Desa VP10T User Manual

®

INFRARED VENT-FREE PROPANE/LP GAS HEATER

OWNER’S OPERATION AND INSTALLATION MANUAL

®

MODEL: VP10T

WARNING: If the information in this manual is not followed exactly, a fire or explosion may
result causing property damage, personal injury, or loss of life.

— Do not store or use gasoline or other flammable vapors and liquids in the vicinity of this

or any other appliance.

— WHAT TO DO IF YOU SMELL GAS

• Do not try to light any appliance.

• Do not touch any electrical switch; do not use any phone in your building.

• Immediately call your gas supplier from a neighbor’s phone. Follow the gas supplier’s
instructions.

• If you cannot reach your gas supplier, call the fire department.

— Installation and service must be performed by a qualified installer, service agency, or
the gas supplier.

WARNING: This is an unvented gas-fired heater. It uses air (oxygen) from the room in which
it is installed. Provisions for adequate combustion must be provided. Refer to page 3 of this
manual.

This appliance may be installed in an aftermarket* manufactured (mobile) home, where
not prohibited by state or local codes.

* Aftermarket: Completion of sale, not for purpose of resale, from the manufacturer
This appliance is only for use with the type of gas indicated on the rating plate. This

appliance is not convertible for use with other gases.

Save this manual for future reference.

VANGUARD VP10T
PROPANE/LP GAS HEATER

SAFETY
INFORMATION

WARNINGS

IMPORTANT: Read this Owner’s
Manual carefully and completely
before trying to assemble, oper­ate, or service this heater. Im­proper use of this heater can
cause serious injury or death from
burns, fire, explosion, and car­bon monoxide poisoning.

DANGER: Carbon monoxide

poisoning may lead to death!

Carbon Monoxide Poisoning: Early

signs of carbon monoxide poisoning re­semble the flu, with headaches, dizziness,
or nausea. If you have these signs, the heater
may not be working properly. Get fresh air
at once! Have heater serviced. Some people
are more affected by carbon monoxide than
others. These include pregnant women, per­sons with heart or lung disease or anemia,
those under the influence of alcohol, and
those at high altitudes.

Propane/LP Gas: Propane/LP gas is odor-
less. An odor-making agent is added to
propane/LP gas. The odor helps you detect
a propane/LP gas leak. However, the odor
added to propane/LP gas can fade. Propane/
LP gas may be present even though no odor
exists.

Make certain you read and understand all
Warnings. Keep this manual for reference.
It is your guide to safe and proper operation
of this heater.

WARNING: Any change to this heater or
its controls can be dangerous.

1. This appliance is only for use with the
type of gas indicated on the rating plate.
This appliance is not convertible for use
with other gases.

2. Do not place propane/LP supply tank(s)
inside any structure. Locate propane/
LP supply tank(s) outdoors.

3. If you smell gas

• shut off gas supply

• do not try to light any appliance

• do not touch any electrical switch;
do not use any phone in your build­ing

• immediately call your gas supplier
from a neighbor’s phone. Follow the
gas supplier’s instructions

• if you cannot reach your gas supplier,
call the fire department

4. Heater shall not be installed in a bath­room.

5. Never install the heater

• in a recreational vehicle

• where curtains, furniture, clothing, or

other flammable objects are less than
36 inches from the front, top, or sides
of the heater

• as a fireplace insert

• in high traffic areas

• in windy or drafty areas

6. This heater needs fresh, outside air ven­tilation to run properly . This heater has
an oxygen depletion sensor (ODS) pi­lot light safety system. The ODS shuts
down the heater if not enough fresh air
is available. See Air for Combustion
and Ventilation, pages 3 through 5.

7. Keep all air openings in the front and
bottom of heater clear and free of de­bris. This will insure enough air for
proper combustion.

8. If heater shuts off, do not relight until
you provide fresh, outside air. If heater
keeps shutting off, have it serviced.

9. Do not run heater

• where flammable liquids or vapors

are used or stored

• under dusty conditions

10. Never place any objects on the heater.

11. Surface of heater becomes very hot
when running heater. Keep children and
adults away from hot surface to avoid
burns and clothing ignition. Heater will
remain hot for a time after shutdown.
Allow surface to cool before touching.

12. Make sure grill guard is in place be­fore running heater.

13. Carefully supervise young children
when they are in same room with
heater.

14. Do not use heater if any part has been
under water. Immediately call a quali­fied service technician to inspect the
room heater and to replace any part of
the control system and any gas control
which has been under water.

15. Turn off heater and let cool before ser ­vicing. Only a qualified service person
should service and repair heater.

16. Operating heater above elevations of
4,500 feet could cause pilot outage.

17. To prevent performance problems, do
not use propane fuel tank of less than
100 lbs. capacity.

2

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OWNER’S MANUAL

PRODUCT
IDENTIFICATION

Front Panel

Figure 1 - Model VP10T Vent-Free Propane/LP Gas Heater

LOCAL CODES

Install and use heater with care. Follow all
local codes. In the absence of local codes,
use the latest edition of National Fuel Gas
Code ANSI Z223.1, also known as NFPA
54*.

*Available from:
American National Standards Institute, Inc.

1430 Broadway

New York, NY 10018

National Fire Protection Association, Inc.

Batterymarch Park

Quincy, MA 02269

Piezo Ignitor Button

Control Knob

PRODUCT
FEATURES

Safety Pilot

This heater has a pilot with an Oxygen
Depletion Sensor Shutoff System (ODS).
The ODS/pilot is a required feature for vent­free room heaters. The ODS/pilot shuts off
the heater if there is not enough fresh air.

Piezo Ignition System

This heater has a piezo ignitor. This system
requires no matches, batteries, or other
sources to light heater.

UNPACKING

1. Remove heater from carton.

2. Remove all protective packaging ap­plied to heater for shipment.

3. Check heater for any shipping damage.
If heater is damaged, promptly inform
dealer where you bought heater.

Grill Guard

Burners

Heater
Cabinet

AIR FOR
COMBUSTION AND
VENTILATION

WARNING: This heater shall

not be installed in a confined
space unless provisions are pro­vided for adequate combustion
and ventilation air. Read the fol­lowing instructions to insure
proper fresh air for this and other
fuel-burning appliances in your
home.

Today’s homes are built more energy effi­cient than ever. New materials, increased
insulation, and new construction methods
help reduce heat loss in homes. Home own­ers weather strip and caulk around windows
and doors to keep the cold air out and the
warm air in. During heating months, home
owners want their homes as airtight as pos­sible.

While it is good to make your home energy
efficient, your home needs to breathe. Fresh
air must enter your home. All fuel-burning
appliances need fresh air for proper com­bustion and ventilation.

Exhaust fans, fireplaces, clothes dryers, and
fuel burning appliances draw air from the
house to operate. You must provide ad­equate fresh air for these appliances. This
will insure proper venting of vented fuel­burning appliances.

PROVIDING ADEQUATE
VENTILATION

The following is excerpts from National
Fuel Gas Code. NFPA 54/ANSI Z223.1,
Section 5.3, Air for Combustion and Venti­lation.

All spaces in homes fall into one of the three
following ventilation classifications:

1. Unusually Tight Construction; 2. Uncon­fined Space; 3. Confined Space.

The information on pages 4 and 5 will help
you classify your space and provide ad­equate ventilation.

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Continued

3

VANGUARD VP10T
PROPANE/LP GAS HEATER

AIR FOR
COMBUSTION AND
VENTILATION

Continued

UNUSUALLY TIGHT
CONSTRUCTION

The air that leaks around doors and win­dows may provide enough fresh air for
combustion and ventilation. However, in
buildings of unusually tight construction,
you must provide additional fresh air.

Unusually tight construction is
defined as construction where:
a.walls and ceilings exposed to

the outside atmosphere have a
continuous water vapor re­tarder with a rating of one perm

-11

(6x10
less with openings gasketed or
sealed

b.weather stripping has been

added on openable windows
and doors

c.caulking or sealants are ap-

plied to areas such as joints
around window and door
frames, between sole plates
and floors, between wall-ceil­ing joints, between wall panels,
at penetrations for plumbing,
electrical, and gas lines, and at
other openings.

If your home meets all of the three
criteria above, you must provide
additional fresh air. See

Air From Outdoors

If your home does not meet all of
the three criteria above, proceed to

Determining Air Flow For Heater
Location

Confined and Unconfined Space

The National Fuel Gas Code (ANSIZ2123.1,
1992 Section 5.3) defines a confined space
as a space whose volume is less than 50
cubic feet per 1,000 Btu per hour (4.8 m3 per
kw) of the aggregate input rating of all
appliances installed in that space and an
unconfined space as a space whose volume
is not less than 50 cubic feet per 1,000 Btu
per hour (4.8 m3 per kw) of the aggregate
input rating of all appliances installed in that

kg per pa-sec-m2) or

and

and

Ventilation

, page 5

.

.

space. Rooms communicating directly with
the space in which the appliances are in­stalled*, through openings not furnished
with doors, are considered a part of the
unconfined space.

* Adjoining rooms are communicating only
if there are doorless passageways or ventila­tion grills between them.

DETERMINING AIR FLOW
FOR HEATER LOCATION

Determining if You Have a
Confined or Unconfined Space

Use this worksheet to determine if you have
a confined or unconfined space.

Space: Includes the room in which you
will install heater plus any adjoining rooms
with doorless passageways or ventilation
grills between the rooms.

1. Determine the volume of the space
(length x width x height).

Length x Width x Height =

_________ cu. ft. (volume of space)

Example:

16 ft. (width) x 8 ft. (ceiling height) =
2304 cu. ft. (volume of space)

If additional ventilation to adjoining
room is supplied with grills or open­ings, add the volume of these rooms to
the total volume of the space.

2. Divide the space volume by 50 cubic
feet to determine the maximum Btu/Hr
the space can support.

_____________ (volume of space) ÷

50 cu. ft. = (Maximum Btu/Hr the space
can support)

Example:

space) ÷ 50 cu. ft. = 46.1 or 46,100
(maximum Btu/Hr the space can sup­port)

3. Add the Btu/Hr of all fuel burning ap­pliances in the space.

Vent-free heater __________ Btu/Hr
Gas water heater* ________ Btu/Hr
Gas furnace _____________ Btu/Hr

Vented gas heater _________ Btu/Hr
Gas fireplace logs ________ Btu/Hr
Other gas appliances*+ ____ Btu/Hr
Total = ____ Btu/Hr

Space size 18 ft. (length) x

2304 cu. ft. (volume of

Example:

Gas water heater 40,000 Btu/Hr
Vent-free heater + 10,000 Btu/Hr
Total = 50,000 Btu/Hr
* Do not include direct-vent gas appli-

ances. Direct-vent draws combustion
air from the outdoors and vents to the
outdoors.

4. Compare the maximum Btu/Hr the
space can support with the actual
amount of Btu/Hr used.

__________ Btu/Hr (maximum the

space can support)

__________ Btu/Hr (actual amount of

Btu/Hr used)

Example:

46,100 Btu/Hr (maximum the space

can support)

50,000 Btu/Hr (actual amount of Btu/

Hr used)

The space in the above example is a con­fined space because the actual Btu/Hr used
is more than the maximum Btu/Hr the space
can support. You must provide additional
fresh air. Your options are as follows:

A. Rework worksheet, adding the space of

an adjoining room. If the extra space
provides an unconfined space, remove
door to adjoining room or add ventila­tion grills between rooms. See V entila-
tion Air From Inside Building, page 5.

B. V ent room directly to the outdoors. See

V entilation Air Fr om Outdoors page 5.

C. Install a lower Btu/Hr heater, if lower

Btu/Hr size makes room unconfined.

If the actual Btu/Hr used is less than the
maximum Btu/Hr the space can support, the
space is an unconfined space. You will need
no additional fresh air ventilation.

WARNING: If the area in which
the heater may be operated is
smaller than that defined as an
unconfined space, provide ad­equate combustion and ventila­tion air by one of the methods
described in the

Gas Code, ANSI Z223.1, 1992,
Section 5.3 or applicable local
codes.

National Fuel

4

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AIR FOR
COMBUSTION AND
VENTILATION

Continued

VENTILATION AIR

OWNER’S MANUAL

12"

Ventilation Air From Inside
Building

This fresh air would come from an adjoining
unconfined space. When ventilating to an
adjoining unconfined space, you must pro­vide two permanent openings: one within
12" of the ceiling and one within 12" of the
floor on the wall connecting the two spaces
(see options 1 and 2, Figure 2). You can also
remove door into adjoining room (see op­tion 3, Figure 2). Follow the National Fuel

Gas Code NFPA 54/ANSI Z223.1, Section

5.3, Air for Combustion and Ventilation for

required size of ventilation grills or ducts.

WARNING: Rework work­sheet, adding the space of the
adjoining unconfined space. The
combined spaces must have
enough fresh air to supply all
appliances in both spaces.

Ventilation Air From Outdoors

Provide extra fresh air by using ventilation
grills or ducts. You must provide two per­manent openings: one within 12" of the
ceiling and one within 12" of the floor.
Connect these items directly to the outdoors
or spaces open to the outdoors. These spaces
include attics and crawl spaces. Follow the

National Fuel Gas Code NFPA 54/ANSI
Z223.1, Section 5.3, Air for Combustion and
Ventilation for required size of ventilation

grills or ducts.

IMPORTANT:

for inlet or outlet air into attic if attic has a
thermostat-controlled power vent. Heated
air entering the attic will activate the power
vent.

Do not provide openings

Ventilation

Grills

into Adjoining

Room,

Option 1

Figure 2 - Ventilation Air from Inside Building

Or

Remove
Door into
Adjoining

Room,

Option 3

Outlet
Air

12"

Ventilated
Attic

Outlet
Air

Inlet
Air

Inlet Air

Figure 3 - Ventilation Air from Outdoors

Ventilation Grills

Into Adjoining Room,

Option 2

To Attic

To

Crawl

Space

Ventilated

Crawl Space

102489

5

VANGUARD VP10T

36"

3"

FLOOR

CEILING

Minimum

Minimum
Of Carpet
Combusti

8"
Minimum
From
Sides Of
Heater

Right
Side

Left
Side

PROPANE/LP GAS HEATER

INSTALLING TO
WALL

NOTICE: A qualified service per­son must install heater. Follow
all local codes.

CHECK GAS TYPE

Use only propane/LP gas. If your gas supply
is not propane/LP, do not install heater. Call
dealer where you bought heater for proper
type heater.

INSTALLATION ITEMS

Before installing heater, make sure you have
the items listed below.

• external regulator (supplied by in­staller, see page 8)

• piping (check local codes)

• sealant (resistant to propane/LP gas)

• manual shutoff valve *

• ground joint union

• test gauge connection * (see Figure
13, page 8)

• sediment trap

• tee joint

• pipe wrench

* An A.G.A. design-certified manual shutoff
valve with 1/8" NPT tap is an acceptable
alternative to test gauge connection. The
optional A.G.A. design-certified manual
shutoff valve can be purchased from your
dealer. See Accessory, page 15.

LOCATING HEATER

This heater is designed to be mounted on a
wall.

WARNING: Maintain the mini­mum clearances shown in Figure

4. If you can, provide greater clear­ances from floor, ceiling, and
joining wall.

WARNING: Never install the

heater

• in a bathroom

• in a recreational vehicle

• where curtains, furniture,
clothing, or other flammable
objects are less than 36 inches
from the front, top, or sides of
the heater

• as a fireplace insert

• in high traffic areas

• in windy or drafty areas

CAUTION: This heater cre­ates warm air currents. These
currents move heat to wall sur­faces next to heater. Installing
heater next to vinyl or cloth wall
coverings or operating heater
where impurities in the air (such
as tobacco smoke) exist, may
discolor walls.

IMPORTANT:

ture to the air. Although this is beneficial,
installing heater in rooms without enough
ventilation air may cause mildew to form
from too much moisture. See Air for Com-
bustion and Ventilation, pages 3 through 5.

CAUTION: If you install the

heater in a home garage

• heater pilot and burner must

be at least 18 inches above
floor

• locate heater where moving ve-

hicle will not hit it

Vent-free heaters add mois-

Minimum To
Top Surface
Of Carpeting,
Tile Or Other
Combustible
Material

Figure 4 - Mounting Clearances As Viewed
From Front of Heater

INSTALLING HEATER TO
WALL

Marking Screw Locations

1. Determine where you will locate heater.

WARNING: Maintain minimum
clearances shown in Figure 5. If
you can, provide greater clear­ances from floor and joining wall.

2. Mark two mounting screw locations on
wall (see Figure 5).

10 7/8"

Minimum To

Maintain 8"

Clearance
From Wall

JOINING WALL

7 3/4"

Mounting

Screw

Locations

20 1/4"

Minimum

To

Maintain 3"

Clearance

From Floor

For convenience and efficiency, install heater

• where there is easy access for opera­tion, inspection, and service

• in coldest part of room

6

FLOOR

Figure 5 - Mounting Screw Locations

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