Hello! I live in Nebraska and I'm very pleased with our Woodstock soapstone stove that we installed in our home, now i'm trying to decide if a wood furnace would work to heat my 1500sq ft shop next to our home. I plan on installing it in a "lean to" attached to my shop in order to keep ashes and wood out of my shop. I planned on venting the furnace into the shop and connecting a cold air return from the shop directly to the furnace. So far the most affordable furnaces that I have found (at menards) have been a Norseman 2500 and a Daka. Has anybody had any experiences with either one of these? Any information regarding these furnaces will be greatlly appreciated. Thanks.
I need information on a wood furnace.
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I have a Daka in my basement and my brother is in the process of hooking up a Norseman.
My Daka is serving the exact purpose I bought it for: heating my house. It's not fancy and it was cheap, but being a newbie wood burner, that is what I was looking for. After being on this site for a while, I am starting to regret the fact that the Daka isn't EPA certified. Oh well, I guess that is what I'll save up for with the money I save on my electric/gas bill!
My Daka is serving the exact purpose I bought it for: heating my house. It's not fancy and it was cheap, but being a newbie wood burner, that is what I was looking for. After being on this site for a while, I am starting to regret the fact that the Daka isn't EPA certified. Oh well, I guess that is what I'll save up for with the money I save on my electric/gas bill!
Thanks for your reply. One question I had was, being that neither the Daka nor the Norseman have any kind of reburn baffles or system, does it smoke a lot and also how long of a burn time do you get on a load? Thanks again.
If you are burning good wood and using proper burning methods, it won't smoke too much. Definitely more than an EPA stove though. I use a magnetic thermometer on my single wall stove pipe and try to keep the temp at ~200-250 degree surface temp (which, from reading on here, equates to ~400-500 degree interal temp). I know I will burn more wood than an EPA stove, but that is OK for now. I would rather burn a little hotter and keep my creosote level down. Plus, my wood is free, with the exception of my time.
As for extended burn times, I get 4-5 hours without trying hard. I would imagine it will get better once I start burning 24/7. Right now, we've had pretty mild weather, so I've built fires in the evening and let them go out. Then I'll start it again in the morning and let it burn out for the afternoon. I havn't yet made a good bed of coals to restart smaller splits.
As for extended burn times, I get 4-5 hours without trying hard. I would imagine it will get better once I start burning 24/7. Right now, we've had pretty mild weather, so I've built fires in the evening and let them go out. Then I'll start it again in the morning and let it burn out for the afternoon. I havn't yet made a good bed of coals to restart smaller splits.
I know that on the Norseman they advertise 8-10 hrs. burning time, but they may be talking about coal burning. I'm planning on using it for my shop so I can keep an eye on it a little closer, and like you I have a good supply of wood at no cost. I'm still not sure how it will perform where the furnace will be installed outside the main building and piped in. They told me at Norseman that it was supposed to be in the same building but they said it was because thats the way it was approved and tested.
Make sure you check with your insurance also. Mine wouldn't let me install it in the garage or any outbuildings.
The Daka advertises an 8 hour burn, but I'll be satisfied with 6. The Norseman comes standard with at least double the fan size and the air jacket seems to be made from a little better gauge sheet metal. I would like that either one of these will work for what you need.
The Daka advertises an 8 hour burn, but I'll be satisfied with 6. The Norseman comes standard with at least double the fan size and the air jacket seems to be made from a little better gauge sheet metal. I would like that either one of these will work for what you need.
Daka is made in Minnesota. Norseman is made in China. An additional 500 cfm fan or a larger fan is optional with the Daka. Also comes with a return air / filter box.
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