Attack DPX Thoughts

[tcraigscott]

I am trying to make a decision on an indoor gasification boiler.

I have been spending a lot of time reading different posts here and trying to find different dealers with different prices that will ship to my location (Geographic center of BC)

I don't have piles and piles of money to spend so I am looking for something that will be a good value.

It seems as I can find either the

attack dpx 45
eko 40
biomass40
or Vedolux 37 (although not quite sure if output is high enought)

to ship to my area without too much trouble (granted about $1000 in freight)

To me of these the one that looks to be the best value is the attack dpx 45. Having the negative draft looks like a good idea.

I haven't seen a lot of members with the eko.

I found the attack dpx for $5,337.94 at http://www.e-comfortusa.com/

To wrap it all up I would like some input on which stove some of you more experiences users would recommend (If you have one would you buy it again)

Also which dealers you would recommend for dealing with remotely and getting the best price.

Thank,

Craig

 

[stee6043]

You haven't seen a lot of members with the EKO? Holy smokes...I'd guess EKO and Tarm make up better than 50% of the users here in the boiler room. Biomass is also quite popular.

I haven't heard a lot about the Attack but it certainly looks to be very similar to the EKO/Biomass. One thing I noticed is the "optional" controls setup. If you go Attack I would certainly advise you get the Profi setup.

I also find it interesting that the Attack apparently claims to be slightly less efficient than the others. Published efficiency ratings should be taken lightly anyway, but what makes the Attack "less efficient" I wonder? Is it the controls? Or is it the draft fan configuration? I'd certainly do more research on the differences.

I'd personally recommend an EKO to anyone asking. I'm extremely pleased with mine. It's a heating powerhouse and very reliable. If you have endless amounts of cash I'd recommend a Froiling (spelling) based on some of the things I've read. And if you have infinite amounts of space I'd recommend a Garn.

 

[mikefrommaine]

Probably does not matter in Canada but the attack is not ul listed.

 

[tcraigscott]

That was a typo, i meant to say that I have seen a lot eko owners.

 

[ewdudley]

I am trying to make a decision on an indoor gasification boiler.

I have been spending a lot of time reading different posts here and trying to find different dealers with different prices that will ship to my location (Geographic center of BC)

I don't have piles and piles of money to spend so I am looking for something that will be a good value.

It seems as I can find either the

attack dpx 45
eko 40
biomass40
or Vedolux 37 (although not quite sure if output is high enought)

...

I haven't heard a lot about the Attack but it certainly looks to be very similar to the EKO/Biomass. One thing I noticed is the "optional" controls setup. If you go Attack I would certainly advise you get the Profi setup.

I also find it interesting that the Attack apparently claims to be slightly less efficient than the others. Published efficiency ratings should be taken lightly anyway, but what makes the Attack "less efficient" I wonder? Is it the controls? Or is it the draft fan configuration? I'd certainly do more research on the differences.

I've been running a DP 45, which appears to differ substantially from the DPX version. It looks like th DPX has an array of vertical fire tubes in the rear, same as the majority of other manufacturers.

(The DP has a big secondary combustion chamber that surrounds the secondary combustion refractories with no fire tubes in the rear, it's more of a big finned heat-sink. This may account for the lower efficiency rating, but is is simpler, requires less draft, and is easier to keep clean. What I did was to buy a bigger model than what I needed with the plan of throttling the gasification nozzle to reduce the firing rate and thereby increase the relative size of the heat exchange surfaces. This has worked out quite well, but none of this is relevant since you're looking at the DPX.)

The Profi RK2001U control on mine was junk. This a common failure and there's a thread out there that identifies the likely failed component. I've replaced the RK2001U with alternative controls both because it was unreliable and it implemented an irrelevant control strategy in the first place. What it does is to control the draft fan speed as a function of boiler outlet temperature, but with storage what you want is an optimal rate of combustion, which is a function of exhaust temperature, and primary and secondary air flows.

So I would definitely recommend against any boiler that uses the RK2001U if the goal is to take advantage of the variable speed draft fan feature. A simpler control with a separate $12 electronic fan speed control will do a better job. And based on Attack's choice of the RK2001U control for the Profi version I would be very skeptical that they could get the controls right for the lambda version.

The other big deficiency on my DP was the lack of insulation. I did a pretty decent job of re-skinning mine with a an inch of rock wool panels on top of the original half-inch of fiberglass. The results were excellent, but it might not be the kind of project you'd be up for.

But the boiler itself is a nice solid unit. Solid design, easy to clean, nice doors and gasketing, simple refractories, runs hot, clean, and efficiently. So I'm pleased enough with it in the end and saved some money. But had the Vedolux been available back when I was in the market, it would have been on the top of my list.

--ewd