Outdoor Wood Furnace Info
Outdoor Furnaces - Manufacturers WITH EPA-Certified Models => Hardy => Topic started by: AirForcePOL on January 09, 2012, 11:04:59 AM
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Hey guys! It's been a while since I have been on here but I just recently bought a Hardy H2 that had been involved in a fire. The wood pile around the heater caught on fire and melted the electrical components on the back of the stove. I bought this on ebay for $420 (I think it was a good deal) I also bought 83ft of the 4 tube pex for $130. I have started pricing all of the parts for it but I can't seem to find a few of them. Do you guys know if Hardy has a parts list with prices or do you have to call a dealer? I have prices on everything but I'm hoping to find a few things for a little bit cheaper but so far the total on parts will only be $310. How much are you guys heating with one of these? I have a 1500 sq ft house and a well insulated 1600 sq ft shop. Do you think I will have any issues heating both of these? I am only going to hook it up to the house for this winter but plan on having the shop heated by it for next winter. I have 40% of propane left in my tank so my goal is to have it up and running but the 1st of February! I better get busy! Here are a few pics of the stove. I will post more as soon as I make some progress.
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What parts can't you find?
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What parts can't you find?
Well, the Hardy website has a huge parts list but they just don't have any prices. I guess I should probably just email a dealer for pricing. But, I am looking for a part called a Electric Solenoid Valve Assembly, Hardy Part # 1100.00. I'm not exactly sure what it does. I have found mostly everything that I need now. I am going to just send a Hardy dealer an email will all of the part numbers and see if they will give me prices on it.
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You don't have to use Hardy brand parts. I replaced the aquastat with a Ranco and love it. Also replaced the Solenoid that I picked up at a CB dealer, (same thing) and even replaced the 24 volt transformer but didn't need to because I run the pump 24/7. There are many brands and sizes of pump you can get so check out your needs and get the rite one.
Also I heat about 1900 sq ft house and keep the 1800 sq ft garage at 50 , I turn it up to 60 when I am working out there.
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check out www.outsideheating.com (http://www.outsideheating.com) , i bought my stove there and they have a online parts store, great people to deal with.
I am also heating 1850 sq. feet. wife keeps it about 75 in house!
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Thanks guys! so is that Electric Solenoid Valve Assembly just an optional part? It goes up in the top right corner. All I can think that it does is open and close the valve when you are using the automatic fill. My water isn't suitable to use in it so I guess I could take that out of the equation right? The thing was like $60!
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The electronic solenoid valve is just an auto fill, if the stove gets low on water it opens and fills it until the float in water tank shuts it off. You dont have to have it just make shure that the float and the low water light works and when the light comes on just open the valve untill the light goes off and shes full again.
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The electronic solenoid valve is just an auto fill, if the stove gets low on water it opens and fills it until the float in water tank shuts it off. You dont have to have it just make shure that the float and the low water light works and when the light comes on just open the valve untill the light goes off and shes full again.
Ok, so does that pull water from your domestic line from the house? I don't plan on using my well water for my unit. So if it's not hooked up I would just fill the stove through the condensor right? I know that the valve is melted and doesn't work but if I can avoid the $60 part I would like to. That brings me to my other question. The condensor pipe on my stove is covered at the top. I didn't think they were supposed to me sealed? It has a piece of stanless inside that is riveted and siliconed.
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Yes the auto fill comes from the domestic hot water line.
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Yes that would be where you hook up the water supply from your house/well. Yes you can just fill it from the top at the condensor stack. The stack it self is sealed up top but its not suppose to be sealed at the bottem where the stack fits to the tank. This allows the pressure to excape but helps to keep alot of the condensation from excaping, helping to keep up water level. But I would recomend getting the stuff to make the float inside the water tank and the low water light work properly just so you know when you need to fill the tank. But if you do not have a water supply to the stove you will not be able to use the water coil(for dhw) in the stove, if it has one in it. But if you want dhw you can use a side arm or plate exchanger, dont know much about them but I know what they do.
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Yes that would be where you hook up the water supply from your house/well. Yes you can just fill it from the top at the condensor stack. The stack it self is sealed up top but its not suppose to be sealed at the bottem where the stack fits to the tank. This allows the pressure to excape but helps to keep alot of the condensation from excaping, helping to keep up water level. But I would recomend getting the stuff to make the float inside the water tank and the low water light work properly just so you know when you need to fill the tank. But if you do not have a water supply to the stove you will not be able to use the water coil(for dhw) in the stove, if it has one in it. But if you want dhw you can use a side arm or plate exchanger, dont know much about them but I know what they do.
Okay good. I was wondering about that because it has the sticker on it that says it shouldn't be sealed but then I was wondering how you keep debris out of the water tank if it's not supposed to be sealed at the top. I think the float is good. It moves freely but I might need to get the sending unit for it I doubt they are that much. The pipe that I bought from the guy has 4 pieces of pex in it. So I will be able to use the dhw coil I just wont let the furnace fill itself with my dirty well water. Is that correct? I should be able to just leave the old junk solenoid on there and just close the ball valve and when it needs water just add it through the condensor.
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Thats right, you can use the dhw coil in the furnace with your well water without filling the water tank with the same water by keeping the ball valve shut that goes to the fill solenoid. Went back and reading the whole thread and to try to help you with a question you had in your fist post about how much others are heating. I am heating a 3000 sq ft house, first season no proplem so far and it was 15f last night t-stat on 76 nice and toastie all night. My uncle has an H2 as well and he is heating his house 1200 sq ft and his shop 40x60 shop with no proplems. The only thing he said is when he is in the shop working he has to feed the stove more often but when he is not in the shop he turns the heat down some. But he has been doing it that way for about 12 years so far it works great.
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Thats right, you can use the dhw coil in the furnace with your well water without filling the water tank with the same water by keeping the ball valve shut that goes to the fill solenoid. Went back and reading the whole thread and to try to help you with a question you had in your fist post about how much others are heating. I am heating a 3000 sq ft house, first season no proplem so far and it was 15f last night t-stat on 76 nice and toastie all night. My uncle has an H2 as well and he is heating his house 1200 sq ft and his shop 40x60 shop with no proplems. The only thing he said is when he is in the shop working he has to feed the stove more often but when he is not in the shop he turns the heat down some. But he has been doing it that way for about 12 years so far it works great.
Thanks for all of the info! I called the local dealer yesterday. Well, I say local but it's about a 45 min drive. He has all of parts that I need and I am going to pick them up tonight. I was pretty close with the cost estimate, it came to $350 which I was happy with. I am not going to use the water solenoid and the dealer told me I could just cap off the vacuum vent right next to it if I wasn't going to use the auto fill. My goal is Feb 1st to have it hooked up but if I get all of the parts replaced tonight the stove will be ready to go I will just need to worry about the installation. I have all of the pipe but it just got really cold here yesterday. It's supposed to get down to 9 F tonight. I have heard of people doing temporary installs and just laying the insulated pipe on top of the ground until they can get it burried. I would imagine that I would burn A LOT more wood like this but my propane tank is going down really quick and I don't want to pay the $500 for a minimum fill (hopefully I never will again!) Do you think this would be okay for a temporary set up?
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If you use good insulated pipe you will be fine.
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Ya I agree with Bull insulate it as good as possable and dont let the fire go out and dont see why it wouldnt work on top of the ground untill you can get it in the ground. I just seen on here a few days ago that sombody had theres hook up like that for a quik fix, but I looked for it again and I cant find it.
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I Kind of did the same thing as you. I bought a cracked H2 and welded it up. Had to make an outside cover and insulate it. I ended up replacing everything on the back with parts not from hardy. Got by a little cheaper that way. I put a PID temperature controller on it and a float and taco valve for auto fill. I run my circulator pump all the time to simplify wiring and cut down on plumbing running to the boiler.
Mine performes fairly well for its size. I heat 1680 sq ft at 75 degrees. 900 sq feet garage at 70 degrees, and 1680 sq ft basement at 72 degrees, and my hot water with a side arm heat exchanger. The basement and garage are radiant in slab heat. the upstairs is heated with a coil in the furnace. On nights that it gets in single digits I get around an eight hour or less burn time but I am putting a pretty big load on it.
Yours ought to work for you. Certainly better than filling that propane tank.
(http://i945.photobucket.com/albums/ad294/jnicol6600/IMG-20110920-00002-1.jpg)
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Welcome to the site jnicol6600, sounds like you overwork your H2 like I do mine LOL
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Thanks guys! I put all of the new parts on now I'm working on making a new wiring harness. Every single wire that was on that thing is fried! I'm moving a long pretty good though so far. The stove should be 100% complete by tomorrow and I hope to have the whole system hooked up next weekend. The only thing that will hold me up is if my heat exchanger doesn't show up in the mail on time. I'll post some more pics as soon as I get a chance. Thanks for all of the help so far guys, it has been a huge help!
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One of the reasons I bought my H2 is because how simple it is. Everything is on the back and seems like a more simple system than other units I had seen. Once you get it going you should be fine. Good luck and enjoy the unit!
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One of the reasons I bought my H2 is because how simple it is. Everything is on the back and seems like a more simple system than other units I had seen. Once you get it going you should be fine. Good luck and enjoy the unit!
What units have you looked at where everything wasn't on the back minus a switch or aquastat?
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Obviously a CB classic wasn't looked at since the access for everything is on the side behind a swing out door.
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It was me that did the temporary on top of the ground hookup. It is doing well. I wrapped each pipe with foam insulation and wrapped it all in reflectix (bubble wrap covered in aluminum foil) I could see the lp gas gauge moving down before I hooked the Hardy back up.
I am using less wood now, than when it was just buried in 4" pvc 3 or 4 feet deep.
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It was me that did the temporary on top of the ground hookup. It is doing well. I wrapped each pipe with foam insulation and wrapped it all in reflectix (bubble wrap covered in aluminum foil) I could see the lp gas gauge moving down before I hooked the Hardy back up.
I am using less wood now, than when it was just buried in 4" pvc 3 or 4 feet deep.
I made my owns lines about 8 years ago and did it similar. I used foam pipe insulation around Kitek then wrapped a layer of reflexit arount is and taped it. I used two 3" drain tiles. (one for each pipe) I came up out of the ground at the edge of the deck and run out of the ground about 10' and go up over the concrete wall through the sill plate.
If I was doing it again I wouldn't do it the same way but it seems to be working fine and not worth redoing.
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I believe that there are units that have the blower in the loading door or some type of damper system in the door for combustion air. Can't remember which ones right this second.
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OK well I got it hooked up this weekend and it is working great! Lowes didnt have any 1" PEX when I went there but they had a 300' roll of 3/4. I was determined to get it hooked up this weekend so I decided to just use the 3/4 for now. I will add 1" in the spring and use the 3/4 for my DHW (it's not currently hooked up). I am having some troubles with the thermostat. I added a thermostat for the wood burner and I also have a heat pump. I followed the instructions in the manual but the new thermostat doesn't seem to be controling anything. When I turned the old tsat on it just turns on the blower, so that's what I'm using for now until I can figure out what I did wrong. When I started the fire I was surprised at how quick it warmed. It was up to 175° in about an hour. I didn't wire the pump into the thermostat I just have it running continuously for now which made it a lot easier. My firewood is pretty old and dry so it's burning it up pretty quick but I am getting 12 hr burn times on about 8 medium sized split oak that is about 4 years old. I can't thank you guys enough for helping me out! Here are some pictures.
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New fire rope.
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Heat exchanger installed. And also the outside set up.
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Looks great AirForcePOL, you will love the lower electric bill or no gas usage.
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Looks great! :thumbup: Congrats! :thumbup:
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Thanks guys! and thank you for all of the help! I am very pleased with how well it is working.