Boiler clearance issues

[headrc]

Hi all ...I am still culling over the install of a wood gasification unit ...probably an Eko 40 but I have not totally decided on the unit yet. I have decided that I need water storage if I am going to do this. My question is this ...I have a shed area of roughly 8x12 to put everything in. I have located a couple of smaller used propane tanks (350 gallon, 250 gallon) asnd may be able to locate a used 500 gallon propane tank in the next month or so. Even if I get the 500 gallon and as a result do not have to use two tanks to get the 500 gallons that I believe I will need .....laying out an install does not seem to work when I take into consideration the clearances that Tarm and Eko recommend ....is this because of wood framing? Can I get by with less clearance if I line the interior wood frame walls with metal? The shed will be insulated very well .... Thx again ...RH

 

[Eric Johnson]

From my perspective, the only clearances that matter from a safety point of view are the front and especially the back. That's for an EKO. Everything else seems related to maintenance, so that's more of a case-specific call. My boiler has about an inch of clearance from a cinderblock wall left and right, about 12 inches from a steel door in the front and probably 24 inches from the chimney to a steel door in the rear.

The real problem with not following the stated clearances in the manual is more related to codes/inspections/etc. You have to follow what the manual specifies if you want to be in compliance. Cheap corrugated steel roofing (the galvanized kind) makes a good boiler room wall covering. I have sheets of it screwed into my steel doors for extra heat dissipation.

 

[ISeeDeadBTUs]

My 'boiler room' is 10' X 12' . . . my complaint is there's not enough room to store 10 full cord of wood. But I can get about two weeks worth in there, down the sides of the GW.

 

[headrc]

In that 10x12 room ...do you have water storage? If so ...what is it and what are your clearances? Thx, RH