3 Wood has anyone heard of this brand

[bulldogbones]

Has anyone heard of "3 Wood" they make wood boilers

 

[Singed Eyebrows]

That is a Biasi 3 Wood boiler & I think it's Pex Supply that handles these. They are very well made & throw out a lot of heat, that said, they can produce a lot of creosote. Some owners don't have trouble though. With the bargains on downdraft gassers now I don't think it pays to buy a new one of these. You can buy an Atmos DC32S for right around the same price, Randy

 

[Bliz]

Bulldogbones, I had one of those Biasi boilers for a year and ended up taking it out to put in a gassification unit. I am not a newbie when it comes to burning wood (30 years) but I sure make a mistake buying one of those. I know 6 people in my area that put them in and 3, including me have taken them out. In the warmer weather they are creosote factories. A typical burn time between loading is 4 hours, some get more, some get less. Don't base your decision solely on my opinion or anybody else's, but do make sure you actually talk to someone who has run one for at least a year. In my opinion you would be crazy to even consider one when for not much more money you could install a good gassification unit.

 

[bulldogbones]

^^^^ thanks for the heads up. As the winter is ending and the weather is warming up I have been noticing prices on the gasser's coming down. So hopefully I might be able to find a deal.

 

[flameretardant]

I'm not sure why they are marketing this unit as a wood boiler. Where it really shines is on soft coal, thats what its made for.

 

[l40knocker]

This is the 3rd season that I am burning a Biasi 3 wood 4 section. I first started burning wood in this boiler. I will agree that this boiler is really not a good boiler for burning wood in. About half way through the first season I started to try burning some coal in it to try and lenghten burn time and eliminate the creosote build up. Well to my delight, it is a GREAT boiler for burning hard coal (anthracite). I fire it up in November and she keeps burnin till April. Tend to her twice most days and 3 times when its really cold. Heat a 2200 sq ft colonial and get all my domestic hot water too. Burn 3 tons at 265 per ton for a whole winter. The best part is that the thermostat is on 71. I am glad I tried the coal before I got rid of it

 

[spidy1967]

I have a 3wood5 installed about 1 1/2 yrs ago, I wanted a boiler that DOES NOT require electricity to run, we do loose power here from time to time. This unit will run by gravity if necessary, really saved me during the ice storm or 98 when i had an old HStarm. I was curious if you have coal grates or if you just work with the stock stove? I have heard that there are grates availble for this unit. What do you do? do you rake the coal? I really want to try using coal to extend the burn times. Any information would be extremely helpful.

 

[spidy1967]

I did find a set of grates for the biasi 3wood5 qht gave me this part number. Part# B3-57000863 for the 3wood5 i have only seen one other site with this and the 6 and 7 part number.

 

[l40knocker]

I got the coal grates for my Biasi last season when they first came out. They have improved them since then. I highly recommend this boiler as a coal burner vs a wood burner. I tend to the boiler 2 times each day on typical cold weather. If the temps go into the teens during the day and zero at night I will put some extra coal on the fire during the day. I get all the heat and hot water I need for a family of 4 and typically keep the 2200 ft2 house at 70 with ease. I will go through approx. 4 tons this year as apposed to 3 ton last season

 

[spidy1967]

What type of coal do you use? I would be heating about 1200 sq ft single story ranch with one zone in the basement to heat a small room. I purchased the 3wood5 might be a little over-sized for the house but i was considering using some hot water storage at some point in time, but if i can get similar results from coal i would give that a try. I have never burned coal before not sure how to light it or what needs to be done to keep it going. any help with that would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for the reply, i was also curious where you got the coal grate for yours and it it was difficult to install.

 

[shawntitan]

I've been burning coal in my New Yorker the last two seasons, learned a lot about coal from the NEPA coal forum
http://nepacrossroads.com/forum-55.html

 

[spidy1967]

I've been burning coal in my New Yorker the last two seasons, learned a lot about coal from the NEPA coal forum
http://nepacrossroads.com/forum-55.html

Thanks for the link, There are others using the 3wood like myself with coal. Still not sure if its worth buying the grates but i have all summer to figure that out.

 

[spidy1967]

Tried coal for the first time thrusday night, took me a while to get the feel for how to get it started and build up the bed. I slowly added layer after layer untill i had shoveled in a whole 50 lb bag. I set the aquastat a little lower than with wood and let it do its thing. When i burned wood i would have to get up a couple times at night to keep the boiler going so on that same routine i would go down and check the boiler, I would look in the peek hole and i could see the blue guys dancing and glowing red below them every time i went down. the temp stayed consistant at 165 to 175 all night. I got up the next morning knocked down the ash added about 20lbs of coal let it get a good glow going and went to work. I stopped home at noon and the same thing dancing blue flames and red glow still going strong. When i came home at 5p.m. i knocked down the ash added about 50lbs. Went down at 8a.m. the next morning boiler temp still 175 glowing red. The house has been consistantly 72 deg. I have to say i believe im sold on coal. I dont have to tend it or fuss with it just add it and walk away. I think i will get the shaker grates to help knock down the ash. the temps thurs. night were -9 friday 15 and this a.m. they are in the mid 30's. As far as the biasi goes i believe its best suited for burning coal. Wood would be a backup if you have to but coal is best in this boiler. As for the grates ill get them over the summer and post again this fall about them, im not sure but it would make shaking down the ash much easier, it can be done without them just takes a bit extra time to get all the ash out. Hope this help anyone trying to make a decision.

 

[Biasi]

Biasi 3wood 4 elements

 

[spidy1967]

Looks a little like mine only one section shorter and ALOT cleaner.. lol.. i bought the grates i think they will work fine. guess i will see i have 4 ton of coal waiting.. but im not going to wish the summer away...

 

[webbie]

As per our forum rules, commercial members are not allowed to start and promote threads featuring their own products...which it appears the multiple postings by member Biasi represents.
The thread is therefore closed.