What great features would you like in your wood pellet super stove?

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Don2222

Minister of Fire
Feb 1, 2010
9,110
Salem NH
Hello

My stove would have the following:

1.The Breckwell burn pot that is enclosed and connected to the air intake tube.

2. A bottom auger with vertical rotary disks like the new Avalon AGP that cuts long wood pellets

3. A heavy duty metal vacuum switch like the old whitfield stoves that can take the full 120v AC

4. The Harman Accordian Heat exhangers that sock out a great amount of heat.

5. HPS High Performance Silicon thick wall vacuum line that does not develop cracks quickly.

6. A smart digital control panel that does not use snap disks.

7. A control panel that works T-Stat using either mode Auto-Hi/Lo or Auto-On/Off
Even better some computer smarts that would calculate the difference between the T-Stat SET temp and the room temp and then select the appropriate Heat level to ramp the room up to that temp in a reasonable amount of time using the fewest wood pellets. Like the new LG washing machines that shake the clothes back and forth to determine the load and then calculate the least amount of water and detergent to use. LOL

8.0 A control panel like the HearthStone Heretige that scrolls the LCD word messages.

9.0 A control panel with two way communication like the Quadrafire Mount Vernon AE.

10. A USB hookup like the Bixby corn stove so you can change or adjust ALL the settings!

11. A universal App for my iPhone 5 that would also do feature 10 above!

12. A very well balanced exhaust blower with a heavy flywheel like the hearthstone heritage that will go with very little energy.

13. A pellet stove that you can connect ductwork like the Drolet or Ecotek Laura & Veronica

14. A nice deep ashpan like the Hudson River Kinderhook

15 A 5 bag hopper like the big Pelpro Home Heater 300 wood pellet stove Model HHPP32BD

16. A stove that goes from 0 to 70k BTUs like the Harman P68

17. A heavy duty 6 RPM auger motor like the Harman P68

18. A corkscrew type Auger like the Quadrafire pellet stoves.

19. A Pot Stirer like the Englander 10-CPM

20. Cast iron Heringbone pattern fire brick backing like the Enviro Meridian

Anything Else?
 
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Feeds itself, cleans itself, generates its own electricity.

That does it for me. :)
 
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18. A corkscrew type Auger like the Quadrafire pellet stoves.

Quad auger won't do multifuel. Prolly won't need the stirrer then.

MIght as well have it cook and clean the rest of the house for ya too even! :p
 
Quad auger won't do multifuel. Prolly won't need the stirrer then.

MIght as well have it cook and clean the rest of the house for ya too even! :p

Maybe an improvement to the Quad auger for multifuel? Ah maybe I can patend something here!
 
Quad auger won't do multifuel. Prolly won't need the stirrer then.

MIght as well have it cook and clean the rest of the house for ya too even! :p

Why not? They are all Multi fuel rated? Mine fed 100% corn very well. Even the AE has the Spring style auger. Even the smaller Castile and Santa Fe are rated for 100% bio-mass, if started on pellets (sunflower seeds, soy-bean, corn, cherry pits, etc) The area where the Quad Auger is a Total failure is Fines. :( Epic fail.......



As far as control, my Fahrehiet is pretty close to perfect. If I could change anything, I would like to be able to adjust the auto-clean cycle (rate of fire and time intervals) and also, let the furnace decide and dictate the feed, based on temp(like a Harman) and add another 200 CFM to the distribution blower (or another 800, but 200 would be enough).
 
Why not? They are all Multi fuel rated? Mine fed 100% corn very well. Even the AE has the Spring style auger. Even the smaller Castile and Santa Fe are rated for 100% bio-mass, if started on pellets (sunflower seeds, soy-bean, corn, cherry pits, etc) The area where the Quad Auger is a Total failure is Fines. :( Epic fail.......



As far as control, my Fahrehiet is pretty close to perfect. If I could change anything, I would like to be able to adjust the auto-clean cycle (rate of fire and time intervals) and also, let the furnace decide and dictate the feed, based on temp(like a Harman) and add another 200 CFM to the distribution blower (or another 800, but 200 would be enough).

Snowy says nut shells don't feed at all. Would prolly have issues with the smaller grains the cork screw auger don't seem to have.

Don, You might want to add a pressure/torch igniter like the M55/Maxx M/10 CPM/PC45. They start any fuel not just pellets. ;)
 
Don, You might want to add a pressure/torch igniter like the M55/Maxx M/10 CPM/PC45. They start any fuel not just pellets

Good feature Jay!
 
I'd like some sort of access feature so I can stick an air hose into it. Picture the typical valve stem on the body of the stove.
Blow it while the fans are on and no pellets - sure way to get it cleaned.
For sure the LBT idea works - but lets make it even easier.
Who doesn't have a air compressor on standby 24x7 ?
 
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I'd like to see a user interface to a laptop so that the new, uneducated home owner can totally screw up the machine. That would give us even more reason to spend all day on here talking them through their mistakes. :p
Actually, I WOULD like to see such an interface and a touch screen that tells you where in the cycle the stove is and what faults are happening. A 'Help' screen following the fault would be wonderful. "Clean the machine, dummy!" would be the first screen.
 
  • built in invertor/pure sine power supply/ups with 12v marine dc and 120 ac hook ups.
  • loss of power auto-shut off feature to reduce smoke in house problems, if configured
  • piping and hook-ups using vband style clamps. These can hold 45 psi on turbos without leaking, without silicone, at egt's of over 1200 degrees C. Surely they can hold <1psi of 500F exhaust gas.
    cat_1125_WEBL.jpg
  • EGT and o2 sensor wideband probes and 'autotune'. Probes could constantly monitor burn and produce the most efficient heat based off actual readings. using cheap bosch-style 5-wire o2's.
  • built in wifi control board to hook up to home wireless network. monitor/control stove form anywhere with internet
  • fly ash eater. some kind of constantly rotating 'ash eater' before the combustion blower that keeps the pipe clean. this will be easily cleaned and the control board would tell you when its getting dirty. Thinking like a dryer vent pull out or something to catch ash easily, and then let it drop so as to not clog (use gravity). needs proof of concept, surely. :)
  • super quiet motors, fans, augers. stoves should be seen and felt, not heard.
  • furnace style air filters
  • I like the suggestion above for the air compressor hook up. Almost like how the lawn mowers hve the hose hook up to clean the undercarriage these days-- just hook up your air line, and blast all the soot and fly ash out into the ash pan.
  • "windshield wipers" for the glass. quick clean for easy viewing and less cleaning
  • optional sheild or tint to shut the glass 'off' for watching movies in a dark room (the bouncing flame gets annoying in the dark against plasma tv's)
  • large ash and feed pans
  • home system connections:
    • hot water hook ups. small pump to cycle water for boiler/radiator style houses. focus would not be to heat the house with the hot water, but rather to move 'warm' water through the pipes to keep them from freezing as you use your stove as the main heat source. a byproduct of slightly increased 'cold corner' radation may also benefit closest and other 'around the corner' areas that are often cold but have a radiator.... Water could likely maintain 100 degrees without too much heat scavenging. 1 in, 1 out. the cycle would need to be plumbed in to the house.
    • vband air ducting to tap into existing venting to move hot air around the house instead of where the stove is. options for 0/20/50/80/100 options of front of stove or vent output.
  • Standard sizing of bolts and screws. Nothing is more annoying than wondering it this one is the 13/16, the 5/32, or the 1/2", the phillips or flat head... make 90% use cases servicable with 1 tool- a screw driver, 95% with 2 tools, a screw driver and 1 socket/wrench.
If a company reads this and wants to invent any of these ideas, you have my MIT-style license to do so :)
 
Some reasonable things I would like are;
1. Built in WiFi to control the stove from my phone or computer. Notice this is different from a WiFi thermostat. I want to control the stove not just the temp.
2.Wireless thermostat so I can remote locate to get a more accurate temp reading.
3. Room convection with an additional 3" ducting hook up so I can remote some of the heat if I would like. Preferably on the rear of the stove so I can hide the ducting entering the floor/wall/ceiling.
 
  • built in invertor/pure sine power supply/ups with 12v marine dc and 120 ac hook ups.
  • loss of power auto-shut off feature to reduce smoke in house problems, if configured
  • piping and hook-ups using vband style clamps. These can hold 45 psi on turbos without leaking, without silicone, at egt's of over 1200 degrees C. Surely they can hold <1psi of 500F exhaust gas.
    cat_1125_WEBL.jpg
  • EGT and o2 sensor wideband probes and 'autotune'. Probes could constantly monitor burn and produce the most efficient heat based off actual readings. using cheap bosch-style 5-wire o2's.
  • built in wifi control board to hook up to home wireless network. monitor/control stove form anywhere with internet
  • fly ash eater. some kind of constantly rotating 'ash eater' before the combustion blower that keeps the pipe clean. this will be easily cleaned and the control board would tell you when its getting dirty. Thinking like a dryer vent pull out or something to catch ash easily, and then let it drop so as to not clog (use gravity). needs proof of concept, surely. :)
  • super quiet motors, fans, augers. stoves should be seen and felt, not heard.
  • furnace style air filters
  • I like the suggestion above for the air compressor hook up. Almost like how the lawn mowers hve the hose hook up to clean the undercarriage these days-- just hook up your air line, and blast all the soot and fly ash out into the ash pan.
  • "windshield wipers" for the glass. quick clean for easy viewing and less cleaning
  • optional sheild or tint to shut the glass 'off' for watching movies in a dark room (the bouncing flame gets annoying in the dark against plasma tv's)
  • large ash and feed pans
  • home system connections:
    • hot water hook ups. small pump to cycle water for boiler/radiator style houses. focus would not be to heat the house with the hot water, but rather to move 'warm' water through the pipes to keep them from freezing as you use your stove as the main heat source. a byproduct of slightly increased 'cold corner' radation may also benefit closest and other 'around the corner' areas that are often cold but have a radiator.... Water could likely maintain 100 degrees without too much heat scavenging. 1 in, 1 out. the cycle would need to be plumbed in to the house.
    • vband air ducting to tap into existing venting to move hot air around the house instead of where the stove is. options for 0/20/50/80/100 options of front of stove or vent output.
  • Standard sizing of bolts and screws. Nothing is more annoying than wondering it this one is the 13/16, the 5/32, or the 1/2", the phillips or flat head... make 90% use cases servicable with 1 tool- a screw driver, 95% with 2 tools, a screw driver and 1 socket/wrench.
If a company reads this and wants to invent any of these ideas, you have my MIT-style license to do so :)

At work so it took me too long to finish my post so I didn't see your post lol!
 
just buy a Harman and solve all your issues......................
 
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