Liquid fuel-fired water heating tank

Claim 1

A liquid fuel-fired water heating tank comprising housing means including an upwardly extending annular housing wall, an annular water receptacle in said housing means, said receptacle including radially spaced apart coaxial inner and outer side walls having corresponding upper and lower ends, said outer side wall being spaced inwardly from said housing wall, said receptacle further including annular upper and lower end walls, said upper end wall being between said upper ends of said side walls, said lower end of said outer side wall being spaced axially below said lower end of said inner side wall, said lower end wall of said receptacle being between said lower end of said inner side wall and said outer side wall at a location providing an axial portion of said outer side wall below said lower end wall, a planar bottom wall spaced below said lower end wall, said bottom wall extending transverse to the axis of said outer side wall and closing said lower end thereof, said lower end wall of said receptacle together with said planar bottom wall and said axial portion of said outer side wall defining a plenum chamber, said inner side wall opening downwardly into said plenum chamber and providing the only inlet passageway thereinto, combustion chamber means extending downwardly into said inner side wall of said receptacle from said upper end thereof, liquid fuel-fired burner means including burner tube means, means supporting said burner means above said upper ends of said inner and outer receptacle side walls with said burner tube means extending downwardly into said combustion chamber means, whereby combustion gases from combustion of fuel in said combustion chamber means during operation of said burner means flow downwardly from said combustion chamber means and through said inner side wall means of said receptacle therebelow into said plenum chamber, exhaust flue means including circumferentially spaced apart flue side walls extending upwardly along the outer surface of said outer side wall of said receptacle and an outer flue wall between said flue side walls and spaced radially outwardly from said outer surface of said outer side wall of said receptacle, said exhaust flue means having a circumferentially narrow inlet end opening radially into said plenum chamber through said axial portion of said outer side wall of said receptacle and an outlet end adjacent said upper end of said outer side wall of said receptacle and opening radially outwardly through said housing wall, said exhaust flue means providing the only exhaust passageway for combustion gases from said plenum chamber and said inlet end of said exhaust flue means restricting flow of said combustion gases from said plenum chamber into said exhaust flue, removable baffle means including a support member having a lower end resting on said planar bottom wall of said plenum chamber, said support member extending upwardly into said inner side wall of said receptacle, a plurality of baffle plates axially spaced apart on said support member along the length thereof, axially adjacent ones of said baffle plates being on opposite sides of said support member, said baffle plates being inclined downwardly and radially inwardly of said inner side wall of said receptacle, the lowermost one of said baffle plates being inclined downwardly and radially inwardly in the direction away from said inlet end of said exhaust flue, said means supporting said burner means including means removably mounting said burner means and said combustion chamber means on said water receptacle, and said combustion chamber means including coaxial first and second tubular portions of refractory material, said first portion surrounding said burner tube means and said second portion extending downwardly into said passageway from said first portion.