New to the forum, alot here maybe this topic has been discussed before. Have owned and operated a Heatmor 200 series for the past 11 years with no issues except smoke.It heats my 2200sq. ft. house and 1000sq. ft. garage with out fail. I burn mostly Lodgepole Pine and White Spruce with various percentages of moisture content but try to stay around the 30 mark . I am planning to purchase a Empyre Pro Series 200 (greenwood use to sell profabs products) to replace the Heatmor because it would fit directly in the Heatmors place.My biggest concern is wood quailty. I would like to be able to use 4 to 8 inch round wood and some slab wood. Does one need to have the wood split to enable the gasification to work the best ? Does anyone on this forum own a Profab. Thanks
Time to replace the Heatmor
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maple1
Minister of Fire
Kind of general feedback - but the biggest factor is that the wood has time to season after it is cut to length. Different units handle unsplit wood differently - some work a lot better if split smaller (therefore dryer), some work better if unsplit with slightly higher moisture content. As long as you stay a year ahead in the wood cutting department, and don't try to burn what was a standing living tree only a couple of months ago you should be good. 30 is a bit on the high side for a gassifier, but the 200 might be able to handle stuff that is a bit on the high side. I'd try for 20-25. Hopefully some 200 owners will be by....
barkeatr
Member
im a 200 empyre profab owner. I dont think having the wood split is nessecary, as long as its dry. Owners manual on the profab says 20% or less. it does help to have the lengths cut to fit the firebox..because there are two downdraft gasser vents and its best that the wood span those without a joint. With round wood it might occasionally cause bridges more than some split wood but I dont think it will be a problem. there are a lot of small things to learn with the profab..but most of all be carefull if you have to open the door when you know the damper has been closed ( say its nearing its top temperature) . The sudden burst of air will basically cause the gasses that have built up to explode and will give you a good burn if you just flat out open the door. better to open the door when when damper has just been open and always open the door slowly. Profab has a curtain door to help reduce this also.
Thank you for your comments . To my understanding then wood has to be the right lenght and moisture content for these boilers to work efficiently. What are the major problems when using wetter wood? Is it creoste buildup or smoke , or the boiler will not get up to temperture ? The Profab 200 has a 75 gal tank where as the Heatmor has a 114 gal capacity will this be a issue between the two units. On the coldest days how many times does one need to load the Profab ?
woodsmaster
Minister of Fire
Welcome to the hearth. I don't have any experiance with the profab but I'll try to help with your questions. With wet wood it's hard to get and keep your unit gassing. If it's not gassing your wasting fuel, creating creasote, not getting the output you usually would, and polluting the air. As for length I've heard that may be important for the pro fab. Mine don't care about the length of wood, but it's easier to load and I can get more in if its cut close to firebox length.
Thanks for your responses. Are there any more suggestions. There must be some Western Canadians who have one of these units that could give some insight on the Profab. I would like to look at one of these units if possible. Thanks
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