New Furnace Day: Drolet Heat Commander

[Rockstar1346]

I did have a new one yesterday. Got home, house was 67. Thermostat was set for 69. Green light was on solid, which is supposed to mean heat available and call for heat, blower should be on. Blower was not on, shudders were closed, and there was still some nice coaling chunks of wood in there. I pressed the button to wake it up, but i don't know what that was about.

I have had this happen a few times too almost as if the probe isn’t sensing enough heat it’s weird when it happens as you’ve mentioned there’s some real nice coals and chunks of wood but no blower on even though it’s lit up.

 

[brenndatomu]

I have had this happen a few times too almost as if the probe isn’t sensing enough heat it’s weird when it happens as you’ve mentioned there’s some real nice coals and chunks of wood but no blower on even though it’s lit up.

It would seem that if the TC's are sensing enough heat to turn the light on, the shutters should be doing something...but the blower could be off even with the light on since it is controlled by the temp sensor in the plenum...

 

[laynes69]

Yes, theres a small flap of metal that needs to be adjusted where it hits the switch.

 

[brenndatomu]

Yes, theres a small flap of metal that needs to be adjusted where it hits the switch.

So you are saying the limit switch isn't closing?

 

[Rockstar1346]

So this is a picture I got after taking off the side then hitting the button from dead cold. This is the right side if you are looking from the back. The only thing I really have to go off is the door is fully open because it’s almost touching that nut. But if I look at the one on the other side it only looks to be about half open as it’s not the whole way up like the door is on this right side.

 

[brenndatomu]

So this is a picture I got after taking off the side then hitting the button from dead cold. This is the right side if you are looking from the back. The only thing I really have to go off is the door is fully open because it’s almost touching that nut. But if I look at the one on the other side it only looks to be about half open as it’s not the whole way up like the door is on this right side.

View attachment 292731

Sounds right...

 

[brenndatomu]

Yes, theres a small flap of metal that needs to be adjusted where it hits the switch.

View attachment 292728

So you are saying the limit switch isn't closing?

If this is the case, it must need more than just a tiny tweak because that stepper motor was jackhammering on the stop pretty hard!

 

[laynes69]

So you are saying the limit switch isn't closing?

Correct. There's not much metal in contact with the switch and when it hammered, the metal tab had to be readjusted.

 

[brenndatomu]

Well that must have been it...I stuck a long 1/8" steel rod through the vent and poked the limit switch, it works now.
I will have to take the cover off and adjust it I guess...and that's a PITA due to a stove pipe tee in the road for getting the cover off...D'OH!
I wonder if there is an "official" adjustment procedure? Paging @SBI_Nick ...

 

[SBI_Nick]

Well that must have been it...I stuck a long 1/8" steel rod through the vent and poked the limit switch, it works now.
I will have to take the cover off and adjust it I guess...and that's a PITA due to a stove pipe tee in the road for getting the cover off...D'OH!
I wonder if there is an "official" adjustment procedure? Paging @SBI_Nick ...

Hi, the procedure adjustment is pretty basic. I would recommend two things to check. Firts thing to do is to make sure the set screw holding the damper to the stepper motor shaft is tight enough. Second, will be to adjust the zero.

1. Wait until the furnace is cold
2. Unplugged the furnace and remove the air intake cover
3. Check if the set screws are tight enough, if necessary tight them
4. To perform the zeroing, turn the damper clockwise until you hear a little ''TIC'' from the limit swicth contact.
5. Turn slowly counter clock wise until you hear the ''TIC'' again. At this moment both arrows should align:

6. If not, slightly bend the stopper and repeat step 4 and 5 until arrows align properly.

Let me know if it solves the issue.

Thanks,

NicK

 

[moresnow]

bumping for a new guy heading here to find easily

 

[NSGUY]

Hey guys how have you all been? Its been awhile since I was on here but if any remember i got a heat commander in early Jan. But I wasn't able to get it installed due to other stuff. Anyhow i'll get it done here over the summer, My question is around wood though what size wood do you guys prefer. Do you use smaller air tight wood or a little bigger for furnace wood, most all my wood will be split as its quite big, should I shoot for split pieces that are equivalent 4-6 inch round meaning 6 inch straight across the butt or go a little bigger with some up to 8- 9. I'll have a good mixture of 3 to 6 inch little round stuff, but the stuff i'm splitting is big and just not sure what size to split it to as i don't know what these furnaces like for wood. most of my wood 80% this year is going to oak.
Thanks for any info.

 

[trx250r87]

I would split 1/3 of your wood a smaller diameter maybe 2"-3", another around 3"-5" diameter and the last 1/3 5"-8" diameter. Most modern stoves/furnaces like smaller diameter wood but I often throw larger diameter in for a slower or over night burn.

I have a Kindling Cracker XL so sometimes I end up splitting larger pieces of I need them while I'm loading.

I also make sure to have some wood around 16" in length to lay East/West while other 22" pieces will fit North/South.

Eric

 

[NSGUY]

I would split 1/3 of your wood a smaller diameter maybe 2"-3", another around 3"-5" diameter and the last 1/3 5"-8" diameter. Most modern stoves/furnaces like smaller diameter wood but I often throw larger diameter in for a slower or over night burn.

I have a Kindling Cracker XL so sometimes I end up splitting larger pieces of I need them while I'm loading.

I also make sure to have some wood around 16" in length to lay East/West while other 22" pieces will fit North/South.

Eric

Thank you very much, Thats kinda what I had in my head to do, thanks for the tip on laying it east/west I'll have a mixture 15 to 21" pieces. generally i buy 8 foot and cut and split, but I have a family member that in the tree business and he gave my about 5 cord its already cut and free lol I just have to split it, some of the oak is huge like 24" diameter, lots of splitting.

any issues with finding a lot of oak burns to hot for these furnaces

 

[trx250r87]

No issues, I burn mostly red oak.

Eric

 

[woodey]

. most of my wood 80% this year is going to oak.

Keep in mind that oak generally takes a minimum of 2 years to be truly dry.

 

[NSGUY]

Keep in mind that oak generally takes a minimum of 2 years to be truly dry.

Yeah I know thats the only issue I may have, thats why I'm going to get it split now, keep in the sun and out of the rain for the summer and see what it like, I'll have some maple and stuff to so I may have a couple of months dying in the basement as well

 

[woodey]

A dead log washed up on my property this spring and I was able to score myself a little bit of free oak.

 

[brenndatomu]

A dead log washed up on my property this spring and I was able to score myself a little bit of free oak.

View attachment 295014

Better get that away from the water a lil more...the level comes up too much and we'll be calling you "no-woodey"! Or maybe "easy come easy go woodey"

 

[fields_mj]

New to this forum so I'm not sure if this is the right place to post this or not. I'll be happy to repost somewhere else if needed. Copy and paste is easy I'm considering replacing my current wood burner with a heat commander but I'd like to get some feedback from some more knowledgeable people to make sure that it will work for my application before I take the plunge. I read through the first 4 or 5 pages of this thread, as well as the last 5 or 6 pages, and it seems like the Heat Commander is turning out to be a pretty good unit.

I currently have a circa 1980 Energy Mate add-on wood furnace (wood furnace, NOT a wood stove). Its pretty similar to a Clayton in design. It has a forced air draft which has had the motor removed because it died. The draft has an adjustable cover that blocks the opening. Over the years, I've learned to set the draft based on the expected outside temperature and I can normally keep it pretty close to 71 degrees all day long. I'm heating a 2000 sq ft brick ranch with a full basement that was built in 1959. I'm still in the process of replacing windows, so it's pretty drafty. Temps get down around zero (F) in the winter, but they vary quite a bit. On rare occasion, it might get down into the negative teens, or even -twenties, but that's rare. Daytime highs vary a lot also. Anywhere from single digits up into the 40s. Typically, on a sunny day, I let the fire burn out if the temps are going to climb above 35 deg. I might add a couple of small pieces that morning, but my aim is for the fire to go out before noon, or at least down to a small pile of coals.

My current wood burner is in the basement. It has a 10" duct that comes out of the top, turns 90 deg, and then runs about 5' horizontally over to the cold air return on my NG furnace. It feeds in above the air filter. I normally set the house thermostat at 68 deg so that if the wood burner cools off, the NG furnace will kick on and keep it from getting too chilly. I fire it in the morning around 5:30 am, top off if needed around 7, then I don't see it again until 6:30 or 7pm and there's normally a decent bed of coals left to work with. On colder days, I have my son or daughter put 2 or 3 small rounds in around 4 PM. Normally I'll put a medium size fire of smaller splits at 6 to get the house warmed back up quickly, and then add a few medium size splits/rounds in the 6" range a little later before finally topping it off for the night around 11pm. I go through 3 to 4 cords of firewood per season. I burn mostly seasoned hickory, but I also burn some red oak, and a mix of less hard wood like ash and walnut as the opportunities occur.

So now for my questions On a cold day, should I expect to be able to get 9 or 10 hrs of heat out of an HC? From a cold start, how long does the HC normally take to get the heating system up to full temp? How long of a burn will the HC provide on a warmer day? How does the HC do on the warmer start/stop days where I'm only burning of an evening/night?

Last question is how hard is the HC to get down a flight of stairs? My guess is that with the fire brick out, it's still a pretty heavy unit and it may just be too dangerous to take down a flight of stairs. I'm considering digging a pit and adding an external entrance to the basement where I currently bring my wood it, but that adds significantly to the cost of this project

Thanks,
Mark

 

[trx250r87]

Welcome fields_mj,

Your setup does not sound much different from mine other than you are in a slightly warmer climate further South than me. The biggest change you might have to make is swapping the 10" duct with the plenum that comes with the Heat Commander and adapting it into the main trunk of your furnace, paying attention to the static pressure in the system. I would suggest reading the manual for the HC 2-3 times and plan on following it to a "T"!

No issues with getting up to temperature or burn times. I don't think you will be disappointed!

I ended up moving my HC down basement stairs from my garage using a small appliance dolly and my ATV with a winch. I removed the loading, ash and heat exchanger doors and blower to reduce weight and size. The only issue I had was with the little loading green LED housing getting in the way when going through the doorway. I would recommend removing it right away.

Eric

 

[JRHAWK9]

On a cold day, should I expect to be able to get 9 or 10 hrs of heat out of an HC?

Nobody will be able to answer this, as it all depends on your heat load.

 

[brenndatomu]

On a cold day, should I expect to be able to get 9 or 10 hrs of heat out of an HC

Hard to say...how much wood are you burning on a cold day (in lbs) or how much do you burn in a winter?
From what you describe I'd say yes, but its really hard to say with certainty.
Might be that on a really cold day it'll go 8 hours, and on warmer days 12...one thing about it is that I guarantee there will be quite a learning curve after being used to that EM.

 

[JRHAWK9]

Hard to say...how much wood are you burning on a cold day (in lbs) or how much do you burn in a winter?
From what you describe I'd say yes, but its really hard to say with certainty.
Might be that on a really cold day it'll go 8 hours, and on warmer days 12...one thing about it is that I guarantee there will be quite a learning curve after being used to that EM.

I guess what I was getting at is if the heat load is such that the thermostat has a hard time being satisfied, it's going to burn through a load faster compared to if the thermostat is more easily satisfied. In this regard it's very heat load dependent and hard to say.

 

[brenndatomu]

I guess what I was getting at is if the heat load is such that the thermostat has a hard time being satisfied, it's going to burn through a load faster compared to if the thermostat is more easily satisfied. In this regard it's very heat load dependent and hard to say.

I'm smellin what you steppin in now...and yes, very true...burn time on the HC seems to vary a lot, depending on if the 'stat is satisfied or not.