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Does this flue have the correct rise? (Sarcasm…)
This has got to be the worst I've ever posted on this wall of shame:
 
Question
I rent an apartment and this is the heater in a closet in the hallway. This closet gets very hot inside with the door closed. What I am most concerned about is the ventilation pipe (assuming that’s what it is) it should be going up into the ceiling shouldn't it? I am worried this is a fire hazard.
This heater is on the first floor of a three floor, two apartment house. There is a basement below that I assume that pipe goes to. The basement is locked up by the guys who own the house and work on it. The person I pay rent to is simply a rent collector of sorts, not the actual owner of the building.
Answer
Find out who installed that and call the code enforcement people in your area. If this a single family home, part of a multi-unit dwelling or new development that these guys did more of this, someone is going to get hurt, sick or worse with this arrangement.
To what type of termination point does that connect? I've seen some hack work in my industry time but this is one that seems to take the cake! If you have codes, call the inspector. If you don't have specific codes, call the Fire Dept.
Not a doubt in my mind that they have some sort of contraption hooked up down below, but I surely could not find anything on the internet that authorizes a "power venter" to be used in that scenario.
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29. Venting of Furnace* – the chapter gives general information about types of furnace’s venting.
 B-vent pipes Installation – the chapter describes installation of B-vent pipes in all possible cases and treir roof
termination.
PVC Pipes Installation – the chapter describes installation of the PVC pipes in all possible cases. The chapters have 28 pictures; 14 pages*. $2.37 (Instant Access).
*Articles:
Backdrafting.
Carbon Monoxide Poisoning and Detectors.
Vents. pdf file., Dura Vent Sizing Instructions pdf file.
YouToube vide clip: Concentric vent kit.
On 06/03/2013 text of this chapter was significantly modified and improved.
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Here is another example of stupid installation:
 The installer could turn the Tee - that actually should be a Wye for about 45* down and use only one 26 gauges 45* elbow instead of four (4) B-vent elbows!
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I got a call from a lady that said she wanted me to look at their furnace. Her husband went from a farm one day to a hvac guy the next. He finally quit and changed careers again to working at a tire shop. She said she convinced him to have someone look at the furnace he installed in their house. She wanted it fixed right. Her question was why do we have to replace the vent pipe every month! It was PVC on a Goodman 80% furnace! Oh, and the vent was ran out a boarded up basement window!
 
This guy was a partner with another guy and the things I’ve seen them do is unreal. We live in a rural area so no city inspectors at all. What ever they worked on, I was being called in right after to fix everything right. I’ve seen 3 Rheem heat pump systems they installed. Everyone they managed to under bid us, get the job, install it, collect their money before it was even started and leave. Then when the customer realized it didn't work they wouldn't return phone calls. None of them even had a heat pump thermostat, they only ran 18-4 thermostat wire to indoor and outdoor units, used soft solder on R-410. One system was so over charged it was running 600lbs on the high side. Can’t believe it didn't blow them lines apart! They have ran type b vents backwards, gas lines leaking gas....it goes on and on.
 And here is another idiot! This one connected high efficiency furnace to the B-vent pipe…
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Idiots at Large
Found this gem with a Winkler low pressure oil burner and trapped smoke pipe. I thought the smoke pipe fell down in the dimly lit basement, then I broke out the droplight. Still haven't figured it out.
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49. Venting* – the chapter is divided in two parts and describes all possible cases of installation and termination of  the venting for 80% and 90+% furnaces.
The chapter has 30 pictures; 8 pages. $2.50 (Instant Access).
*Article:
Venting & Draining Condensing Gas Furnaces
Laundry and Condensing Furnaces Don't Mix.
SIMPSON DURA-VENT SIZING HANDBOOK, pdf file. Z-Flex.
On 08/31/2011 text of this chapter was significantly modified and improved.
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Never look back, just keep moving forward!
 In this picture installers from unnamed company replaced the A/C coil and forgot to reinstall the S-cleat! For years this furnace was blowing a lot of the conditioned air into the basement instead of to the living space upstairs – but who cares!
 
Cable guys or other idiots that are running their cables or wires trough the cold air returns – they never nail or screw the pried open panning back into place!
So here is a question:
Do the cable companies such as Comcast choosing their employees with the lowest IQ possible or it’s just the naturally born morons gravitate to the cable companies by themselves?
 Maybe it’s not that visible in the picture at the left, but plumbers ran this gas pipe way off of the plumb… Of course it still supplies gas to the furnace, but it looks like s—t!
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Crazy Handyman
 The guy who performed this installation was very creative! He glued a 4” elbow right to the unknown fitting, used as many elbows as humanely possible. But the job was successfully done and the mission that for any reasonable human being would be impossible for him was just a piece of cake!
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15. Tee Tip
 What you can see in the picture is an 8”- 8”- 8” Tee. This kind of Tees could be pretty expensive, because there is no high demand for the fittings like this. Furthermore, if you need a different kind of Tee, let’s say 8”- 6”- 8”, or 8”- 7”- 8” tees they could be out of stock or you might just forget to buy one. There is a very simple technique on how to make any type of tees. I usually make it in less than 10 minutes!
How Did I Do It?
If you are a self-employed contractor or if you are thinking about ductwork installation seriously you may need to know how to make a field-made Tee. For the price of only $1.00 I can explain how to do it.
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What amazing effect gravity has on things, that is just more proof that there are a bunch of brain damaged individuals claiming to be "techs" and some of them have a hard time grasping concepts like... gravity.
I think that in the first picture is a question mark and it wants to know WTF its doing there.
I guess the good thing is he's not a plumber, then that would turn into a very smelly situation!!
One of the guys installed the A/C coil and then another installer went out, ran the line set and installed the heat pump and a condensate line into it without noticing that the A/C coil was installed up-side-down…
Surprisingly, the wrong installation to the left and two virtually perfect below were perform by the same company in the next door apartments!
 
 
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OK, we got a new winner here! And this is A1 Comfort Control, Inc., MI!
Look at two jewels in the picture below on the lift: These “business men”, a quote from their website: “The owners, Jack and Steve, are hands on business men with 70 years experience between them. Don't be suprised if one or both of them show up to help with your project.” – with 70 years experience between them came to the house and “suprised” everyone including me. They literarily “doubled down” on this “jumper” that easily could be run as a straight shot! These guys created two beautifully looking necklaces out of eight ninety degree elbows and left them to decorate the house for decades to come!
 
In the picture above on the right they also mysteriously missed a joist cavity where this heat run could be done as a “straight shot”… Instead they used another four ninety degree elbows and came to the wall stack from the opposite side.
After looking at this weird installation I can assume that 70 years back before they got this “suprising” experience they were serving in the military where they learn to attack enemy from the rear side or maybe even worse…
Here is the next quote from their website: “Every installation is different. Ed has been here for more than 25 years because his work is excellent.”!!!
Look in the picture to the left. “Every installation is different” – it’s probably why Ed hooked up a cold air boot to the 120000 BTU-s furnace with five ton A/C to the one of it sides only.
“Ed has been here for more than 25 years because his work is excellent.” – And it’s probably why this particular furnace has to be replaced after only 12 years of very noisy work…
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