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Neat idea. I have been thinking of adding a UPS to my circ pump just to keep that running in the event of a power outage. The fan would die and let the fire go down but keep the circ running until I power the generator or the utility comes back on.
I use an old 400w computer UPS to feed my main circ. You can get them for nearly free as the internal gel batteries usually die after a few years. Scrap out the 12V batteries and wire up a pair of deep cycle 6-volts ( just so happens that heating season and RV/boating season are opposite, I have plenty of batteries looking for a warm home all winter.).
The UPS conditions the power and automatically switch over to battery on an outage.
I trust a battery a lot more than the sun to be shining.
The UPS conditions the power and automatically switch over to battery on an outage.
I trust a battery a lot more than the sun to be shining.
maple1
Minister of Fire
I've never really tested how long it will run. I use two 6-volt tractor batteries that have high amp-hour capacity. I know it will go many hours without question. I should hook up a 100 watt trouble light and test it some day. My guess is it will run a couple days. Since my boiler is non-powered it will continue to run till the wood is gone unless I'm there to shut the air off. I also feed a ceiling mounted unit heater via the UPS which acts as my heat dump. the 1/4 hp fan on the unit heater will kill the batteries faster than the circ.
maple1
Minister of Fire
Could you replace the unit heater with a few runs of radiant and eliminate the fan?
I have a couple of older UPS's here with faded batteries, you've really got me thinking about that one now. Also curious on how long it would take the modded UPS to charge those big batteries, & if the circuitry would handle all that OK. I suppose a fellow could charge them up first with a battery charger, then the UPS should be able to maintain? Either way, defintely sounds worth trying.
I have a couple of older UPS's here with faded batteries, you've really got me thinking about that one now. Also curious on how long it would take the modded UPS to charge those big batteries, & if the circuitry would handle all that OK. I suppose a fellow could charge them up first with a battery charger, then the UPS should be able to maintain? Either way, defintely sounds worth trying.
You actually only need it to run long enough to dissipate the heat built up in the boiler if your main concern is strictly a safety issue. A UPS like that with a couple deep cycle 6V batteries on it will run a normal S21, 15-158 or 007 for a long time. Certianly long enough so that one could get a longer term solution in place for an extended outage where you need to re supply heat.
I'd address it as two different things.
1. Emergency, instant on backup that operates for a short period (an hour or two) to prevent a full blown melted pex/blowoff/steam everywhere/run for the hills situation.
2. Long term operation for use after things have calmed down and you still need power because there are 400 poles down due to the storm, or whatever.
Probably just as important or maybe more so if the need for backup is that critical, would be to build in some redundancy in pumping or design the system in such a way that it could bleed heat off without any power whatsoever.
The ultimate solution is to have enough storage available that is integral to the firebox/heat exchanger that the issue never arises in the first place. (Think big green submarine shaped wood burner that appears at the top of the page occasionally)
That is foolproof.
I'd address it as two different things.
1. Emergency, instant on backup that operates for a short period (an hour or two) to prevent a full blown melted pex/blowoff/steam everywhere/run for the hills situation.
2. Long term operation for use after things have calmed down and you still need power because there are 400 poles down due to the storm, or whatever.
Probably just as important or maybe more so if the need for backup is that critical, would be to build in some redundancy in pumping or design the system in such a way that it could bleed heat off without any power whatsoever.
The ultimate solution is to have enough storage available that is integral to the firebox/heat exchanger that the issue never arises in the first place. (Think big green submarine shaped wood burner that appears at the top of the page occasionally)
That is foolproof.
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