| Author |
Cleaning Up:  Floor furnace  |
|
|
mlouise
Farmgirl in Training
10 Posts
Alameda
CA
USA
10 Posts |
 Posted - Nov 29 2006 : 3:07:38 PM
|
| Am wondering if anyone knows a source to purchase a protector to put around a floor furnace that is in use to prevent anyone from stepping on the hot grate. |
|
|
Libbie
Farmgirl Connection Cultivator
3579 Posts
Anne E.
Elsinore
Utah
USA
3579 Posts |
Posted - Dec 02 2006 : 3:49:26 PM
|
Hi, mlouise! Welcome to the 'Connection! I'm not sure what a floor furnace is - would some sort of fireplace screen work? That may be a silly suggestion, but I'm not sure what you need. What is your furnace like? In this weather, I'll bet it's getting a workout! Oh - well, maybe not in California!!!
XOXO, Libbie
"Nothing is worth more than this day." - Goethe |
 |
|
|
mlouise
Farmgirl in Training
10 Posts
Alameda
CA
USA
10 Posts |
Posted - Dec 03 2006 : 09:39:28 AM
|
(I'd forgotten one of the reasons I stopped posting.... just wrote a reply and since I wasn't logged in, and the instructions are to go back and log in, going back made my post disappear...)
Hi Libbie- Floor furnaces are a very common heating method in temperate parts of CA, especially in classic bungalow homes. One grated hole something like 18" X 20" in the floor exposes the gas heating unit. Typically this is the only source of heat for the entire house. My question comes from a situation where the heater in in a small, narrow hallway, a typical location. The home has dogs and cats and a person who happens to be blind, tho that isn't critical to the issue.
A different friend's grand daughter got burns on the bottoms of her feet when she walked across this kind of heater in the grandmother's home. I have never seen a manufactured guard for these but figure with so many of them in these homes someone must have produced for sale a guard/shield. But none of my on line searches have found one, which is what made me think about this list and the possibility of someone here having seen such a protector.
A fireplace screen would not work as it needs to be stationary so dogs and others can't nudge it off.
The furnace would be getting a work out, yes, but unfortunately due to this safety issue it isn't being used at all so the home is miserably cold.
Thanks for your interest. Hope you're keeping warm :-) - Marylouise |
Edited by - mlouise on Dec 03 2006 09:44:58 AM |
|
|
|
Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22937 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22937 Posts |
Posted - Dec 03 2006 : 5:31:55 PM
|
Marylouise-
You can find fireplace screens that screw or bolt to the wall (fireplace) rather than the movable ones. These are often used in households that have pets or children as you would not was junior to move the screen and then climb into the fire or even fireplace! I would look for one of those as it seemes like it might be the best solution. |
|
|
|
bramble
True Blue Farmgirl
2044 Posts
2044 Posts |
Posted - Dec 03 2006 : 6:46:57 PM
|
HI MLouise! Welcome (back)! How big is this grate and where exactly is it located? Is it in the middle of the floor or along the wall near the baseboard? www.vandykes.com has floor grates, maybe there is something there to protect &/or prevent burns. We had a house with floor grates but no one ever got burned, we would come in from outside and roll around over it to warm up as kids! Is it possible that the furnace isn't working or vented properly? This is a stumper as we can't visualize what you are dealing with. (Dh does old house restoration (think This Old House) so we have encountered alot of antiquated and unusual situations, but I don't think this one...yet!
with a happy heart |
Edited by - bramble on Dec 03 2006 6:55:44 PM |
|
|
|
Hideaway Farmgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
1553 Posts
Jo
Virginia
USA
1553 Posts |
Posted - Dec 04 2006 : 2:31:33 PM
|
My father-in-law had one of those in his house; right in the hallway where you had to stnd to answer the phone! Scared the bejeebers out of me, but as I recall, the fire was so far down below the grate at floor level, that heat/burns were not the issue. Is this something you can line around the edge with fireprooof carpeting like you see in front of hearths, perhaps tacking it down so it doesn't shift over the open grating.
Do you have an option to put a woodstove in your house as an alternative heat source?
Jo
"There are no strangers here, only friends you've yet to meet." |
|
|
| |
Cleaning Up: Floor furnace |
|
Floor furnace
