[Shop-talk] PVC Vent Run

[Jim Stone]

I need to refine the vent for the water heater in my garage that provides heat for the radiant floor heating system and on demand hot water for the attached living space.  Right now, the 2 inch vent goes straight out the wall, but the building code requires that it be 2 feet from a vented or unvented soffit, which means that the pipe currently sticks out about 3 feet from the outside wall.  It is high up enough that safety isn’t an issue, but it looks really crappy and I’d like to do something better.  I think the best solution is to install a 90° elbow, run the pipe a couple of feet away, and then go straight through the soffit and vent vertically with a couple of elbows at the top to form a “U”.  (The design of the building doesn’t allow me to simply elbow and go straight up from the current location.)  Now, here’s the problem:

I can accomplish everything described above and still stay within the maximum length for the vent pipe plus the elbows.  However, the manufacturer also specifies that the run should be pitched back towards the unit ¼” per foot so that condensation runs back down and drains.  I have room to do that, but a 90° elbow off of a pitched horizontal pipe would put the vertical run at a similar angle.  (I hope that makes sense.)  It would seem like I need something like a 95° elbow.  Does such a thing exist?  I MIGHT have room to elbow out and up to eliminate the problem, but that would look like crap and the extra elbow would impact the allowable run.  I have tried heating and bending PVC before, but that doesn’t work very well.  Since pitching pipe for drainage is a common requirement, I have to assume this isn’t a unique problem.  How do I handle it? 

Thanks,

Jim
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