In loving memory of Kenis D. Keathley 6/4/81 - 3/27/22 Loving father, husband, brother, friend and firewood hoarder Rest in peace, Dexterday

The big swap...

Discussion in 'OWB's and Gasification Boilers' started by Jon_E, Jan 2, 2017.

  1. Jon_E

    Jon_E

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    IMG_4645.JPG

    Not a great picture but it was taken this past August.
     
  2. Blstr88

    Blstr88

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    This is how I did mine, it holds about 16-17 cord total...enough for 2 years, so I use one side each season and if I go over a little or just want to keep the boiler going a bit longer I'll start into next years row and just fill it back up in summer.

    I dont want/need it entirely enclosed but I would like some sort of partial walls built just to help keep snow from blowing in so much.

    [​IMG]
     
  3. Jon_E

    Jon_E

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    This is kind of what I had in mind...

    wood shed design_Page_1_Image_0001.jpg
     

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  4. JCMC

    JCMC

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    Wouldn't expect any less from an Engineer!
     
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  5. JWinIndiana

    JWinIndiana

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    I have dreamt of putting a roof over my OWB, but then have the nightmare of a stray spark igniting my complete fuel supply and burning the whole shebang in one fell swoop(a dream turned into a nightmare!). I replaced my old Central Boiler with another one right before the mandate of the gassifier. I heard and read horror stories of their maintenance (CB's). The volume of wood with the new one seems to be more than the old one was for some weird reason. It is a hog, think someone on here calls theirs a beast. BUT, every room is warm, no heating bills, we turn it up so we are comfortable. Mess and fuss is all outside, my wife in her later years is developing allergies so it is a good thing we put the OWB in. Enjoy hearing of your less wood consumption and am envious.
     
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  6. JCMC

    JCMC

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    Jon I would like to take a look at your set up. Someday in the near future as I am considering the G200. Could that possible? PM me
     
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  7. JWinIndiana

    JWinIndiana

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    JCMC, you will probably have to remind me! School with students starts tomorrow and then it is a free fall into winter with a lot of wood cutting in between. I will try to snap some photos of the stove and my sheds and then the pile that accumulates. Don't be afraid to pm me later in the year and remind me!
     
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  8. Jon_E

    Jon_E

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    This is funny that two guys both named Jon, both with outdoor wood boilers, are responding in this forum. Sorry for the confusion!

    Jack (JCMC) it was great to meet you this past Saturday, hopefully your curiosity about the Heatmaster boilers was satisfied. You are always welcome to contact me or come back over if you have any questions.
     
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  9. JCMC

    JCMC

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    Just a little confusion :confused: and not to confuse anyone more my name is also John(JCMC).
    Jon_E It was nice to meet you also. Thank you so much for your time and information on Saturday.
    I haven't made a decision as to what I will do.
    For now I will continue cutting and splitting wood.
     
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  10. Farmchuck

    Farmchuck

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    How’s the stove running Jon? How’s the shed coming? I have a 12 year old 6048 I’m contemplating replacing simply because I can’t keep up with the wood it demands. Was looking at a CB classic 750 but your stove seems really nice. Did you look at CB when you considered replacing yours?
     
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  11. Jon_E

    Jon_E

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    Stove is running well, going to be hooking it up to my garage in the next month or two. That should put a bit more demand on the system. Didn't build a new shed or change anything yet due to lack of time and money, maybe next year. I did not look at CB at all because I felt like I experienced a lot more problems than I should have for a ten-year-old unit, and my few discussions with the company for possible warranty repairs and for parts was not positive. I simply felt that they were in the business to sell boilers and not to support their products after the sale. Your mileage may vary, so to speak.
     
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  12. Farmchuck

    Farmchuck

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    Thank you for your honest reply. I’ve had good luck with my 6048 do far but I do wonder when it’s going to fail. I am heating two farmhouses with it & our milk house water heater through a heat exchanger. From October thru May we burn between 28-30 cords of wood. I would like to find something that would be able to handle the load & yet be more efficient & thus burn significantly less firewood. Sounds like your onto something with your update.
     
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  13. Jon_E

    Jon_E

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    I assume that's full cords? If so, that is a crazy amount of firewood for just two houses and a milkhouse. Although I guess I was going through about 12 full cords a year for my house with the old CB. However, that is 4300 square feet of a new and very well insulated home, and 100% of the year-round hot water for a family of 7. I now have 3 less people in the house (3 kids moved out) and am down to about 8 cords a year. I hope to get it down even further, to about 6 or 7 cords, but that will be due to shutting down the boiler from mid-May through early September. You will cut your use by at least 25% with a new and properly sized gasification unit. A word of warning, and I am probably preaching to the choir here, but you have to have dry wood with a gasifier. I burned anything I could get my hands on with the old CB and the new Heatmaster does NOT like wet or punky wood. I am not yet on a 3-year plan, so not everything is below 20% MC, but I try to stay below 25% or mix it up so that wetter stuff has a good bed of coals to cook off residual moisture.
     
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  14. Farmchuck

    Farmchuck

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    Yes Jon they are full cords. One 1800s farm house poorly insulated about 1800sf. The other a 1950s ranch with new insulation, windows etc. about 1400sf. I try to stay ahead with dry wood but it seems every year I fall a bit further behind. In my current situation I don’t see myself ever getting on a 3 year plan.:confused:
     
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  15. Gasifier

    Gasifier

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    I would think changing to an outdoor gasification boiler should reduce the amount of firewood you need by 30-50%.
     
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  16. Farmchuck

    Farmchuck

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    What kind of unit do you have sir?
     
  17. Gasifier

    Gasifier

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    I run an AHS Wood Gun E-100 Stainless Steel Gasifier with a 400 gallon buffer tank that is well insulated. It is an indoor model in my basement.
     
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  18. Farmchuck

    Farmchuck

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    Sounds nice. Would a set up like that work in an enclosed building outdoors to heat two homes if I were to add a larger buffer?
     
  19. Gasifier

    Gasifier

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    Yes. There are also outdoor gasifiers that are already large enough where you don’t need a tank. Some even have built-in storage. They are basically a big tank and stove all in one. I’m trying to remember their name now.
     
  20. Rowerwet

    Rowerwet

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    Garn?
     
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