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196

General Outdoor Furnace Discussion / Re: Boiler Purchase or Repair

« on: December 03, 2012, 06:08:35 PM »

Hello Kelly:

Thank you for your response. I had not seen or heard anything of the Thermo-Control boilers before (Made by National Stove Works in Cobleskill, NY since 1974). I am looking into their line now and it seems their stuff may suit my needs. New York is a ways from Michigan, not sure if a dealer their would be optimal here.

It shows your model to have an 8" chimney pipe outlet but there is a smaller water stove with a 6" outlet. My current firebox is just a little under the size of yours and there has never been a problem with draft on the 6" outlet up through the garage roof. It has a total of 16' of pipe to get the 2' over ridge line.

Again, thank you for your time to respond, your input is appreciated.

look on his web site at dealers? may have one in mi....he has a deal on shipping if you look the thermal-control stoves on ebay just put in wood boilers and they will come up...yea mine has an 8 inch because of the natural asperated not forced with blower...as you can tell in my pic i have the insulated jacket around mine as well....there are 8 in my town including myself and another 8 in a town about 20 mins away....everyone I know that has them loves them and they are pressurized units not open system.... no problem glad i could help....give tim a call he will talk to you...and answer any ? s you have ,and not rush you off the phone.... he has a dealer in brown city,mi?

197

General Outdoor Furnace Discussion / Re: 20 yr old OWB just failed: recommend brand/model to replace?

« on: December 03, 2012, 03:54:04 PM »

Loading my homemade OWB this morning, when all the sudden the firebox became a smokey steam bath.....

Drag everything out, and a very LARGE fountain of water is coming up dead center of the stove. 

This after a major plumbing rework made the system run like a TOP.  Now the OWB is dead..... Sometimes life is a challenge indeed.

Would just get in there and scab a new plate in, but this is a 20 year old OWB which I had scabbed 5 years ago when I moved in, and it was pretty punky then, so I sealed it up & bedded the floor with refractory cement.  Seeing as I got 5 more years out of something that is well past it's service life, it is time to replace.  Add to the fact that it is in the teens/20s here in MN, so there is really no way to get in and fix it right.

So, I will have to bite the bullet, get a loan, and get a new OWB pronto!  My backup is a dino-bones burner older than I am & costs a king's ransom to heat this 100 year old farm house.

Would like recommendations on units or brands.  Here is what I am replacing:

- System (including pipes/exchanger) holds 375 gallons water
- Prefer simpler electronics (aquastat or non-proprietary controls)
- Don't care if gassification (in farm house with no neighbors)
- Non-sheltered (i.e. free-standing insulated) unit
- Good PRICE compared to features

Any recommendations ASAP would be really helpful, so I can find a dealer, get pricing, get a loan, etc etc etc before winter gets much worse 

Also any dealers to recommend in North Central MN would be also appreciated.

Shane

try thermal-control out of ny (nationalstoveworks.com) he may have a dealer near you or have a good deal on shipping like $300 in usa....He makes out door boilers also with 20 warranty and it is not prorated......tim is a great guy i can give you his pesonal cell # if you want it....? his father was building wood stoves and boilers before tim took over well built and great quality....

kelly

198

General Outdoor Furnace Discussion / Re: another extended stack question

« on: December 03, 2012, 03:51:58 AM »

I use a Hawken owb and i built a roof over it so i extended the chimney with some double walll from Menards.   2 3ft. sections. (they screw together)  so now i have about 5 and a half ft. above the peak of the roof.  Problem is the top 3ft. section seems to want to tip (don't want it to fall off). I don't want to have to use cables if i can help it.   How can i secure the two sections of dbl wall together?  Or maybe i should use cables if it's the wind that keeps blowing the top section over.

   what's your thoughts?

check with your pipe company they should make a roof support kit, (most people here use selkirk double wall insulated) the kits includes a band that goes around pipe  2 extendable rods  that clamp at the length you want and comes with the brackets you screw in your roof...lag bolts and all screws needed.local selkirk bracket kit sell $55 here in ny... I just bought one....lol
kelly

199

General Outdoor Furnace Discussion / Re: Boiler Purchase or Repair

« on: December 02, 2012, 06:46:48 AM »

Hello to all. A few questions.

I have a home made sand box w/copper coils on an old home built wood burner (40+ years old) with a 6" flue through the garage roof. The stove is not airtight and constructed of sheet steel. The cast iron door frame has warped (was under the impression that it could not happen) and that has created an overdraw.

First question, anyone ever deal with such a situation and how to go about a repair.

Second question, I am wondering what tends to be the best time of year to purchase a new boiler, from a cost savings point of view that is. Spring, Summer, Fall or Winter. I see a small gassifier on sale now for under 4,000 (indoor model). I could go either indoor (easy) or outdoor (with a little more work and supplies).

Third question, if a boiler has a larger flue connection, is it ok to reduce to meet an existing chimney pipe?

Thank you in advance for any input you may have.

I would call around now they are always looking to sell stoves....before christmas.....I have an indoor Thermal-control boiler and love it.....I had problems with the royall outdoor one I had so scrapped it and went indoor model....you are getting the covectional heat off boiler and heating your water at the same time.....I own a reg style boiler made here in ny and tim the owner who i know very well, will take care of any customer new or old....and will answer any ?'s you have... I have his personal cell number if you want it,just send me a message...
kelly

200

General Outdoor Furnace Discussion / Re: Ridgewood Stove vs Woodmaster

« on: December 02, 2012, 06:35:09 AM »

Hello all,
I am looking at purchasing a Ridgewood stove.  I went out and saw the man who builds the stoves.  The firebox is built out of old propane tanks.  I got to see the welding taking place and everything looks good. This is a newer company but the guy worked for Timberwolf for 10 years. My question is about natural draft, which these are, vs. forced draft.  Also, would a 36 x 44 firebox be adequate to heat 4000 sq. ft.?

natural draft work really well if set up right  ...like force fed boilers. you do not have a blower than runs alot and go bad from time to time.... you would just have a little 24volt motor that opens and closes....not saying they wont go go bad....just saying they dont move as much as one spinning....I will agree with the rest of these guys will he back his welds and boilers up? and what bothers me he is using old propane tanks to begin with not buying newer metals welding on older metals are more likely to have pits and corrusion..... some you can see and others you dont.....
it's all up to you in the end...do you spend little more for a bigger name wich is not always the best quality welds but have warranty.....long as the go buy what they say.....
kelly

201

General Outdoor Furnace Discussion / Re: Info on how to set up my burner - Damper settings etc. NEWBIE

« on: December 01, 2012, 04:30:34 PM »

Hi, we have moved into a new house with an existing Outdoor wood furnance as a backup to the oil fired boiler.

I have no paperwork for it and there are no manufacturer's marks to research it so i'm feeling in the dark on how best to operate it.

There are 2 dampers on the inlet and a flue damper on the rear exit flue. The bottom damper feeds air into a 'half pipe' grill arrangement beneath the wood and the top damper feeds the main chamber. It seems to have an analog control system comprising a bourdon tube and some plug chain. As it warms up the dampers close as it cools they open. See pics

I've got it heating the house but it needs regular attention to keep it going and i'm thinking I should be able to leave something of this size for at least 8 or 9 hours without having to mess with it.

I've been lighting a fire at the front with paper and kindling with pallet wood to get a burn going and then feeding in a few large-ish logs ( seasoned Pine and willow is what i've got to hand currently, possibly part of the problem) Opening all dampers up full bore to get it roaring and get everything caught and then 20 mins later damping down with the flue damper to around 1/4 open followed by the inlets to a setting i've come to by trial and error that seems to give some sort of balance between loosing temp and chewing through wood.

Is there a reference guide somewehere to help explain how the dampers effect the burn, techniques to get a longer burn / more stable burn.

Looking at the pics and reading the info i've put up, anyone have any tips? Do you think it's possible to attain my goal of loading once in morning before work and once again 8 or 9 hours later for the evening? Do i need to be looking for oak or similar to improve my chances, retrofitting some sort of electronic control instead of the analog setup (degree qualified Electronic Engineer so I think I could attempt a PID / servo setup if required)

Any help or critique gratefully received!

do you do the draft now manualy? you can get a 24 volt converter to go from 110 to 24v.. buy a 24 volt motor and run it threw the aquastat, that way when it calls for heat it opens and when it is up to temp it closes.... make some brackets of the dradt flap and to hold tiny 24 volt motor and your good to go.....
kelly

202

Site Suggestions / Re: indoor wood boiler suggestion?

« on: December 01, 2012, 06:10:17 AM »

I know this is an outdoor wood boiler forum but some of us had some problems with our out door boilers and ended up buying indoor models.....or guys just went that option instead of an outdoor to begin with........they are same as outdoor boilers just designed to be indoors....just an idea
mods thanks for reading this......suggestion
 kelly

or can you add thermal-control to you your owb list?
thanks kelly

203

Site Suggestions / Re: What part of the country?

« on: November 30, 2012, 02:06:29 AM »

thanks roger nice to meet you to.....I had an out door model royall 7200 stainless nonpressurized but had a ton of problems with it....alot of the welds were leaking after 4 years.....I still have the pics. I work for a welding supply company and i have a water cooled tig,and a mig welder at home,but another friend had the same one and he fixed his a week or two later it would leak somewhere elese...I did not want to have to drain a boiler every 2 weeks to weld it so I bought a thermal-control wood boiler(indoor model) in an insulated jacket....and love it...he makes outdoor models as well....
I may build a woodboiler in a year or two for my neighbor...they are worth the money....plus you dont have to buy fuel oil.....lol
kelly

204

Site Suggestions / Re: What part of the country?

« on: November 29, 2012, 06:50:47 AM »

nice to meet you frank,
I'm glad to see you can still have out door boilers down there..... with all the tree huggers down there now a days.....lol

kelly

205

Site Suggestions / Re: What part of the country?

« on: November 28, 2012, 07:46:46 PM »

I live in sussex county new jersey!

fireboss, who are you I was born and raised in vernon,nj till 91 then moved up to northern ny?
kelly

206

Site Suggestions / Re: What part of the country?

« on: November 28, 2012, 05:04:00 PM »

I am new to the site....my name is Kelly baldwin I live in northern ny on canada border

207

Home Made / copper floats

« on: November 26, 2012, 05:51:56 PM »

anyone building a home made nonpressurized wood boiler and would like to buy a copper float for water level indacator....they are toilet bowl floats, I have two brand new ones that i will sell....i bought them for my royall 7200 but found it had started leaking in alot of the welds.....I junked the boiler and have these floats
if your intrested make an offer.....
kelly

208

Portage & Main / Re: Creosote Buildup in the tubes of a 250?

« on: November 26, 2012, 04:10:14 PM »

I've purchased an Optimizer 250 this year as my old OWB finally rusted through beyond repair.  I'm running fairly dry wood through it, but after a month of use there is quite a bit of extremely hard creosote lumps building up and lining my scotch marine tubes.  Both the vertical and horizontal.  It seems to be burning cleanly, so I'm not sure what could be causing this to happen.  I also can't clean it off because they are too hard for the wire brushes to remove.

Anyone else experience this?  Should I be concerned about this buildup?  How do others remove this buildup?

I'll see if I can get some pictures tomorrow.

Thanks!
James.

my neighbor has one not shure the model but it is pretty big.....he gets creosote build up also.....keep an eye on your exhaust pipe....his boiler was not working right would not heat up to temp..... we found out the top of the pipe it had a rain cap on it at the time.......but it was plugged down to a 4 inch hole instead of 8....choked it bad and would not run right...

209

Site Suggestions / indoor wood boiler suggestion?

« on: November 26, 2012, 03:41:29 PM »

I know this is an outdoor wood boiler forum but some of us had some problems with our out door boilers and ended up buying indoor models.....or guys just went that option instead of an outdoor to begin with........they are same as outdoor boilers just designed to be indoors....just an idea
mods thanks for reading this......suggestion
 kelly

210

General Discussion / Re: Don't Own One

« on: November 23, 2012, 09:27:46 PM »

I don't own an outside boiler.  Don't worry I'm not a person who is going to cause trouble for those who do own them.  I kind of like them, but I'm looking for a justification for me to get one.  Comments would be appreciated.

I have an indoor wood furnace.  I have a small house.  The furnace keeps my house warm.  I burn a little propane when my furnace dies out at night, but not much.  So, I guess I don't need one.  In fact, I spoke with the local Wood Master dealer and after talking a bit, he told me that I wouldn't see much difference between what I have now and a wood boiler.  (I found an honest  man - I can put the lantern away.)

Bad thing is that I've become fascinated with them.  I even got the DEB boiler do-it-yourself plans.  There's a part of me that would like to get one of these.  They are interesting machinery.

I see some advantages and disadvantages.

Advantage - small savings in insurance.

Advantage - a lot less splitting of wood.

Advantage - Only one or two fill-ups a day.

Advantage - Burn green wood even though everyone tells you not too.

Advantage - constant house temperature

Advantage - wouldn't need to sweep wood bark and wood pieces from my basement floor.

Disadvantage - lots of money and work to put one in.

Disadvantage - burn a lot more wood.  Maybe I'd get better thermal efficiency with a really good boiler that has great secondary combustion or gasification, but with piping losses, pumping losses and heat losses from the outdoor boiler to the great outdoors, I'm sure more wood would be needed.

Disadvantage - more things to break

So - did I miss anything?  Are there any good reasons that I missed that I should get an outdoor boiler?  This is a weird post, but I'm sure there will be good answers.

I now own an indoor wood boiler a thermal-control wood boiler (nationalstoveworks.com) and love it model 500/2,000....it has the insulated jacket on it.....with a full 20 year warranty not prorated...... not only am i heating my house and shop (it's in the shop) i am getting the redaint heat off the stack and boiler also thats heating the shop..... I have a small boiler 130 gal water 125,000 btu with 9 cubic feet fire box and heating house by a heat exchanger in my forced hot air oil furnance and I have a modine heater in the other half of shop (devided in half) because added on later to put boiler inside...I am getting over 10 hours burn time when in the teens.....I had an out door one before the royall model 7200 stainless but found after 4 years it had 15 leaks in all the welded seams....course they sold to another company and now have pressurized units....they gave me a good deal on another one but I would have had to pay frieght for old boiler to factory and pay to have new one shipped to my house to wi from ny, so bought a unit out of my own state and plus there is 16 of these style units in my area and everyone loves them including my father enlaw....thermal-control make out door boilers also just ny has the epa laws out....so went with an indoor model...
kelly
ps i like the out door boilers, just had bad luck with the one I bought... just my thoughts hope it helps...