I would like to vent a hot water tank through a side wall. Can I do this without using a powered unit? I was hoping if I went up a foot for every foot of horizontal the draft will be sufficient. I will also install a thimble in the wall to separate the exhaust pipe from combustibles. The distances from any openings back into the house meets my local codes.

Any suggestions?

Thanks

you will need a wall thimble for the penetration and all outside piping must be B-vent.

Thanks packy

I plan on using a thimble. Could you or someone recommend what type/style of terminal cap (not sure if this is the right term) on the outside of the house? I was thinking something that directs the exhaust gas down so it doesn't fill up with water when it rains.

Thanks again.

You can't vent a standard gas heater like that. They depend on draft which you won't have. It needs to be a power vent. What your doing can be very dangerous.

John

Good to know johnjh2o. How much rise do you need to need to get the proper ventilation?

I know you can run a power vent through a side wall and the draft is generated from the powered portion of the venting system.

Will I need to run the exhaust up past the roofline to make this work correctly?

running a B-vent chimney on the outside of a building is perfectly legal and safe. the termination must be 2 feet higher than anything within 10 feet. the type of topper cap you use depends on your wind conditions. some topper caps are designed to minimize downdraft.
read and follow any and all manufacturers installation instructions.

He is saying he is going to turn the vent down once he reaches outside.

John

Actually I did ask if I could run it up the length of the building to above roofline, and I presume by the previous answer I can run it high enough above the gutter so that it's at least 10 feet from anything.

I would really rather run it straight out the side of the building without turning it either up or down, just put a bird screen on the end. That's how I installed a tankless in the past.

Thoughts?



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Not your "regular" heater. But all brands do make what is called "direct vent" models, which vent horizontally and are not power vented. They are limited as to how far the vent length can be. Check some spec sheets before committing.

Thanks jimmy-o

I was looking to avoid buying a new water heater and I wanted to have hot water if the power went out. I'll look into the non-powered direct vent heaters.

It has to point upwards and the "cap" is what keeps the rain out.



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your going to run a B-vent up the outside of your house to the roof??? what???

what???? your neighbors will love you and your new home made chimney out of 3" bvent

throw it out and get a power vent and do it right

they DO make direct vent waterheaters that are made to vent by gravity out the side of the house...they are very rare and no one replaces one with another...they always go powervent

i would not do what you are asking....its going to look like crap and all the time and effort involved its just easier to do it correctly

direct vent water heaters are expensive and my suppliers dont even stock them..they are special order...price will be in between a gravity WH and a Power vent WH



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Is it perfectly safe to do this in a fairly air tight basement, with a 80% or lower furnace also located in the basement?

Hi - I am trying not to use a power vent hot water heater and want to use a lox nox direct vent and go outside the house and up the outside. It is a very small cottage in Massachusetts and no one will care that the vent is on the outside of the house.

It sounds like it is legal and that I just have to make sure that the vent terminates more than 3' above the roof line. It is a 600 sq foot one story cottage - 20x30. THe pipe would run up the back of the house from the crawl space. It is excavated and a concrete box made for the hot water heater.

Are you a licensed plumber - are you far from Tyngsborough? I can't find anything that says that it is illegal. Are you sure that gas venting can go outside a house?

Thanks,
Stephanie

I'm trying to vent a natural gas hot water heater with out a power vent and the house has no chimney. How do I do this and what materials do I use? I'm doing this for charity work for elderly lady that has no money and got scammed by a contractor. She a natural gas hot water heater given to her and I'm trying to install it for her for she can have hot water. She hasn't had for a year.



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