$2,000/year at $120/MWh is 17 MWh of electricity - or about the energy in one cord of wood. At a guess your heat pump has a coefficient of performance around 2:1 in the coldest weather (I'm guessing it's air-source), so you're looking at needing somewhere about the amount of wood you currently cut anyway.
Help Please: Wood Boilers
- Thread starter Firefighter938
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I will just have to take your word for that, as I don't really know how to come up with those numbers.
The way I figured it was take the electric bills for the months the heat or AC isn't running ( May,June, Sept) and get a ballpark number. Then subtract that from the heating month (Oct-Apr). Some months we would save $500 and some $200. I low balled the savings at $2000 to give me wiggle room.
I figured having a pro set the system up for me would be somewhere around $8-10k so I could make my money back in roughly 5 years.
Maybe I should try a wood furnace in the garage that heats the upstairs and just continue to use my insert when I'm home?
My work schedules are 24hrs on 48hrs off so I would be heating 2 out of 3 days with wood.
The way I figured it was take the electric bills for the months the heat or AC isn't running ( May,June, Sept) and get a ballpark number. Then subtract that from the heating month (Oct-Apr). Some months we would save $500 and some $200. I low balled the savings at $2000 to give me wiggle room.
I figured having a pro set the system up for me would be somewhere around $8-10k so I could make my money back in roughly 5 years.
Maybe I should try a wood furnace in the garage that heats the upstairs and just continue to use my insert when I'm home?
My work schedules are 24hrs on 48hrs off so I would be heating 2 out of 3 days with wood.
It's easier to put the heat here and there with water distribution. Also good for heating the domestic hot water.
Not sure about the long term durability because they are relatively new to the states but the Effecta has a pellet head option that would be interesting if it is easy to switch back and forth. Switch over to pellets when you are gone, wood when you are home.
gg
gg
ixlr8
Member
I have a similar schedule as Firefighter and I am considering doing what goosegunner suggested. I am looking at one of the Varmebaronen boilers. According to a post I saw here, they have a pellet head option and it was described as a 15 min change over.
If your interested in pellet stoves, you could always get a pellet mill and make your own pellets from the wood on your land.
maple1
Minister of Fire
I ran across this while web surfing for my unit. I don't know anything about this unit, but I like idea of the seamless switching between wood and pellets.
(broken link removed to http://www.windhager.com/int_en/products/wood/duowin-181/)
(broken link removed to http://www.windhager.com/int_en/products/wood/duowin-181/)
I have a Vigas, great boiler ( cord wood) and Biowin ( pellets). They both have a huge load on them. Vigas heats three buildings (13 cords last yr) and the Biowin heats 4 units (14 ton last yr.). But as i hit 61 and want to travel some, if i did it again i would only install Biowin as it needs no daily maintenance, where as the Vigas has to be loaded twice a day. Just something to think about and my wife will not touch them so i still have to load when i am sick. Foamit UP
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