Now you got me wondering. Do you know what the specific IMC restriction is? And why would a pellet stove be all that much different from a gas furnace? Pellet stove has a closed combustion chamber with outdoor air supply. Cheaper gas furnaces have a combustion chamber open to the room, as do gas water heaters. Seems to me one could argue a pellet stove is safer than a gas furnace!

rcgnrcp,

Acadia's compressors are made by Bristol Compressors International, hopefully in Bristol, Virginia, USA.

Regards, Masoud

Acadia sizing is very different with the three stages of compressors
When we refer to a 3 ton 2 stage we are refering to the 2nd stage as the 3 ton
Acadia will sell a 3 ton which if all stages where jumped out would equal around a 6 plus ton
they (claim ) that upstaging on outdoor temp , they can maintain the btuh output to very low temps

NFPA 211 prohibits solid fuel appliances in garage. By reference it is part of the IMC. The 18" rule pertains to "sources of ignition" which is not just burners but motors, contactors or anything else that may spark. The "enclosed room" must not communicate with the garage by door or other opening, so those who wish to use this space for a supplemental wood burner need to completely partition the appliance from the garage and have access either directly to outside, or the home.
There is a feeling that inspectors and permits are extraneous, that many share at different levels.
I even agree that the sealed combustion pellet stove is likely less dangerous than a water heater in the same area (but that and $1.00.....if you have an illeagle installation and something goes wrong).
For anyone who has done this without a permit, call your local inspector and ask about garage installs on solid fuel appliances. Then check with your insurance company as they may have there own requirements. The stakes are too high to thumb our nose at the rules here.
If anyone has specific questions on how to make an install code worthy you're welcome to send me a PM and I'll try to help.
Joe

We were an Acadia dealer

No units have lasted more than a year

 

also do a search they stole the whole design from nyle in maine

 

it is only 14 seer also

 

run away be very afraid

Due respect to All Energy, but units that don't work in one region may perform well in others (there are even those folks who say geo doesn't work). As with any major purchase, do your homework and check references as well as other peoples experiences.
I'd say you currently have 1 vote against Acadia.
I heard good things from another contractor about Daiken but his units only have a year in service so far.
J

We are in MA but there no sense in them in the south only in cold areas. The problem is that with 2 pumps it pumps oil from the first into the second with no return.

Nyle has cured the problem but is still in testing

But don't believe me ask the factory the will give you names of people who have them and none last a year

also they wer suppose to be in trademake court around the first of he year

they were there last year too so they removed all the safety controlls that were developed by Nyle

I looked at the IMC today. The only reference to NFPA 211 is in Section 806.1 which pertains to metal chimneys. Section 102.8 Referenced codes and standards, states "The codes and standards referenced herein shall be those that are listed in Chapter 15 and such codes and standards shall be considered as part of the requirements of this code to the prescribed extent of each such reference." Looks to me like the IMC does not, either directly or by reference, restrict solid fuel stoves from being used in garages. Neither does the IRC as its only reference to NFPA 211 is for masonry fireplaces. Now, if a jurisdiction, or insurance company, has explicitly adopted the parts of NFPA 211 that restrict solid fuel stoves from being used in a garage, then that is another matter. But restriction via IMC, no.

I'll be checking with the local BI to see what he says. Will also check with insurance company.

The code has an infuriating way of going in circles so forgive me for paraphrasing (you seem to find my points valid but my sources lacking). The IMC and IRC adopt things by reference, among them are NFPA 211, IFC, IFGC.....
While the IMC sites NFPA 211 for metal (by the way) chimneys (806.1 '06),which presumably you are vented in (which would indicate that if you can't have the vent, you can't have the appliance)...the fuel gas code sites it for liners and more.....
There are various other references, that you won't find in the reference section as again the infuriating structure runs you in circles; an astm or asme reference if followed may yield an imc or ifgc reference that may yield a nfpa11 reference....
I won't bore you or myself with the daisy chains of ordinance. But you are welcome to hold your local inspector's feet to the fire if you don't agree with his enforcement/interpretation:)
Joe

Okay, with all this talk about Acadia vs. Geo, has anyone had any experience with DX Geothermal? This is an upgrade to the well-known water-source geothermal units. Instead of circulating water through plastic tubing in the ground, this circulates the refrigerant through copper tubing eliminating the need for a separate pump and heat-exchanger to recover the heat from the water. With the DX, the tubing used is much smaller in diameter and it is copper which picks up heat much, much better than plastic. The DX system also requires much shorter runs than the water system, and if you drill wells for the installation of the tubing, the depth is only about 100' and the entire field will fit in an area of about 10' X 10'. It is much more efficient than the water-based geothermal. I only wish I could find someone in the northwest Ohio area that installs them. All the contractors I've checked on only install water-source geothermal units, and most of those haven't even heard of the DX system. Seems like they would keep up with the technology better than that.

You are right about heat transfer but copper will at some time leak  and  these systems can have alot of freon sitting in the ground.

So for that reason MA and NH have outlawed these systems

and I bet that will continue to spread

as far as how much cheaper the are it wasn't alot

emjayef,

earthlinked.com lists 10 dealers for Ohio.

Regards, Masoud

Be careful, All Energy Systems.

Others who've seen me post are probably awaiting my response...:)

First of all, copper is a natural element in the earth. It naturally exists in the ground.

Second, it's a noble metal.

Third, corrosive environments for copper include pH levels of 6.0 or lower. In other words, it must be acidic.

IF the ground is acidic (about 5% of the land area of the entire U.S.) then there is a CPS (corrosion protection system) available. This is an impressed current cathodic protection setup. It has an anode that will last at least 50 years. It constantly bombards the copper with electrons.

Fourth, is refrigerant corrosive? Will it corrode copper from the inside? Answer: NOPE. If it did, why would anyone try to use any copper with refrigerated systems of any kind?

So, if copper won't corrode from the outside, and it won't corrode from the inside, what will cause it to leak? Answer: IT WON'T. End of discussion.

Now, if you put copper lines in for your water loop system, will they eventually corrode and leak? Answer: Possibly, but not necessarily. There may be electrolysis corroding the inside of tubing with water solutions in it; there may not be. There may be erosion from the velocity of the water; there may not be. However, the copper water line in the ground, in a few areas, will last as long as your heat pump.

After having pointed all this out, let me be clear that there is one situation that can cause a copper loop field to leak. IMPROPER INSTALLATION OR SIZING. If a system is grossly undersized, and the copper then expands and contracts more than is supposed to (with EarthLinked, it can have up to a 90% duty cycle), then it possibly could work harden and split. EarthLinked Dealers have attended a certification training and must follow manufacturer's recommendations, otherwise they'll be cut off. I can't speak for other DX manufacturers, but I assume this would be the case for any water source system, too.

One more point that bugs me. If freon leaks in the ground (now typically R-407c--a non ozone-depleting refrigerant) where does it go? What happens to it? Will it/Can it contaminate ground water? Answer: Nope. It evaporates. There is a small amount of oil that will leak. If methanol gets leaked into the ground, does it evaporate? Does it work it's way up out of an aquifer? Answer: Nope. And it seems that methanol is still the antifreeze of choice for most any water source contractors I know. Maybe Dewayne is now using Glycol, but I'm not so sure...

Anyway...

Bottom Line: Copper is 1008.8 times better at conducting heat than HDPE. (This point is almost moot, though, because the type of heat transfer is latent with refrigerant, and sensible with water.) It will 95% of the time have NO corrosion issues, and the other 5% of the time needs a CPS added to the system.

Seems you may need to study up on this a bit more. Sorry for ranting so long, but I'm tired of this unfounded, incorrect, ignorant argument and/or RUMORS and Hearsay. (MA and NH have not outlawed it.)

Hey Clark.... You should save this on your computer so you can just cut and paste it.  It will save you a lot time and probably keep your blood pressure down.  Do you feel like the Lone Ranger?

Hey Clark.... You should save this on your computer so you can just cut and paste it. It will save you a lot time and probably keep your blood pressure down. Do you feel like the Lone Ranger?

please post your souces . Not only have I not found 1 word on that but know of at least 2 DX systems in MA and 2 manufacturers/dealers.

sure I will get it for you

We got a know it all 
OK copper roofs exposed to much worse then whats in the ground have ben on buildings in Europe longer then plastic has been on the planet , second the same acidic issue that exists with copper also would eat though plastic ( wanna bet )
Third ( and this is for you tuff luck ) work hardening expansion and contraction that happens in the ground would not be any different then any refrigerant system above ground and I have yet to see a failure caused by that . and every time you heat the copper and allow it to cool slowly it resets , just like a blacksmith reheating to keep it malleable