Recently had some work done on my house where the heater had to be removed temporarily and put back. After catching the GC-1 in several lies and refusing to pay him extra money he walked off the job. I hired GC-2 to finish the job, but he said no to reinstalling the heater. The heater is back in place but all the ducting needs to be reattached. Due to new glue lambs some of the ducting needs to be slightly rerouted. Is reattaching the ducting a DIY job, or do i need to hirer a pro? Second question, is it better to use galvanized metal or the new flex pipe? All of the vents in the house are still in place, I just need to put the ducting back. Any help would be appreciated.
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Hire a pro. Tin bending is a craft that you will lose a lot of blood learning.
Yes, you can do it; it's not like rerouting the Amazon. But don't expect to necessarily find what you need at your local home center.
You'll likely need to find a local metal shop that can take your measurements and turn them into the lengths you need. Outside of that, if you've got some tin snips, an impact driver, and duct sealant you should be good to go.
Don't use the flex ductwork, no matter how tempting.
Hire the right guy.
A GC is not qualified to play with the heating system. This is a job for a mechanical or HVAC contractor.
Here are your choices:
1) You can rent a sheet metal brake, buy some other misc. bending tools and galv. sheet and do your own.
2) You can CAREFULLY measure what you need and get it fabricated at a shop so you can install it.
3) You can hire an HVAC firm to do the whole thing.
In my experience, option #2 is cheapest, but not by much and it's tough if you have any tricky (i.e., not simple boxes) pieces. Option #1 is surprisingly expensive -- breaks rent for about $80 or more a day here, IIRC, and unless you already have them, you'll likely need to spend a few bucks on crimpers, shears, etc. With a little shopping around, Option # 3 may actually cost less than #1 (or at least not a whole lot more), and be a whole lot less of a hassle.
Mike Hennessy
Pittsburgh, PA
Obviously, my vote is for DIY unless you are a total klutz.
Example: First house I bought in 1967 needed a new furnace. Went to local surplus yard and bought sheet metal (only 5 cents a pound thern<G>). Built a WOOD brake which was good for the limited amount of ducting I needed to make (obviously, did not do pro type interlocking seams, did pop-rivets and sealed w/Al tape and urethane).
If you have decent visualization skills and are not a total dummy, DIY. Even if you need to buy a few hundred in tools (like if you dont even have tin snips) you will be ahead and have the tools for the next time and willhave learned a new skill.
If you opt for flex pipe, that is a 'duck soup' job (simple). Personally dont like flex pipe but used it on a job 2000 mi away on Grandma's house and it worked fine.
You did not say what type 'heater'. If a heat pump, duct board is an easy option, also in other applications - google "duct board" for added info.
Did one duct job with surplus* 'whiteboards'. The metal facing you write on just happens to be the same gauge as the minimum in the UMC, 5/8 backer w/Al facing. Metal facing in, screwed together with bracket on the corners, urethane seal, Al tape, worked great.
PS: * they were even better than 'free', got a few bucks for the Alum. frames once removed <G>
Edited 10/18/2007 8:38 am ET by junkhound
My vote is for hiring it out, based on our recent furnace install. The folks that installed it did a much better job of figuring out the duct routing than I could have, and, among other things, had a compound curve elbow made to mate things up. Even if I'd thought of it I wouldn't have been able to make or even spec that elbow.
If your view never changes you're following the wrong leader
I wouldn't have been able to make or even spec that elbow.
eye thot U wuz an enjuneer <G>
Electrical. A compound elbow in wire is easy.
If your view never changes you're following the wrong leader
Easy in pipe or ducts also <G>
An EE also, but started career doing airflow calculations and ducting for 707 equipment rack cooling upgrades 'cause the MEs* could not figure it out <GG>.
*(edit PS: probably because all MEs who really understood airflow were working on C5 or 747 wing design at the time)
Edited 10/18/2007 1:11 pm ET by junkhound