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76
Earth Outdoor Wood Furnaces / Re: Earth vs. Shaver?
« on: August 13, 2014, 09:30:21 AM »
15 year old CB and still going but don't know how long. Has 1/4" steel firebox with a 3/8 bottom no grate.
It's starting to look bad being years of burning. Looking at something with a little more meat, like the 1/2" fire box. Once the metal is hot it stays hot. I'll try to give you and example, I'm a welder and when you heat a piece of 1/4' steel and a 1/2" piece, the thicker piece will take a lot longer to cool down. Same will be the case in the firebox. Plus I know after a lot of years of burning the firebox starts to break down.
On my CB the 3/4" floor shows no signs of any wear, but the walls and top of the firebox don't look so good. Cleaning the ashes out about once a month isn't bad but a pain in the butt, you have hot coals, and ash coming out the door and you get a face full of ash and still get some hot coals with the ash. That's why I'm looking a a owb with an ash pan.
It's starting to look bad being years of burning. Looking at something with a little more meat, like the 1/2" fire box. Once the metal is hot it stays hot. I'll try to give you and example, I'm a welder and when you heat a piece of 1/4' steel and a 1/2" piece, the thicker piece will take a lot longer to cool down. Same will be the case in the firebox. Plus I know after a lot of years of burning the firebox starts to break down.
On my CB the 3/4" floor shows no signs of any wear, but the walls and top of the firebox don't look so good. Cleaning the ashes out about once a month isn't bad but a pain in the butt, you have hot coals, and ash coming out the door and you get a face full of ash and still get some hot coals with the ash. That's why I'm looking a a owb with an ash pan.
77
General Discussion / Re: Message Board - How To
« on: August 10, 2014, 11:01:07 AM »
Hey Slimjim, how do you get inside the water jacket? unless you cut the outer jacket, it is impossible to get between two wall of steel to do any welding. I've been welding for 40 years and don't know how you can get to the inside jacket, it's just to narrow to squeeze into a pipe and do any welding in a 2-3" area.
The best way I know is to empty the water and find out just how bad the back of the boiler is. It could be that most of the jacket is gone or just one spot is bad, but I don't think so. I've ran into this before and if there is a small hole, chances are most or a good part of the inside is almost gone. If you only have one bad spot, cut out the hole and make a patch 1 in. larger than the hole. Weld with a 7018 rod. vertical welds should be welded vertical up. I been a certified welder since 1994 and you need to get a leek proof weld. This is the only way I would fix a leak.
The best way I know is to empty the water and find out just how bad the back of the boiler is. It could be that most of the jacket is gone or just one spot is bad, but I don't think so. I've ran into this before and if there is a small hole, chances are most or a good part of the inside is almost gone. If you only have one bad spot, cut out the hole and make a patch 1 in. larger than the hole. Weld with a 7018 rod. vertical welds should be welded vertical up. I been a certified welder since 1994 and you need to get a leek proof weld. This is the only way I would fix a leak.
78
General Discussion / Earth OWB
« on: August 10, 2014, 10:34:36 AM »
Has anyone had any experience or know of someone who has an Earth OWB. I know they are made in Mo. Don't get that cold there but my state seem to have a lot of dealers, and with a 1/2" inside boiler plate the Mountain Man 500 Series seems to be the model I'm looking for. Just need some more info. on the boiler.
79
Central Boiler / Re: Carport installed over my 5036 boiler
« on: August 10, 2014, 10:18:33 AM »
Be careful, my neighbor did the same thing but made it a large wood structure. He has a heatmor and one day the blower was running when one of his employe's fill it. Guss what happened. It burned to the ground before the fire department got there. I know yours is metal but keeping wood that close to the boiler is asking for a fire, didn't you ever have hot sparks come out the door when you fill it?
80
Central Boiler / Re: Classic or E-Classic?
« on: August 10, 2014, 10:07:40 AM »
I have a old CL400 classic. 15 years and still going. Looking at a replacement but all I found out about the E-Classic is that thy don' keep the fire going. One guy told me he had to restart it 3-5 times daily in cold weather. I have heard more bad things about the new E-Classic than good. Too much electronics that don't hold up and a company that won't return your calls even after the unit is 3 years old. If you have a leak, after a couple of years, they call you and say it's your fault for burning garbage, even if you only tell them you burn wood. CB went from a great company one that is out to make as much money as they can. I'm looking at replacing my old CB with a P&M or maybe an Earth, P&M dealer is around 150 miles from me and the Earth is about 90 miles away. I have to see what I'm buying.
81
General Outdoor Furnace Discussion / Re: EPA orders Central Boiler to pull efficiencies from its models
« on: August 10, 2014, 09:53:19 AM »I am in S E Missouri.If you are from S E Mo. you don't know what cold weather is. I love going to Branson on vacation but I know your winter is not even close to the winters in Wis. I'm old enough to remember winters that were 30 below for a week straight. As for the gov. I would not trust one thing they told me. This is not the land of the free anymore. The gov. controls almost every aspect of your lives. Kind of like Hitler did in WW2.
I don't see how wood boilers can really be tested, it seems like there are too many variables in the fuel. Green, dry, rotten, pithy. oak ash elm cherry etc...
Every company is out to make a buck, and they don"t care how they do it.
82
Central Boiler / Re: Classic or E-Classic?
« on: August 07, 2014, 09:54:18 AM »
My CB classic has been in service for 15 years and I don't think to much of the new gasser's. Been looking at buying a new non gasser before the law goes into effect. But I don't know how long my old CB classic will last. It's a CL400 which has 400 gal. of water in it and cost $4500, 15 years ago. Now to replace it will cost $9000 and I don't know if it is worth the money to store it until my CB goes out. It could go for a couple of more years and I can't see spending that much money and have it standing around for who knows how long.
83
General Outdoor Furnace Discussion / Re: How long will a Gasser's last?
« on: August 06, 2014, 08:43:30 AM »
Slimjim, I like the design or the P&M and the website is OK but I can't find a dealer in my area of WI. I'm about 50 miles north of Milwaukee and the website won't direct me to a dealer near me. Maybe you could help, I like to see what I'm buying before I spend $9000 on a unit that might sit for a couple of years. I went to the gov. website on OWB and one place said the new law goes into effect on the 15th and another said the 1st of 2015.
84
General Outdoor Furnace Discussion / How long will a Gasser's last?
« on: August 05, 2014, 09:23:53 AM »
I have seen a lot about the new gasser and the cost is going up all the time. Since the law is going into effect on the first or 15 of Jan. the price's of the regular OWB has gone up too. My boiler is now 15 years and still going but could go at any time. I was wondering if any knows how long the gasser will last. At a burn rate of around 2000 degrees it seems to me that these units will burn out in a couple of years. Should I buy a regular model before the law goes into effect or wait until the boiler burns out and get a gasser. I burn all types of wood and don't have a building to store the wood.
85
HeatMaster / Re: Got my new MF5000E hooked up and burning!
« on: August 01, 2014, 10:12:59 AM »
I'm glad you like your HeatMaster. I have and old Central Boiler Model CL400, has 400 gallons of water in it and I heat about 4500 sq.ft. which includes my shop. Each has it's own pump, Taco 0011. I can fill with wood at noon and I don' need to reload for 24 hours. Try that with you HeatMaster.
86
General Outdoor Furnace Discussion / Re: Where to put the Water pump on My boiler????
« on: August 01, 2014, 10:01:54 AM »
I have a Central Boiler and it is 15 years old. When I bought my boiler the dealer told me to put the pump in the house, because when the pump goes out it won't be in the summer. Just think of changing the pump when it is 20 below if it's on the boiler.