship therewith and spanning said separating space, said box havingl top, bottom and side walls enclosing an -air space, Y v the bottom wall of said box being attached'directly to the top rearward portion of the cold air intake element and also being attached directly to a top portion ofthe upstanding heating element,

said box and cold air element having between them an =air port connecting ,saidcold airY chamber with ,said

air space in saidbox to supply down-draft cold airV lwall around mp` of both of said ele- Vtoisaid coldy air chamberand said combustion chamber; A exhaust duct means leading'from said combustion charnber through said bottom wall `and said topfwall of said box, and said air space in said box being Vin sealed relation with said exhaust. duct means and said cornbustion chamber; l Y and ycold air duct meansv at said top wall around said exhaust duct'rneans providing a cold air intake passage around said exhaust duct meansy into said air space. n 3. A combination as in claim 2 including an upstanding radiation partition plate inthe separating air space between said elementsY and closely/.underlying said box.

4. A-combination as in claim 2 wherein the points of attachment of said box to said cold air intake element and to said-heati11gelen1ent are substantially in the same horizontal plane; g ,Y Y

5. A combination as in claim 2 including an external housing in which said upstanding elements are mounted, said housing providing for hot air distribution therefrom.

6. A combination as in claim 2 including an upstanding partition plate secured to said elements and upstanding in said separating air space, and an external housing in which said upstanding elements are mounted, such housing and the upstanding edges of Said plate being connected for supporting said elements. n

' References Citedin thele Vof this patent 3,082,758 '-,Heiman L Man 26,V 1963

Claims (1)

1. IN A COMBINATION IN A GAS-FIRED HEATER: AN UPSTANDING FORWARD HEATING ELEMENT PROVIDING A VERTICAL COMBUSTION CHAMBER TO ACCOMMODATE A GAS BURNER AT ITS LOWER END AND HAVING SPACED FORWARD AND REARWARD WALLS; A REARWARD UPSTANDING AIR ENAMBER ELEMENT SPACED REARWARDLY FROM SAID HEATING ELEMENT AND HAVING SPACED FORWARD AND REARWARD WALLS; A BOX RIGIDLY MOUNTED UPON BOTH OF SAID ELEMENTS, AND HAVING A REARWARD WALL SUBSTANTIALLY VERTICALLY ALIGNED WITH THE REARWARD WALL OF SAID AIR CHAMBER ELEMENT AND HAVING A FORWARD WALL SUBSTANTIALLY VERTICALLY ALIGNED WITH THE REARWARD PORTION OF SAID COMBUSTION CHAMBER ELEMENT, SAID BOX HAVING A BOTTOM WALL PROVIDED WITH A FIRST PORT COMMUNICATION WITH THE COMBUSTION CHAMBER AND A SECOND PORT COMMUNICATING WITH SAID AIR CHAMBER, SAID BOX HAVING A TOP WALL

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