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[Ohiovrod]

Looking for advise and or recommendations. Live in a small town and right now going thru the zoning process but feel confident I will be allowed to have one. With that said looking to purchase a 5036, looking to heat around 4000 sq ft (includes basement) in a all masonry house built in 1937 went thru full remodel inside which includes studding the walls, pink boarded and re-plastered. Along with triple pan windows. The house has two forced air systems, one for each floor. Main floor installed in 00 and upper 06. Will this be a concern when it comes to installation? The upstairs unit is in the attic.

Currently use both forced air units to heat along w our Buck wood stove insert. In the last 12 months we consumed 1200 CFFs of natural gas. Am I picking a big enough unit?

[TLuckoski]

I have the 5036 and I heat a 1800 Square ft. house plus DHW. Take my advice if you are heating 4000 square ft house I would go with the 6048 for sure. Looking back I wish I would have went with the 6048. Don't get me wrong the 5036 does fine for me  but for 4000 square ft. I would go bigger then the 5036.

[fireboss]

Bigger the better  after I got mine I learn to heat my pool glad I got the bigger of the two

[woodywoodchucker]

Go big. I wish I had.2000 sf. is all mine wants

[woodbutcher]

Just looking at replacing my15 year old CB. CL400, before the new EPA regulations go into effect. With a CB I would have to go with the 6048. Talked to the CB dealer and he is sold on the gssers. I got a brochure and the E-Classic 2400, which would be the replacement in the gasser. The more I look and the longer he talked the less I was going to buy a CB gasser. The company even recommends a concrete slab with 12" of insulation on the sides and 72" in front. They recommend 2"thick insulation. I think if the slab needs to be insulated, it is because there must be a heat loss from under the boiler. If you are thinking of of a CB go with the 6048, it will heat 8,000 sq.ft. and not be starved for wood as the 5036 might be. Also be aware of all the electronics on the CB. My old CB is a bare bones model and I have had very few problems with it, the only one was the temp. readout on the boiler went out and that is more of there electronics that can't stand up to the cold weather in Wis. Yes it does get cold here. We have had temp. in the -30 degrees withe a 30mph wind, with the wind chill you are looking a -60 to -70 below zero.   

[Roger2561]

Just looking at replacing my15 year old CB. CL400, before the new EPA regulations go into effect. With a CB I would have to go with the 6048. Talked to the CB dealer and he is sold on the gssers. I got a brochure and the E-Classic 2400, which would be the replacement in the gasser. The more I look and the longer he talked the less I was going to buy a CB gasser. The company even recommends a concrete slab with 12" of insulation on the sides and 72" in front. They recommend 2"thick insulation. I think if the slab needs to be insulated, it is because there must be a heat loss from under the boiler. If you are thinking of of a CB go with the 6048, it will heat 8,000 sq.ft. and not be starved for wood as the 5036 might be. Also be aware of all the electronics on the CB. My old CB is a bare bones model and I have had very few problems with it, the only one was the temp. readout on the boiler went out and that is more of there electronics that can't stand up to the cold weather in Wis. Yes it does get cold here. We have had temp. in the -30 degrees withe a 30mph wind, with the wind chill you are looking a -60 to -70 below zero.

Am I reading your post correctly?  They recommend 12" (1 foot) of insulation on the sides and 72" (6 feet) in front?  I have a gasser going on my 4th season heating my 3000sqft, 1840's farmhouse and DHW with it.  It's the E-classic 1400.  The firebox itself is surrounded with 2" insulation (closed cell expandable) and you will not feel any heat from the exterior.  I do not have mine sitting on a pad, it's on blocks.  I believe what you read is that the pad should be one foot wider and and six feet longer than what it is needed for the OWB to sit on.  The six feet in front is really nice when you are stoking it.  It keeps you out of the mud.  The 12 inches from the side is when you have to clean the reaction chamber.  Take it from me, I wish I had a pad on the side of mine when I clearing the reaction chamber of ash.  Mine make a mess on the ground.  But, I do not believe CB recommends 6 feet of insulation in front of it.  However, I've been wrong before so someone please set me straight if I am wrong.  Roger       

[boilerman]

Ohio Vrod, if neighbors are a concern go with the Eclassic and with what you have to heat, I think the E2400 would be a great option. I burned a 6048 size Classic for 7 years and then a E2400 since 2010. Both over sized for my needs with no regrets. E2400 burns about 40% less wood. When you learn to burn and clean it right, it does not take that much more work and is well worth it for the wood savings in my opinion. I've burned both hard and soft woods in mine and both work well as long as it has seasoned. Green wood takes a lot more work in either model as far as I'm concerned. Woodbutcher, I think you and your dealer must have had a little communication issue. It sounds to me that the 2" insulation under and around the perimeter of the slab would be a recommendation for a concrete slab you would be putting under a building you are looking to heat. I looked back in my owners manual and it says nothing like that. I think you are confused with "clearances" and not mandatory concrete and insulation around the perimeter or the furnace. I found this on the CB website link: http://www.centralboiler.com/faq.html   Those 72" and 12" perimeters you are referring to are clearances. It states slab can be as little as 1 1/2 inches out from the perimeter and a 2 inch foam board could be put down under as an "option". Probably to keep frost from heaving underneath as much? I don't see any need for the foam board as I've always just set my furnaces on patio block after cutting away sod and tamping with sand underneath. Never had a problem and furnaces have always remained level. With the entire water jackets foamed there is no heat radiating off them where any insulation under the slab would be of any use there. An extended area of concrete or blocks out front of the furnace is a good idea though as without you can end up standing in a watery mud hole in the spring. So far, I've had zero electrical issues with either my Classic or Eclassic controllers at up to -40 below MN winter temps. Old man winter can keep those!

[LittleJohn]

The old man has been running a CB eClassic 2400 for 3 years now, last year he heated 7000sf mostly inslab radiant. 

...in regards to pad under the boiler, I only know of one builder in our area who puts more thatn 2" under slab and thats a Habitat 4 Humanity community, with some "crazy" green houses.  The house are pretty much net-zero houses; 6" foam under slab, 16" walls (something like R-50) and R-100 in attic.   You can heat the place with a couple of candles.

Edge insulation is a good thing if you are going with a radiant slab, cause otherwise you will have to keep you lawn mower tuned up cause the grass will be nice and green all year round, as you try to heat your house.

[woodbutcher]

Roger2561
I have the brochure in front of me now. The E-2400 foundation shows the dimensions and the 2" rigid foam insulation, it says optional. But why? There must be a reason for putting insulation around the foundation. I've heard that the electronics in the CB are having problems in the cold winter conditions.
I just can't see spending over $12,000 on a boiler the only has a 1 year warranty on the electronics.
I CB would have left there boilers simple, as my old CB 400, and had the electronics as an option, I might consider one. The simpler the boiler the less problems you will have. I heard some of the controls don't even last 3 years. And I heard that some do last, but for how long.
Boilerman, look under the picture in the brochure, it show the slab in yellow, the clearance in light gray and the insulation in dark gray. I does not say to put insulation under the slab.

[Roger2561]

Roger2561
I have the brochure in front of me now. The E-2400 foundation shows the dimensions and the 2" rigid foam insulation, it says optional. But why? There must be a reason for putting insulation around the foundation. I've heard that the electronics in the CB are having problems in the cold winter conditions.
I just can't see spending over $12,000 on a boiler the only has a 1 year warranty on the electronics.
I CB would have left there boilers simple, as my old CB 400, and had the electronics as an option, I might consider one. The simpler the boiler the less problems you will have. I heard some of the controls don't even last 3 years. And I heard that some do last, but for how long.
Boilerman, look under the picture in the brochure, it show the slab in yellow, the clearance in light gray and the insulation in dark gray. I does not say to put insulation under the slab.

woodbutcher - I just looked at the brochure and I now see what you're talking about.  The only reason (this is strictly a guess) I can think of for the 2" rigid foam under/around the perimeter is to help minimize frost heaves.  Although the brochure doesn't say to put it under the slab, I would.  These units are heavy and with the weight of it resting on the 2" of foam will crush it.  As I have mentioned, I'm going on my 4th season heating my house and DHW with the E1400 and thus far (knocking on wood) I haven't experienced any problems with it.  The electronics performed flawlessly even under cold conditions (not as cold a you folks experience).  Whatever you decide to do, good luck in your search.     

[loneryder]

Just so you know, there is no real warranty from CB. Here's why I say that. Halfway thru my 2nd season my 5036 started dripping water out the back. Long story short, there were pin hole leaks most probably from the factory that had corroded the back of the boiler from the outside in.  Dealer and I took pics and sent to CB. They said that they would pick up my boiler next time they were in the area, take it back to the factory and repair it under warranty. The only thing they would not charge me for was labor.  I would have to pay for the parts(steel) and return shipping and installation. It was the middle of winter and I had built a roof over the boiler which would have to be torn down.  So I would have to give up my heat source for the rest of a record cold winter, tear down a substantial roof, and pay them to repair and ship the unit back to me. I don't call that much of a warranty!!  BTW it is not 1/4" steel on the back of the water jacket. More like 1/8th.
I got a local welder come out and patch it.  Then I painted it with engine block paint and wrapped R19 insulation across the back and taped it and ran the boiler the rest of the season.  I have since sprayed it with closed cell foam and am waiting for the dealer to help me put the thing back together.
When deciding on a stove, I think it's all about the dealer because the factory is not going to do anything for you. 
I told them I wanted a new boiler because obviously it had some bad steel in it but they wouldn't even talk to me.

[Big Wood]

Ohiovrod take a few minutes and take a look at the Portage and Main BL 3444 the boiler has a lot of refractory brick and the exhaust passes from the back to the front and to the back again and then up the stack plus the boiler is made to come apart if needed also a dry base i have repair a few cbs old school technology stack temps over 500 degrees