Outdoor Wood Furnace Info
All-Purpose OWF Discussions => General Outdoor Furnace Discussion => Topic started by: jack1243 on December 15, 2012, 10:33:07 AM
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I have in the past few weeks installed a Hick's Water Stove. I have a few questions and an appointment with the maufacurer after Christmas. The manual says you should only have to fire the stove 2 times a day to keep a temp of 180. I load it around 4am when I get up and it takes several more loads to reach 180. It has a blower that blowes into the firebox and cuts off at 180 degrees. It also has 2 door dampers that I keep open about 1/2 way so it does not smolder and smoke once we reach 180. Over night my temp drops to almost 150/140 and I have a good bed of coals to start a fire with. Any suggestions on better fuel consumption? I'm burning Red/white oak that has been cut about a year and a half at 25" lengths. The firebox is 2'x2'x3'deep and it is a side flue with 6 4" flue tubes venting to a cleanout box to the stack into a brick lined chimeny. Any thoughts and ideas will be breatly appreciated. Stove stats, 500 gallon capacity. Side load with DHW as well.
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Not familiar with your stove, but I would think you leaving your damper doors open is why your wood is burning up so fast. When the temp reaches 180 degrees (cut off point) you WANT it to smolder.
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That's a hicks for you. Had a guy at my shop last fall bragging about his, said he burned like 40 loads of firewood. I was like, and your happy? He was like oh yea we love it! Blew me away, I showed him my wood pile which I figure will last me 2-3 seasons heating 2200sq ft, he said that might last him 2 months and said no way would my stove do that lol.
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I also know we are fighting the lack of insulation in the outer walls of the house. It was built in 1880 and has firebrakes in the walls. We could tare out all the plaster and insulate from inside but that is a headache and the plaster is in great shape. If we were to bun 40 loads it would still be cheaper then what we paid last winter in electic bills to attempt to heat the house. I"ve got a pretty good "free wood" supply so that doesn't bother me. I'm just trying to learn the best way to fire this thing. If I completely shut off the door dampers it will just smolder and lose the heat from the wood...correct? or should we leave the dampers closed and let the blow be the only intake care to the firebox. I'm looking for help here from folks that have used OWB before. The manual is nice but can't teach everyday trial and error.
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Few houses down the street from me..Guy owns a Central 6048..Heats apts with it..Burns 50 cord a yr..He has unlimited wood..
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Insulate house first then get wood stove. Check :thumbup:
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From what I've seen of hicks they aren't like most wood boilers. Just not sure about them. You can also insulate your walls from the outside in, there are companies that can drill a hole between studs and do spray foam from the outside
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The way the house is built it is almost impossible to drill from the outside. There are firebrakes between the studs that run criss-cross of the studs. It's an old constuction technique that was designed to keep a fire on the first floor from spreading to the 2nd floor thrugh the walls. We have done the floors and added insulation aroudn all 36 windows when we changed them out. There are no drafts and the system is heating very well. I've got wood out my nose so wood is not an issue and if the temp is above 60 it holds nicely around 175 with a good bed of coals in the firebox. It's a learning process and it may take me a few weeks/ month to figure out what works best for our set-up. I've got a friend with a Taylor and his eats wood like crazy and he's heating less then I am.....and he's using ash, oak, hickory all seasoned atleast 2 yrs.
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I have in the past few weeks installed a Hick's Water Stove. I have a few questions and an appointment with the maufacurer after Christmas. The manual says you should only have to fire the stove 2 times a day to keep a temp of 180. I load it around 4am when I get up and it takes several more loads to reach 180. It has a blower that blowes into the firebox and cuts off at 180 degrees. It also has 2 door dampers that I keep open about 1/2 way so it does not smolder and smoke once we reach 180. Over night my temp drops to almost 150/140 and I have a good bed of coals to start a fire with. Any suggestions on better fuel consumption? I'm burning Red/white oak that has been cut about a year and a half at 25" lengths. The firebox is 2'x2'x3'deep and it is a side flue with 6 4" flue tubes venting to a cleanout box to the stack into a brick lined chimeny. Any thoughts and ideas will be breatly appreciated. Stove stats, 500 gallon capacity. Side load with DHW as well.
try turning the door dampers all the way closed and give them 1/4 turn just to give it a little air...to smother until fan kicks back on when it shut down mode may even try just one and leave one closed and see what happens then go half turn if it goes out and so on....
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I have no idea how a Hicks is setup but if it has a solenoid that opens when the fan kicks on you want the air completely shut off when the blower isn't running. Only open it up at all if the fire goes out between cycles.
If you are still having to fill it that much, the simple answer is that you need a larger stove that can hold more wood.
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http://www.hickswaterstoves.com/Graphics/No.2/IndexNo2.html (http://www.hickswaterstoves.com/Graphics/No.2/IndexNo2.html)
These are pics of the hicks, all pumps, fans, electronics aren't protected and are exposed. They to me work more like a batch burn by having multiple drafts, just dont understand why they build them that way
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http://www.hickswaterstoves.com/Graphics/No.2/IndexNo2.html (http://www.hickswaterstoves.com/Graphics/No.2/IndexNo2.html)
These are pics of the hicks, all pumps, fans, electronics aren't protected and are exposed. They to me work more like a batch burn by having multiple drafts, just dont understand why they build them that way
That is a strange setup esp. if it is meant to be installed outside. Kind of looks that way. Almost forces you to put it inside or shell around it outside. I see a lot of heat loss with that setup. And no way it's good to expose that backup oil burner or aquastat to the elements like that. Doesn't make any sense.
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I sure wouldn't ever leave the house LOL it might freeze :post: :thumbup:
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Scott7M they are designed that way because they aren't designed to be out in the weather.
Hicks stoves are designed to be in a shop or inclosed building.
It's kind of funny how someone can look at one version of someones stove and determine
that their entire lineup is the same.
Hicks waterstove started in the early 80's, many of their earlier model stoves are still around today.
Until this year I was running a 1984 model and decided to upgrade.
When you purchase their stove you understand it will need to be inclosed and account for it.
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Jack,
None of the previous comments made apply to your style of stove.
They are commenting on the #2 stove (States that in the link). From what I can tell
you have the #1 stove which has the fan and fire tubes before a back box.
The link supplied is an older model stove copied from "Carolina Wood Stove".
I asked Mark why he still makes them, he said because of customer request.
In your case I would close the damper all the way then turn it back just so it turns free 1/4".
I'm able to load mine twice a day during the peak season and still have coals to start another fire.
I added a timer to mine and set it before I go to bed or before I leave to work. When I wake
up it's normally around 160-170 degrees. I know your situation may be different insulation, sqft
etc..
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Ive seen my share of them, most were under sheds, my point was more that they were exposed to the elements such as humidity/moisture, dirt, dust and all theist instead of inside the protection of a warm/dry insulated case.
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Yes people do install them in sheds but that's not what they are designed for.
They are designed to be installed in a shop that is closed from the elements.
If you would like to pay a premium he does offer a version with the stove being closed in and a small shed
for your wood.
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This is a link to the #1 style stove.
http://www.hickswaterstoves.com/Graphics/No.1/IndexNo1.html (http://www.hickswaterstoves.com/Graphics/No.1/IndexNo1.html)
Each stove varies per the owners request but this is a sample.
He will make anything you want. I've seen him build a gasser
from plans someone else gave him.
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Thanks Fryedaddy for your thoughts on the HICKS. I got it used at an Esate Sale and it was pretty gummed up from mis-use but I got a killer deal on it for about 1/2 what a new one was going to cost. I've played witht he dampers and got that pretty well set like it is needed I've loaded 3 times in the last 48 hours and the lowest temp I've had is 160 ish. Now, I have the center firebox with the cleanout on the right side if you are facing the stove. The 6 4" tubes to the 8" flue coller running to my chimeny. The manual says to clean those once a month... I've found it needs to be done every 2 or 3 days since I've also been cleaning the previous gunk out. I need to know if I need to run a flue brush up my stack just to make sure there is nothing blocking the path to the chimeny. Any thoughts on this would be helpful as you have a Hicks from what I've seen. Thanks, Jack
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Jack,
My current and previous stoves use metal flues. My previous used a 1/8-3/16" steel pipe
and my current uses a Stainless pipe. I can just take a broom handle on my current and hit it a few times
while the stove is hot to knock creosote out.
I would recommend cleaning your flue twice a season if your. I would also recommend cleaning it very soon
if you have been running it with the dampers open.
Have you spoke with Mark about your setup? Don't be afraid to call and speak with him.
Also have you added any water treatment to your stove? He carries something called C10
if you haven't any it will make the stove last a very long time.
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Fryedaddy, I'm going to see Mark and the gang a day or two after Chirstmas. I need a 1/2 moon scraper and a new brush as all I got was a handle with the stove. I can tap my pipe and get some lose build up from it and the cleanout box is dripping once and a while into my steel bucket I put under it. I just want to make sure it's doing as good as it can do. I mean 500 gallons of hot water is a lot of water. I closed the dampers minus 1/4th turn yesterday as most on here recomended and the temp got to 180 the blower shut off and it held into the night sometime. I last checked it at midnight and it was at 190 with the blower off. This morning as the kids are on exam schedule and Ididn't have to take any of them... I slept in til 6am. Went out and the temp was around 150. Had a nice bed of coals raked and leveled them out and loaded the stove. It took til about 11am to get back to 180 and cut the blower off. I assume I'm doing things right as I just came in and only loaded about 8 pieces of oak in the firebox. I'm waiting to see how it does when we really get some cold weather but all in all I'm well pleased with my stove. Only change I'd make might be an end loading unit instead of this side unit. To me it seems odd fo draw the firebox draft from the side of the firebox. Guess that is from a long line of coal stove users growing up everything went throught he top of the stove or the back....but never the side. My Dad shook his head and said, "All my years I've never seen a stove made to draft from the side...let me know how that works out for you." Got to love Dad's! Thanks for your comments and suggestions. I've also seen where some folks are using a little coal in their units. I've got a ton of stoker coal under the house where the old boiler was years ago. Any thoughts on coal to help lengthen burn time?
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Jack,
Does your stove have the cast iron door on it with hicks embosed?
5hrs does seam like a long time to raise the temp that much.
I like the end door, the fire tubes are much longer. I can't compare
my previous stove with my newer one. I didn't have a aquastat, it
went out before I purchased the house and I ran it 3yrs without it.
If I get home and throw wood in it at 150 it will get to 180 in a little
over an hour (750 Gallon size though).
Cleaning it is a little easier, I'm able to stand in front of the firebox
and push the cleanout brush straight through to the back box.
He's also installed water tubes in the top of my firebox and it seams to
work fairly well. Overall I love mine and am use to the stove being inclosed
in my garage.
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Yes. cast iron door with HICKS on the top and two knob dampers at the bottom. I've got the installer coming tomorrow and the chimney guy... somethings up with the draw on the stove. It's not drawing like it did and I feel we've got something in the pipe or the actual flue blocked. I'll keep ya posted.
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Mentioned earlier. I had problems with 10 foot long 8 inch dia steel pipe, finally went with 8 inch dia insulated stainless 8 feet high and what a difference. My dampers shut down tight and any wood in firebox becomes charcoal ,when it calls for heat again the damper opens ,the blower comes on and the h20 temp goes from 165 to 190 in 10 minutes or less. No smoke and no smoldering, hard to believe. Sounds like you have a very tall small chimney. Hope you solve it.