OWB radiators

[toyfarm]

Anybody make their own, like out of an automotive style radiator?

 

[ryans4022]

Was wondering myself

 

[loadthestove]

tried it,,wont work.The auto radiator worked exactly like it was supposed to,give up heat real fast.For a few minutes you have warm air then it cools off.also most car radiators dont hold enough water >I used one out of a ford ranger because it nearly fit my duct work perfectly.

A Rear heater out of an older school bus should work as they are basically are an owb you are just using a big engine to heat the water.

 

[toyfarm]

tried it,,wont work.The auto radiator worked exactly like it was supposed to,give up heat real fast.For a few minutes you have warm air then it cools off.also most car radiators dont hold enough water >I used one out of a ford ranger because it nearly fit my duct work perfectly.

A Rear heater out of an older school bus should work as they are basically are an owb you are just using a big engine to heat the water.

That's odd... essentially all i have now is a small radiator! I don't see why it wouldn't work, but the school bus thing is a direction i never thought of??? I may look deeper in to that. I currently have a big old diesel rad that i wAS thinkin about adapting>???


I'm very anxious to get more peoples input on this!

 

[loadthestove]

When I mentioned a bus radiator,I was talking about the heater cores used to heat the back of the bus.was at a scrap yard the other day and picked up two for scrap price.I tihnk the key is the fact the heat exchanges have more passes thru them and give better water circulation.A very large truck radiator wuold probably work but how would you get it to fit in duct work??

 

[toyfarm]

yeah i knew exactly what ya was talkin' bout with the bus! Duct work is not an issue...it will be in a garage with forced air behind it!

 

[akwood]

works well !

i've been using one with my homemade boiler with excellent results. its a large truck radiator.they are made to remove heat from water (coolant) and transfer it to the air and they do it well. getting ready to build secound one now. first one i used large heater fan and this one i'm going to try a cheapo box fan.

 

[PAwoodchopper]

Have any pictures of it ?????

i've been using one with my homemade boiler with excellent results. its a large truck radiator.they are made to remove heat from water (coolant) and transfer it to the air and they do it well. getting ready to build secound one now. first one i used large heater fan and this one i'm going to try a cheapo box fan.

 

[akwood]

sorry i don't. someday i'll get that part figured out and get some boiler and exchanger pictures online. not much to the radiator except for a floor mount,fan, circ pump and reducers down to 1' pex to boiler. they will definately pump out some btu's if you have the hot water to supply it with. pretty much what you would pay big bucks for with a large hot water unit heater.

 

[blakey]

Personally I wouldn't use a scrapyard radiator unless it was next to new. It will create a weak point in your system and if it springs a leak your OWB will drain out to the level of the outlet and your pump will run dry until you find it.

 

[toyfarm]

Personally I wouldn't use a scrapyard radiator unless it was next to new. It will create a weak point in your system and if it springs a leak your OWB will drain out to the level of the outlet and your pump will run dry until you find it.

Your making a good point there!

 

[Paso One]

I have 2 Radiators that were used to cool a 8V71 detroit diesel. They send out alot of heat for my shop.

 

[The Burning Rom]

Ditto on the not using a scrapyard radiator.

My dad has one in his garage that's hooked up to his OWB. It's a 318 V8 radiator for a (insert most of the Chrysler products from the 70s/80s). He started out with an old one we had laying around, but after springing two leaks over time, he just went out and bought a brand new one.

He has it mounted to a squarestock steel frame, sitting on top of the fridge, with a plain ol box fan behind it. The fan is rigged up to a thermostat, with a wired control on the other side of the garage. It keeps the place quite toasty

 

[Paso One]

This is the picture of the second fan set up, using a old furnace fan behind the Bus radiator. I got tired of experimenting with small heat exchangers.

The first pictures show that the fan is controlled by temperature of the water, on at 130* off at 100*

This furnace fan is controlled manually.

 

[trialanderror]

i used an old school bus core for heating my parents porch....

and i used a HUGE kenworth radiator, it's easily 4ft tall, 3ft wide, 4" thick, and i use that to heat the garage....and yes, it seriously moves BTU, i have it down in the pit under the staircase, laying horizontal, and it has so much surface area, and so much heat, when you stand over it, it blows your hair around and such, with NO FAN.

it pushes so much air up form heat rising, it sucks the rest of the air in the garage across the floor and down in to the pit, naturally recycling the air in the garage, and i'm serious, no fan required. we were amazed. Just having the water move through it doesn't eat as many BTU's as we thought. Putting a fan on it (acutally 4x20" box fans)will knock 400gallons of water down 30* in a matter of minutes....5 mins tops....

 

[toyfarm]

This is some great info guys....more pics of your set-ups woud be awesome!

 

[The Burning Rom]

I'm up north at my parent's house for Deer Season/Thanksgiving/Firewood Making. When I was unloading my car, I stopped and took some pictures of the radiator in the garage. I can take more with the side cover off or from the top if anyone wants to see.