OWB

[kdiman]

There is a guy that i work with that wants to get a outdoor wood boiler to heat his garage and house. What would you guys recommend.

Thanks
Kelly

 

[Eric Johnson]

If he has dry wood, I'd recommend a standalone outdoor gasifier like the BioMax or the Blue Forge. Gasifiers are not the cheapest option, nor are they particularly easy to install, but they burn about half as much wood as a conventional OWB and produce no smoke once they get up to temp, which takes about 15 or 20 minutes. Over time, they are probably no more expensive, when you factor in the cost of wood, the labor of loading the stove and the badwill you earn with your neighbors if you use an OWB.

For standard OWBs, I've heard good things about Central Boiler, Heatmor and Johnson. That's not to say there aren't some other comparable units out there.

The three brands I just mentioned take the technology about as far as it can go, which ain't very far, IMO. But if you have plenty of wood and smoke is not an issue, then they might be the best choice. My dad has had a Heatmor for the past ten years and is very happy with it. Still going strong (both Dad and the boiler).

 

[herbert]

I would put the Taylor OWB on top of the list , i have friends who have all of the above and the taylor seems to use the least wood of them all (in OWB stoves)