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Thread: FYI: Home Depot no longer stocks metal pipe or fittings

  1. #46
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    I brought up ABS pipe because it is something I recalled HD stopped carrying and I had to buy elsewhere. There are other things that HD doesn't carry in the store, but I can get at other local stores. I have sometimes used ship to store on items that don't meet the free shipping minimum. If I order something from HD I usually get it shipped to home for free.

  2. #47
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    Same here, Brian. The ship to home, when it's available and free, has been pretty darn fast, too. More than once I've received things days or even a week sooner than expected.
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  3. #48
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    We are blessed with a local family-owned hardware store that packs a LOT of inventory in a small place. Need a fitting of any material, an o-ring, a certain size bolt made of a certain grade of metal,... Jim's your place. Knowledgable staff that you can find in a few seconds. They did have some inventory problems of fittings early in the pandemic but there have only been maybe 2 occasions where I couldn't find something that solved my problem. I don't mind paying an extra dollar or two. I can typically get in and out in under 5 minutes.
    Mark McFarlane

  4. #49
    Natural gas furnaces and water heaters will be available in California for the next 7 years. As of 2030, all new furnace and water heaters sold in California will have to be zero emission. That means heat pumps and electric water heaters. It us unlikely that Home Depot has decided to stop stocking metal pipe and fittings because of a mandate that is 3/4 of a decade away.

    I am fine with that change for obvious environmental reasons, but it also works for us financially. Last year we replaced one of our A/C /Heating units with a very high efficiency propane burner. The other will stay put until is gives up the ghost and when that happens, we will go with a new heat pump. Now that we have reduced our annual electricity cost from $6,000 to $120 (grid connect fee), I am looking to cut our annual $3,000 gas cost in half with the heat pump which will also be covered by our annual solar generation.

    Before I retired in 2004, I was the Assistant Secretary for Cal/EPA with the CARB beat. These greenhouse gas regulations were in various stages of drafting nearly 10 years before I retired.

  5. #50
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    I was in our local Home depot today and they seemed to be fully stocked with metal pipe and fittings.
    Lee Schierer
    USNA '71
    Go Navy!

    My advice, comments and suggestions are free, but it costs money to run the site. If you found something of value here please give a little something back by becoming a contributor! Please Contribute

  6. #51
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    Oct 2006
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    Quote Originally Posted by Bob Borzelleri View Post
    Natural gas furnaces and water heaters will be available in California for the next 7 years. As of 2030, all new furnace and water heaters sold in California will have to be zero emission. That means heat pumps and electric water heaters. It us unlikely that Home Depot has decided to stop stocking metal pipe and fittings because of a mandate that is 3/4 of a decade away.
    I hope the all electric mandate doesn't come to Minnesota any time soon. It is super expensive to do all electric heat in Minnesota unless you do geothermal. There is no heat pump that can economically produce heat during our super cold snaps. My understanding is a heat pump can cost the same, or more, to run at -5F than resistance electric heat. My house had baseboard electric heat and no air conditioning when I bought it. $3,500 a year for electricity and the electric heat was on a six cents per KWH plan. The electric water heater was replaced with a power vented gas water heater. I had ducting put in along with a gas furnace and central A/C. My utility bills have been $1,500 a year for gas and electric combined, and I use my A/C a lot which the house didn't have.

    I want to do geothermal, but it will probably be five years before I have the money saved up. I will probably want to keep my gas furnace as the utility will provide electricity for electric heat at half price if you have a backup heat source. They will cut the power for the electric heat if demand is really high. Also, an electric water heater is really expensive. I have read of people spending over $100 a month on electricity just for an electric water heater! I spent $60 a month on electricity total before I went solar. My water heater costs $20 a month during the summer and half of that is the basic charge for having natural gas.
    Last edited by Brian Elfert; 12-02-2022 at 9:18 AM.

  7. #52
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    In the "new" house I have been around 400 kwh per month this fall, with electric tankless water heater, electric stove, and the workshop. My electric bills have been a bit under $80, and I think for November it'll be closer to $90 based on usage. We're heating mostly with wood stoves, with electric backup (oil filled radiator, and now a mini-split). I've been surprised by how little it costs for electricity so far.

  8. #53
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    Figuring out how to keep warm at Frostbite Falls without burning something is a big challenge. I wish I was smart enough to participate in Prince Willams Earthshot. We have a Goodman heat pump It never feels warm.

    Reading about the geo thermal technology in Iceland always makes me think of John Muir's night on the volcano.

    "Here," said Jerome, as we stood shivering in the midst of the hissing, sputtering fumaroles, "we shall be safe from frost." "Yes," said I, "we can lie in this mud and gravel, hot at least on one side; but how shall we protect our lungs from the acid gases?

    Snow-Storm on Mount Shasta, by John Muir (1877) - John Muir Exhibit (John Muir Education Project, Sierra Club California)


    Last edited by Maurice Mcmurry; 12-02-2022 at 9:57 AM. Reason: geothermal thoughts
    Best Regards, Maurice

  9. #54
    Eventually, the best answers will be some combination of straight electric heat pumps, geothermal and solar to offset the electrical energy cost. We are unfortunately so far behind the curve with respect to effective and efficient energy generation, management and use that playing catch up in an era of severe climate changes and the dramatic effect those changes are having on coastal living conditions, droughts and wildfires that thoughtful planning for the future is kinda like bailing a boat filled with piranha.

  10. #55
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    I already have solar that produces 150% of my yearly needs. The extra 50% production helps pay the $30 in fees on my monthly bill. I set up my solar system so I can easily expand by 50%. The wiring to the house is already sized for the additional solar. It would cost me $5,000 to $6,000 to add more solar. No batteries.

  11. #56
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    Quote Originally Posted by Brian Elfert View Post
    I want to do geothermal, but it will probably be five years before I have the money saved up. I will probably want to keep my gas furnace as the utility will provide electricity for electric heat at half price if you have a backup heat source. They will cut the power for the electric heat if demand is really high. Also, an electric water heater is really expensive. I have read of people spending over $100 a month on electricity just for an electric water heater! I spent $60 a month on electricity total before I went solar. My water heater costs $20 a month during the summer and half of that is the basic charge for having natural gas.
    Don't forget that your original furnace will also need electric to run the thermostat and the fan.

    We've heated our home for over 40 years with a geothermal heat pump. We used well water for a heat source for most of those years, but erosion in the path through the aquifer shortened the path between the two wells so the water got too cold and the water to refrigerant chamber kept freezing up. I elected to put in a ground loop system. The guy that did the ground loop used the minimum length to meet the demand for really cold long duration weather so my unit is not as efficient when heating as the temperature of the liquid in the loop drops colder that the most efficient operating temperature. There probably should have been several hundred feet more pipe in each loop. It works really well when air conditioning.

    Geothermal is definitely the way to go, just be sure the ground loops are sufficiently sized to keep the optimum efficiency temperature in the loop during heavy demand. Greater depth beneath the surface would also help.
    Lee Schierer
    USNA '71
    Go Navy!

    My advice, comments and suggestions are free, but it costs money to run the site. If you found something of value here please give a little something back by becoming a contributor! Please Contribute

  12. #57
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    We have some farmers around who burry the ground loop in their silage pits. It make for quite a bit of labor but is a neat concept.
    Best Regards, Maurice

  13. #58
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    Quote Originally Posted by Lee Schierer View Post
    Don't forget that your original furnace will also need electric to run the thermostat and the fan.
    The furnace and the geothermal heat pump would be on two separate electrical feeds. The CO-OP supplies a second meter for the electric heat feed. My assumption is I would have my forced air furnace with a coil on top for the geothermal. The geothermal heat pump would be located next tot he furnace. I have lots of land I can dig up for the ground loops.

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