I have a 15 round , in the market for a Rheem 130k heater. BUT, having a deck built around the pool. Would it be safe to put the heater under the deck with pump and filter without burning the house down?. Or do these heaters need to be in the open air?
Heater Location...
- Thread starter Rynz
- Start date
I probably wouldn't put a gas heater under the deck. There is a required clearance diagram in the manual. I'm pretty sure it's a large distance above the unit.
They sell hood kits that essentially put a stove pipe on them for indoor use but not sure that would help in your situation
- May 4, 2011
- 634
It would require some research, but I'm fairly certain there is a method described in the owners manual to vent the heater properly.
The manual shows that there should be nothing above it when installed outdoors. A 42 inch clearance when installed indoors (which I am sure involves proper venting). So if your deck is more than 4 feet high then you can look in to what it would take to properly install and vent it. If it's less than 4 feet then it's not happening.
The manual says "Heaters must not be installed under an overhang of less than 3 ft from the top of the heater. Three sides must be open in the area under the overhang." So theoretically it could be installed under the deck if the deck is 6' high and open on the sides. It'd make a nice foot warmer when you walked across that part of the deck. 
Hmmmm, silly response, but.... aren't you getting a carbon monoxide discharge from the gas heater? Unless you have proper ventilation, someone may... uh... die?