ThermoPride OH6 oil furnace - FANTASTIC!!!

[Fly2High]

I had a Thermopride OH6 with ECM motor and I want to throw some good press their way for making a fantastic furnace.

It is oil fired with a single stage Riello burner (2 stage is available but I passed on it)

I got the ECM motor. Love it. It comes on slowly and I no longer have a blast of cold air when the furnace first starts.

I am running a Honeywell Vision IAQ Pro and it was easy to install.

According to the oil company, it is running 87% efficient with a flue temp about 360 -380 deg (something like that - at work I don't have the actual spec)

Compared to my previous furnace which had a flue temp of over 680 deg!!! this thing is far more efficient.

I like the fact that the Riello I got with it has a port on it to hook up a fresh air input. I am concidering doing that and closing my 12" x24" fresh air vent a saving some money!

It also is very quiet - at least compared to what I had before.

It stands only 46" tall.

For the month I have had it, it has been great.

Thanks guys at ThermoPride for such an outstanding unit.

Definitely worth the money for them. Highly recommend them to anyone wanting the highest efficiency furnace without goig to a condensing coil unit.

Frank

[gary_g]

Good for you that heating oil prices didn't climb to over $4 per gallon which is what it was looking like this past summer when gasoline was at a record high price.

Take care.

[Fly2High]

Not to mention that when we took out the 1958 General Motors furnace we found the heat exchanger had rusted and a hole was found in the top. We were getting some exhaust gases into the house I am sure.

then again 50 years isn't that bad of a service life....

[dandyme]

PROUDLY made in Denton NC







and that other place
















in Ohio







you'll not get a better oil furnace

[dave davis]

We've got the same set up with the piped in combustion air and it saves on infiltration big time. Great furnace. Our net stack temp runs about 335 deg at 90.1 efficiency.

On our third year here's two things to watch for: gasket between burner and heat exchanger as provided didn't adequately seal when firing for long periods and required replacement at 2 years; and this year for the first time (just prior to annual service) the flame sensor safety punched out and required reset--bit of sooting on the electrodes that a clean and nozzle replacement (we're running .5 gph) remedied.

Agreed on the 'Pride, I keep the damned thing waxed and show it to anyone who comes over! It helps huge that we had a great installing contractor.

[kelterbm]

why did you select the single stage Riello burner over the 2-stage Riello?

[dan sw fl]

why did you select the single stage Riello burner over the 2-stage Riello?

Most likely because
he was _ Flying Too High

[beenthere]

We've got the same set up with the piped in combustion air and it saves on infiltration big time. Great furnace. Our net stack temp runs about 335 deg at 90.1 efficiency.

Doubt that.
If its at 90% combustion efficiency. Its condensing. And its not designed to do that.
Sounds like someone fudged the numbers. Or misread teh numbers.

[Fly2High]

Most likely because
he was _ Flying Too High

Basically, I didn't feel that heating at a slower rate was worth it for the size and conditions I have. Also, It was already getting expensive and I also felt that this is a rather new technology for a home unit. I didn't want to be a 'Beta' tester of it and see what kind of longevity it had. The single was already a proven technology so that's what I got.

Sooooo much more efficient than the old one and with how high prices went last year, i was happy to have it.

[akbrian]

Fly2High or Dave Davis, Any update on the performance and durability of the Thermo Pride OH6? I'm seriously considering this furnace with a Riello and the ECM blower and can't seem to get any feed back about this unit.

[pecmsg]

Fly2High or Dave Davis, Any update on the performance and durability of the Thermo Pride OH6? I'm seriously considering this furnace with a Riello and the ECM blower and can't seem to get any feed back about this unit.

From 26 month ago???

[akbrian]

From 26 month ago???

Apparently. It's always nice to hear opinions about something after it's been in service for some length time, the longer the better. Five or Ten years would be nice, but if the best I can do is 26 months, I'm still interested in listening. Thanks for the response.

[dan sw fl]

Apparently. It's always nice to hear opinions about something after it's been in service for some length time, the longer the better. Five or Ten years would be nice, but if the best I can do is 26 months, I'm still interested in listening. Thanks for the response.

http://www.thermopride.com/pdf/PS020002.pdf

http://www.thermopride.com/products/...e-oil-furnaces

Call their Warranty Dept and request records on the specific model you are interested in ?!!

http://www.thermopride.com/contact

[akbrian]

http://www.thermopride.com/pdf/PS020002.pdf

http://www.thermopride.com/products/...e-oil-furnaces

Call their Warranty Dept and request records on the specific model you are interested in ?!!

http://www.thermopride.com/contact

I'd be surprised if they make that data available. Maybe I'll give them a call though. Thanks for the response. Given the limited number of Google hits on this furnace, I'm getting the feeling that there just aren't all that many of them in service.

[dave davis]

Hey I'll respond, even two years later.

Still plugging along great. We go through about 250 gal of oil a winter for a 1200 sf house in New England, I believe that's pretty economical as oil furnaces go.

Caveat: When we put it in, the difference in heating costs (btu to btu) for oil and gas were nearly identical. Now, gas would be about 1/2 as much. Will that stay the same? Who knows? For a $300-400 annual savings in fuel costs we're sticking with the thus far reliable Thermopride; it's a 10-15 year payback otherwise.

If you're going oil, this furnace is THE way to go. Future economy might favor gas big time though.

[akbrian]

Thanks for the response. Unfortunately gas isn't an option here. I went ahead and bought the OH6 with the Riello single stage and the ECM blower. I'm just waiting till closer to the end of the heating season for the switch over.

[Fly2High]

1/2013 update (4 years of ownership):

Still love my Thermopride OH6 single stage Riello burner and ECM motor . I think we determined that it used just less than 700 gallons during the recent winter that we had snow form Christmas through April on Long Island (worst winter so far). During the previous year to that year when we had a very mild winter with no snow, it burned just under 600 gallons for the year (mildest winter). This is including running an old oil hot water heater (typically burns 86gal/6 mo summer when the furnace is off). When we had the original 1958 General Motors furnace, we use to burn 1100 gallons for the year so I have been super happy with my savings.

Ddi put a steam humidifier but the house is too leaky for it to get much better than 30% RH (typically want 40-60% RH I was told). It helps but it is not perfect. I tend now to not even use it other than in Jan - beginning of March and even then I tend to leave it off.

PROBLEMs I have had!!!!
1. I have had major issues with servicing. First, no one carries a 0.60gal/hr 80 degr hollow cone nozzle on their truck. I have asked and pushed and some have told me they do not stock such a small nozzle in that pattern. Others say they do but end up not having it. I relinquished and went to the local supply store and purchased a couple Delevan nozzles and ask them to put that in instead. they always want me to run a larger gal nozzle with a solid pattern at 65 degr. but I am affraid it might impinge on the far chamber wall so I spend the couple of bucks for the proper nozzle. So far it has served me well so why change what is not broken.

2. During normal servicing, they change the nozzle, oil filters (I change the duct filter - 4 inch unit) and they CLAIM to clean the heat exchanger. I say claim because if you read the install/owner's manual on the OH6, it states that it needs to have the heat exchanger annually and inspect it for cracks. No one has performed what the manual indicates. The manual says to remove the burner and the burner flange/gasket and vent pipes to access the heat exchanger to brush and vacuum it out. They also offer side ports to clean the outer portion of the heat exchanger. At most, they will vacuum out the outer chamber ports and nothing else.

My question is if the outer chamber ports have debri, wouldn't the main chamber have debri too? Why wouldn't they want to follow the manufacturer's directions for proper cleaning? Are there any gaskets that need replacing or issues to handle?

Currently I have Slomin's (one of the dealers Thermopride lists on their site) had come to do the annual cleaning and so far they have refused to do the cleaning as indicated in the manual. I have had others that have at least removed the vet pipe in an attempt to vacuum it out from there but that is still not enough. I called SLomin's before the service man came indicating what was needed to be done so they would send the right guy to do the job. I let them know what the manual stated. They assured me the tech would do what was necessary. When he came, he said he would not do that kind of cleaning. I called and asked the sales dept what is included in a tunep/cleaning and they did indicate that cleaning the heat exchanger was included. When I asked why they would not follow the manufacturer's directions for proper cleaning, they fell silient.

Before you get this unit, make sure someone is willing to clean it properly. Get it in writing before you sign anything. Have them read exactly what is required. I would not mind if Slomin's would have said to me when I signed the contract that it would cost extra to service it. At least I would have known what I was getting into. I brought it up and they said it would be no problem servicing both my hot water heater and furnace. Now I am awaiting what will happen next. So far it does not look good. They told me that it would cost $$-$$ per hour labor to do the cleaning it required and that I would have to cover the hourly labor rate. This may be the last time I deal with Slomin's.

I did contact Thermopride and ask if I could convert my OH6 to gas and they said that if I remove the Riello and put in a gas fired burner, that was all that was needed to be done. I might look into having a professional convert my furnace. Any issue with converting?

I am not sure if a homeowner can clean the heat exchanger or not. The Riello I have is attached with 3 crews and the burner flange is attached with 4 more. Nothing else is needed to be removed as far as I can tell.

Can someone indicate if a homeowner should or should not do this cleaning (done by a pro)? Is it needed to go to this level of extreme? What are the disadvantages if the manual is followed to the letter? Are there any?

All I know is that I avoided buying a 95% condensing oil furnace (from Adams I think) because of the difficulty in servicing and that it was told to me that no one would service it properly causing headaches. I think I am back in the same boat. Too bad Thermopride doesn't put in some form of port somewhere to access the inner chamber for cleaning. This is its only drawback.


Anyone know of a good oil service man who will do the proper maintenance on Long Island?

Other than that, it has been running great.

Frank

[Fly2High]

Finally spoke to a few people at Slomin's and after talking with Steve there, they came to the decision that it would be easy to remove the burner flange to access the inner chamber of the heat exchanger at no additional cost. Prior to talking with Steve, Mike in sales wanted to charge me $$ an hour. Steve misunderstood from the tech what it would require and the time involved.

Thank you Steve for helping work this all out. He is a great guy to work with and very helpful and understanding. Thank you.

Proper tuneup has been scheduled for within the week.

thanks

Frank

[dandyme]

glad "all" is going well, never met a T-pride that was hard to clean, flange bolts breaking -yea, but not hard to clean.

might want to speak with them about that nozzle issue, are these the guys that installed the furnace.

[Fly2High]

Slomins did not do the install. Gelber and Sons did. They did a superb job unfortunately they only do installs and not maintenance.

I called Thermopride back and they suggested for the OH6 that the burner flange gasket (part # 330212) will probably need replacing and , depending how hard it is to remove the cleanout ports, the cleanout port gaskets (2 x # 330215).

Is there a universal flange gasket that can work? I was hoping to order the gasket for them to have, just in case but they will not sell it to a homeowner and so far I have not found any parts suppliers on Long Island that carry Thermopride.

I have, via the website, contacted thermopride. I am awaiting a response. when I called, they said I could not buy it direct from them and to contact the service guys to order the parts. I did shoot Slomin's an email offering to pay for the gaskets and to get an extra one, just in case. Also, no word so far.

I will let you know how things go. hopefully the flange bolts do not break.

What do we do if they do break? Drill and tap or what? Should we put anti seize on them? Regular or copper color antiseize?


I just want to offer the serviceman all I can to help expedite the job for them. they were a little concerned this would take hours to do and I want to be as prepared for them as possible or at least offer what knowledge I can so they can come prepared.

thanks

Frank