Heiss Masonary Wood Heater/Boiler

[BoiledOver]

Well that's a bugger. Chugging can be from, too slow fan, too small of splits, too dry of fuel and maybe a few other factors. This I state from using solely an Eko 25 for two seasons. Maybe others can comment on chugging issues. We did touch on the air intake earlier in this thread, but with a different concern.

As far as the manufacturer goes, I know it is easy to get hostile over such an investment but working as a team to address the issues will be better in the long run. If they remain cooperative that will be fantastic. Some folks, me for one, like to do our own little mods on things here and there that we "think" is an improvement. I did have a warranty claim on the brand spanking new boiler, none of my doing, and was shipped a replacement blower assembly.

Are you limping through the rest of this season with the Heiss? Or, using your other setup?

 

[gregoryMI]

Little of both I am using my gas boiler to keep up were this one fails. as well believe in the team effort to address problems and have it fixed. I know exactly were and what mods I will do but its a warranty thing you know.. However met with an angry cussing voice when asking politely where the new blower assembly is and why I have not got it yet after 3 months of waiting for it. they are quick to jump to conclusion and very vulgar and angry at the moment... I believe I have become part of them post you read on amazon..lol I've sent them and email to try again politely to remedy this situation.. They have yet to respond..they said last time out while fixing the pex it melted they would drop off a NEW unit in person with the issues like cuts in pipes and screws missing and dents in fan and proper spacing for the fan flap to open and close without hitting the pipes come this spring when its shut down.... I asked when and a date for this new stove nothing more and extremely politely put.... I've kept my cool lets see what happens if they rebound back and show a good company...I've taken pics of the break down from day one to today and will continue.. So be for I bash them and tell all the truth and upload pics.. I'll give one more chance.. Least I can do right..

 

[gregoryMI]

Well that's a bugger. Chugging can be from, too slow fan, too small of splits, too dry of fuel and maybe a few other factors. This I state from using solely an Eko 25 for two seasons. Maybe others can comment on chugging issues. We did touch on the air intake earlier in this thread, but with a different concern.

As far as the manufacturer goes, I know it is easy to get hostile over such an investment but working as a team to address the issues will be better in the long run. If they remain cooperative that will be fantastic. Some folks, me for one, like to do our own little mods on things here and there that we "think" is an improvement. I did have a warranty claim on the brand spanking new boiler, none of my doing, and was shipped a replacement blower assembly.

Are you limping through the rest of this season with the Heiss? Or, using your other setup?

As for the wood portion I've done as the company asked burned green logs like they asked bigger greener.. No change.. I have found to keep from chugging it needed less wood.. Like a half fill with bigger logs 10" thick 22-30 in long dry ash or really any wood even gofor wood.. But fill times increased to every three hrs ... I got a sleep!..

90% of what I have been burning is old standing ash dry yes and split not small..I bought 800$ in difrent types of wood and all are Tue same as the ash. Green whole split or not.. Willow oak pine walnut boxelder.. No change.. Its a issue with fan speed for sure.. Placement infront is a hamper but is workable.. I don't like the pipes exposed at all.. I highly believe this unit needs a natural asparation with option of fan manually...

 

[stee6043]

I'd suggest you get a claim going with the BBB. They will contact Heiss independently and can sometimes generate more urgency to solve your problems. If they don't care about their BBB rating, they won't do anything.

You won't like this...but my suggestion to you would be to request a partial cash refund in the Spring rather than a replacement boiler. I think you're going to be miles ahead by saving your pennies and investing in proven technology that will work before next winter. Your choice to go with the Heiss unit was a gamble and I think your gamble is not paying off.

Any wood boiler manufacturer that continues to tell you to burn "bigger and greener" logs to solve problems is...well....scary.

 

[gregoryMI]

I was looking to be impressed the idea was a good one and could be if some simple thoughts to make some improvments were made.. Stove has potential just needs a costomer service plan that works with its warranty.. Partial money back? Out of the 6k how much u think? I think remove the stove and full refund.. I'll go buy a better one

 

[stee6043]

I was looking to be impressed the idea was a good one and could be if some simple thoughts to make some improvments were made.. Stove has potential just needs a costomer service plan that works with its warranty.. Partial money back? Out of the 6k how much u think? I think remove the stove and full refund.. I'll go buy a better one

A full refund would not be reasonable. You have received some benefit from owning this thing regardless of how much pain you've experienced. Assuming their material/labor expense is 50% of the selling price I'd ask them for half back. Break even for them, best outcome for you. My two cents only.

 

[gregoryMI]

Ehhh five months of savings for me off 6k of head ache. Hardly half.. There labor and matereral I could see 1500$ tops. I had to do all the diiging laying of pipe and pay for all the parts to hookup.. Thou I appreciate ur opinion.. Less hassle and lot less cussing I may of seen half if it plain out didn't work out..

 

[BoiledOver]

Spring is here........oohyah!

What is your opinion of this system after an entire heating season? Does it heat the house, is it reliable, is it worth the initial investment? How about the manufacturer? Are they interested in the long term or just getting the up front money, support with issues, warranty, friendly?

 

[gregoryMI]

well I guess it is time for the review. I found that the unit 3000 has sufficiently heated my home with a running temp of 175 and 5 deg vary. it has needed to be loaded every 4.5 hours exactly. 5300sqft but 3900 heated if you missed during the night you will wake up cold and it takes roughly 3 hours for it to warm all the water and get the house started back to temperature. I've used every type of wood at all different increments. they all burn the same dry wet time lengths. it is more less in extremely hot kilm it burns anything and everything extremely fast cuz of how hot it is inside with blower..
pluses to this machine is it will not creosote up at all the chimney or door or inside. it holds a very large amount of wood almost half face crd which you do not have to worry about cleaning out but maybe once or twice during the winter.
as for the appearance of the stove currently it is needing to be replaced. the stove is cracked all over the exterior every edge that comes together has a large crack down it and it smokes through all the cracks so air is leaking.witch they claim is from overheating the unit which I'll get to in a second.its smokes out the Nabore hood for fifteen to twenty min really bad when u start it up at end of the 4.5 hrs during peak running it doesn't smoke bad at all . prior to this the power went out for a few minutes earlier in the month.
with that being said the boiler shut down like it should and snuffed out the air BUT ...the company explained I had to put out the fire somehow to keep it from melting the pexs in the ground..the pEXs I believe was faulty and did not melt but it is possible that is what they blamed. they however came out rapidly within 2 weeks and replaced the pexs that melted or crack.I had to contract a digger to re dig the trench! they do not dig! at that time I had showed him all the issues with the blower and furnace. he explained he would be out in the spring to replace the stove at my request.
now with the front blower assembly issues with the chuging and chew chew issue it has rattled and worn out all the screws and fills the blower with creosote burning the wires and switch they place right below it. causing the failure of the blower and for the flange it is connected to to literally rattle out of the cement it is incase to. the actuator that opens and closes there baffle also rattled out. I called the company and got a response that I must be kicking it beating it with a baseball bat because they've never had this issue (what the ***k are u doing) etc.. then they hung up on me afyer telling they told me they were sick of hearing from me 3rd call at this time. and kindof threatened to not have it fixed that it would be up to me to take care of it and they wanted nothing to do with it after a long conversation cussing and pretty much lawsuit conversation 2min call.... A few min later his copartner called and calmly explained sry and we will send u out a new blower and u installing it will not void the warranty..I was hesitant because if I replace the blower it might void the warranty and they would get out of it.
.....personal note.. The guy is short temperd he has a lot on his plate to keep up with and is swamped with work stress is high I'm sure I'm 2 hr drive for them on any issue. so I kinda wiped it off as just another call.
currently the wood stove is still sitting outside I have had to re rig the wiring and blower to keep it working the creosote had to be cleaned out numerous times of the blower. they have sent me a new one to install and I have yet to do so. It will remain in the box until they get here with the new stove and they can install it.

conversations on the phone have ceased and are now email for proof of conversation. do I feel comfortable with this stove... No..
.however the company has taken care of the warranty issues they have responded to all my complaints and about any and all issues. they have assured me of replacement this spring.

as for the stove prior to receiving it they said that they had a few employees that were not following the sketches correctly I told them I believe that this might be one of their old stoves and the problems are consistent with all the reviews I've read in past years. they agreed it's possible we will replace it with new. After three months was pex failure five months the stove came to a compleat halt of use and I had to use my gas boiler..$6k should last longer I'm sure.. Pics to follow if company decides to not follow up.. Hope this helps.

 

[gregoryMI]

Little of both I am using my gas boiler to keep up were this one fails. as well believe in the team effort to address problems and have it fixed. I know exactly were and what mods I will do but its a warranty thing you know.. However met with an angry cussing voice when asking politely where the new blower assembly is and why I have not got it yet after 3 months of waiting for it. they are quick to jump to conclusion and very vulgar and angry at the moment... I believe I have become part of them post you read on amazon..lol I've sent them and email to try again politely to remedy this situation.. They have yet to respond..they said last time out while fixing the pex it melted they would drop off a NEW unit in person with the issues like cuts in pipes and screws missing and dents in fan and proper spacing for the fan flap to open and close without hitting the pipes come this spring when its shut down.... I asked when and a date for this new stove nothing more and extremely politely put.... I've kept my cool lets see what happens if they rebound back and show a good company...I've taken pics of the break down from day one to today and will continue.. So be for I bash them and tell all the truth and upload pics.. I'll give one more chance.. Least I can do right..

Make note of this post as well

 

[maple1]

I think that if they do replace your boiler, I would immediately un-install it as soon as they leave, sell it second hand as a new unused boiler, and get something else. What a nightmare that all sounds like - I think you would be just setting yourself up for a repeat if you use the replacement.

Also not clear if the underground pipe was replaced yet or not? I think it was - but I hope with good product.

 

[gregoryMI]

I think that if they do replace your boiler, I would immediately un-install it as soon as they leave, sell it second hand as a new unused boiler, and get something else. What a nightmare that all sounds like - I think you would be just setting yourself up for a repeat if you use the replacement.

Also not clear if the underground pipe was replaced yet or not? I think it was - but I hope with good product.

yes the underground pipe has been replaced with the exact same as of the old pipe.. I know my headakes are only starting. The company hasnt not followed there warrenty yet. Agree on ur idea as well.

 

[BoiledOver]

Sure wish things had gone better for you and your investment. I am wondering if those folks are actually researching and redesigning like they have stated. My guess is they are around 5 -6 years into their production and still having issues. Is that about correct?

Were you loading that thing with a half of a face cord every 5 hours? Have any temp sensors at the unit and in the home for monitoring?

In my opinion, easy peasy wood boiler operations are not a reality. It requires adequate wood processing, daily monitoring and regular maintenance. If a company markets their product without full disclosure regarding the required operating procedures is failing their customer at the start.

I wish you all the best in your home heating needs.

 

[Como]

A quick google only came up with problems.

Several reputable OWB manufacturers out there if you want to go that route. New regs come in this year that may scupper them.

 

[Ken C]

We live in the U.P. of Michigan, have had our Heiss Heater for over one year and made it through our first year without problems. Our house on Lake Michigan has winds in excess of 50 miles per hour at times, with temperatures -25 degrees this past winter. In our house we have radiant floor heat with a hot water heat exchanger on house hot water heater and heat exchanger with a blower for the garage. We ran our water temperature at 140 degrees on the Aquastat with an over shoot temperature of 160 degrees, this maintained the temperature in the house at 72-74 degrees. In my opinion the owners having issues with the pex tubing are running the water temperature to high and forgetting about over-shoot temperatures. What I mean by over-shoot is when the Aquastat turns the blower off the temperature continues to rise 10 to 20 degrees. So if you are running your Aquastat at 180 degrees you could easily exceed the temperature rating of the pex tubing and cause tubing failure. After putting this system in myself and burying 140 feet of underground tubing I really want to protect my investment and not exceed the temperatures. Therefore I monitor system temperatures daily. The only issue I had this year was with the type of wood used in the boiler. Found that a mixture of green and seasoned wood worked the best in at least 2 foot lengths. I have had very little ash and low creosote build up.

 

[maple1]

What I mean by over-shoot is when the Aquastat turns the blower off the temperature continues to rise 10 to 20 degrees.

I don't think a properly designed & engineered boiler would do that though. Which IMO points to a funamental flaw in the concept. Some might be able to work around that in the way they operate it, as it seems you have (the low required supply temps likely helps immensely there). But those that need the hotter water (e.g. baseboard) seem to be kind of up against it.

 

[BoiledOver]

Hello Ken,
Does the Heiss's user manual explain that overshoot theory? Do they even have a manual to outline the operation of their units? Blaming operator error without providing documentation on the proper operating procedures is not very responsible at the manufacturer and sales level. My perspective has been of an open mind with this type of boiler and I believe a well made unit has its place. However, there have been quite a few unhappy customers voicing very similar issues. Best wishes on your sustained satisfaction.

 

[Ken C]

What I mean by over-shoot is when the Aquastat turns the blower off the temperature continues to rise 10 to 20 degrees.

I don't think a properly designed & engineered boiler would do that though. Which IMO points to a funamental flaw in the concept. Some might be able to work around that in the way they operate it, as it seems you have (the low required supply temps likely helps immensely there). But those that need the hotter water (e.g. baseboard) seem to be kind of up against it.

Heiss Heater is a properly design boiler. I idea of using contreat

What I mean by over-shoot is when the Aquastat turns the blower off the temperature continues to rise 10 to 20 degrees.

I don't think a properly designed & engineered boiler would do that though. Which IMO points to a funamental flaw in the concept. Some might be able to work around that in the way they operate it, as it seems you have (the low required supply temps likely helps immensely there). But those that need the hotter water (e.g. baseboard) seem to be kind of up against it.

What I mean by over-shoot is when the Aquastat turns the blower off the temperature continues to rise 10 to 20 degrees.

I don't think a properly designed & engineered boiler would do that though. Which IMO points to a funamental flaw in the concept. Some might be able to work around that in the way they operate it, as it seems you have (the low required supply temps likely helps immensely there). But those that need the hotter water (e.g. baseboard) seem to be kind of up against it.

What I mean by over-shoot is when the Aquastat turns the blower off the temperature continues to rise 10 to 20 degrees.

I don't think a properly designed & engineered boiler would do that though. Which IMO points to a funamental flaw in the concept. Some might be able to work around that in the way they operate it, as it seems you have (the low required supply temps likely helps immensely there). But those that need the hotter water (e.g. baseboard) seem to be kind of up against it.

Hello Ken,
Does the Heiss's user manual explain that overshoot theory? Do they even have a manual to outline the operation of their units? Blaming operator error without providing documentation on the proper operating procedures is not very responsible at the manufacturer and sales level. My perspective has been of an open mind with this type of boiler and I believe a well made unit has its place. However, there have been quite a few unhappy customers voicing very similar issues. Best wishes on your sustained satisfaction.

Any wood boiler using a blower will react this way. When the boiler blower turns off, the wood fire will continue to burn for several minutes causing increase temperature rise. My experience with Heiss Heaters has been very good, they have answered all my questions in a timely and professional manner. I designed my heating system myself and I felt I needed a through understanding of the system for optimal operation. Heiss Heaters provided any technical support I needed which proved to be invaluable in the design of my system. What I like most about this system is the concrete structure being the heating mass instead of the water and the durability of the concrete vs steel as the housing of the unit. I have read other blogs about steel/water boilers having problems so every design has its issues. So far I am satisfied with my Heiss Heater.

 

[Como]

According to the Heiss site the housing of the unit is stucco.

My structure is masonary and it is true that it will take a long time to cool down but also a long time to warm up. Going to be down to 20f tonight but the building would still be warm with no additional heat in the morning.

Trouble is that when you let it cool it takes a long time to bring it back unlike water. Which of course is why water is the heat battery of choice.

I see that Heiss sort of recognise that by including a little storage but separating it from the usual OWB on board storage so that would provide some protection, more so if was enlarged.

The web site is not that informative, EPA certification coming in 2013.

Wonder what the standby losses are?

From a design perspective can you easily replace the firebox liner? Mention is that it is coated which suggests not easily. The transfer water pipes seem cast in but will have different expansion rates, how is this allowed for?

 

[maple1]

Any wood boiler using a blower will react this way.

I don't recall of reading of any other boilers needing to be run below 180 to avoid an overshoot overheat & resulting pex blow-out. IMO that is a result of the design. Lots of guys here run that all winter.

What I like most about this system is the concrete structure being the heating mass

IMO that is the cause of the overshoot. The concrete keeps heating after the fan shuts down. That effect is not present in other boilers to that extent.

 

[Como]

Depends on your altitude. 180 is too close to boiling for me.

 

[gregoryMI]

Well as for Heiss I've sat back and waited to hear from them and now I sit with 12 calls to them and all phone numbers go to vm. Needles to say they don't want to talk. Last conversation mindy and jeramy heiss stated they were gona be out to replace the cracked up stove with a new one in end may middle June. I owe them 400$ still and was going to pay it in full when new showed up. They only had this argument and said OK to payment then. I was set up with a payment plan for three years. I paid it all off the first two months except 400$ I think I'm still ahead. y u ask. Lol gas to get to the lawyer office and filing fees for the law suit..

I've wasted my time way to much for there junk box in my yard.. It does heat the house still but it smokes from all the cracks and leaks at their shark bit fittings. And rattles out all of the metal in cased in cement.. Boiled over knows what I mean by the expansion and contractions metal and cement..
Might as well have a camp fire out side and boil water through it with a leaf blower.. Maby better off...

Just a few pics of 5 months of use.. Tell me I'm wrong for being upset.. All cracks smoke the fan falls out on the ground and door bairly shuts. And leaks allll the way around..

Heiss was nice for the first problem I had.
Then they were mad I asked why its cracking.
Then pissed and hung up on me when I said the blower keeps falling out..
Welp guess Amazon won't be backing this one up...

 

[gregoryMI]

Any wood boiler using a blower will react this way.

I don't recall of reading of any other boilers needing to be run below 180 to avoid an overshoot overheat & resulting pex blow-out. IMO that is a result of the design. Lots of guys here run that all winter.

What I like most about this system is the concrete structure being the heating mass

IMO that is the cause of the overshoot. The concrete keeps heating after the fan shuts down. That effect is not present in other boilers to that extent.

I was concerned about this logicly I watched the water temp as the two pumps I have..it never raised any..

 

[leon]

Have you looked at residential wood chip boilers?

I realise you have a problem on your hands but you
may be better off with a wood chip burner after all this.

 

[TCaldwell]

Aside from the legal issues, nobody should have to go through this to heat with wood, your not going to want to do this for another winter. Take what ever money comes your way from heis, craigslist or the side of the road and get a real boiler. Start enjoying reliable, efficient wood heating and regular sleep!