Looking for comments on boilers I saw at logging show

[JP11]

Because the marketing people at AHS say so.

My answer was magic.. But your's is the same.

 

[BoilerMan]

Ahhh the super-secret wood gun club. I've heared rumors that...................... Anyhow, the wood gun comes with magic elves (or gremlins) that relight the fire after prolonged idle.

Truly, it had an "air tight" damper that suffocates the fire, stopping the woodgas from burning. This has been a much debated theory here, and a "suffocated" fire can't re-light itself, but the WG does. This is how they say it "doesen't need storage". In reality no boiler actually needs storage as long as it has a way to slow of stop the combustion process. So basically and boiler gasser or not that is not totally dependant on natural draft and has some type of mechanically operated damper somehwere (before or after the fire).

Most, and I'd argue all, boilers will benifit greatly from thermal storage. If it's setup correctly and insulated to the hilt!

TS

 

[paragonbuilders]

Definetly a gasifier with storage is the best solution. If however you decide to stay with your current setup, maybe you can improve it a bit.
My father has a central boiler and has no intentions of changing. So we built a firebox out of firebrick inside the burn chamber to help the fire burn hotter. Just with this he has noticed a big difference in smoke and amount of wood burned. He is keeping the fires small this time of year but with the fire brick it helps keep the coals hot. We will be adding a ceramic board above the fire to further keep te heat in before the fire hits te water jacket. Not gasification by any means but an improvement for sure. Of course after this winter we will know better. He has been burning 10-11 cord from oct- April.
We shall see.....

 

[infinitymike]

Hello Mike thanks, Ill look for your videos, so Im curious how long do you season your wood and have you ever checked it for moisture content? How log of a burn do you get out of your wood gun and in the shoulder seasons does it do much idling?

THanks

~ Phil

Well since I'm new to this whole wood burning operation I haven't been able to season/dry my wood long enough. I'm still trying to get ahead but I am shooting for a minimum of 2 years.
3 or more will be the optimum! The first season my wood was only 4-6 months old, this season it was a little better and was 8-10 months old.
This coming winter I have 7 cord of oak that will be just under 2 years. I have another 18 cord that is 5 months old so it will be 2 year old stuff by the winter of 14/15 and 3 year old stuff by 15/16.
Now I just have to maintain this and I'll have a constant 3 year old supply

yes I have a MM by General that I got at Lowes. On average the stuff I've been burning is between 25-30% Although there was some ower stuff.
In the dead of this past winter I was getting about 8-10 hours on one load.
Basically load it up at 6am, come home around 3pm and probably reload again, around 10pm I will top it off for the night.
The shoulder season varies. But can be up to 12 hours or better.
My wife is home all day and she has no problem checking on it during the day and if it needs it she'll throw some in.

 

[mpilihp]

Definetly a gasifier with storage is the best solution. If however you decide to stay with your current setup, maybe you can improve it a bit.
My father has a central boiler and has no intentions of changing. So we built a firebox out of firebrick inside the burn chamber to help the fire burn hotter. Just with this he has noticed a big difference in smoke and amount of wood burned. He is keeping the fires small this time of year but with the fire brick it helps keep the coals hot. We will be adding a ceramic board above the fire to further keep te heat in before the fire hits te water jacket. Not gasification by any means but an improvement for sure. Of course after this winter we will know better. He has been burning 10-11 cord from oct- April.
We shall see.....

That sounds interesting, how much firebrick did you line the burn chamber with? the bottom and half way up the sides? THen the ceramic board to line the top side? That doesn't hamper heat transfer to the water too much?

Are you able to curve the ceramic board to match the curve of the firebox? (mine is curved, not sure if his is)

THanks

~ Phil

 

[paragonbuilders]

Sorry Phil, I missed this. I put a layer of firebrick on the bottom. Then up the sides and back to within 6" of the top. The ceramic board will sit on top of the brick forcing the smoke back towards the front where there will be a 6" space allowing smoke to rise into the top of the "combustion chamber", water jacket for heat exchange to take place. Then it must travel down the sides of the water jacket before heading back to the flue. Effectively we built an insulated firebox inside the water jacket so we can achieve higher temps to get more complete combustion. We will be adding insulation to the door to prevent warping from the additional heat. Something to consider... Not sure if it is necessary. After getting the board installed my friend will bring his combustion meter over and we will try to fine tune it. We may decide to add some secondary air.
So far it is already a great improvement.
Also for the summer we run it up to about 200 degrees and shut it down til it drops to about 130. And try to put just enough wood in to get it there. Nice long hot burns.
Dan