- Mar 5, 2008
- 155
I got an email earlier this week that the State of Vermont Dept. of Air Quality had organized an EPA/Vermont approved OWB day on the lawn of the State Offices in Waterbury. Since I work near by, I decided to go check it out to see what units would be there. For a wood boiler geek like me - this was pretty cool to see all the units lined up.
CB E-Classic - They didn't have one hooked and running, but had several units there for folks to look at. I got to spend some time chatting with a couple of the higher ups from the company about my unit and some of the things I have run in to so far - very illuminating - more on that later. CB also had their Maxxim wood pellet unit there - nice looking machine
Greenwood Aspen - They had several models there and had a 175 hooked up to a load and running. Impressive unit. Under a load the exhaust was clear. The unit is well made all around. I like the integrated chimney with the ability to easily attach more sections if needed. I also like the anti-blowback door and catch - nice feature. The only thing I didn't like was the firebox seemed a little small. Otherwise pretty cool. Greenwood was wise to acquire Pro-Fab and add it to their line. They make a nice machine.
Hardy - Interesting. It looked like every other hardy I have seen - like a stainless fridge with a chimney. But this unit seemed small - and the firebox seemed small. I have heard that some of the companies out there are meeting the EPA guidelines by making the fireboxes and water capacities smaller so they run wide open longer. The unit was not running.
Wood Doctor - They had an outdoor pellet unit there. Not hooked up. I guess EPA and Vermont are adding outdoor pellet units to the list of acceptable units. I checked the EPA site tonight and there they were.
Wood Master - Another outdoor wood pellet furnace. Nice looking machine. Not hooked up. The rep tells me they will have an approved cord wood burner soon.
I guess what was interesting was who was not there. I was bummed Heatmor was not there as I have really wanted to see their approved unit. Their website still says little and there are no specs or pictures out there - has anyone seen one? Does it really exist?
Sequoyah Paradise was not there either - though I saw this one at the Forestry Expo this spring.
Also not there from the approved list -
Alternative Fuel Boilers
Bioheat Resources
Aqua-Therm
The two units getting the most attention were the E-Classic and the Aspen.
So back to the E-Classic. Word is that there is permanent fix to the issue of the fire going out coming to everyone who bought a unit whether they had the problem or not. He didn't explain what it was but said we'd all see it soon. Hmmm. I am glad they are doing something more permanent to fix this than a paperclip.
We talked about the gooey creosote in the firebox - normal with down draft gasifiers just like Eric J. said. Just scrape it to keep the level down and try to burn the driest wood you can to minimize it. .
Something else that was interesting had to do with chimneys. They encouraged me to add 8 more feet of chimney to my unit to improve the draft. They also now have these wide, beefy chimney clamps that allow you to add more chimney and secure it without bracing or guy lines. I was planning on doing this anyway so the confirmation was nice.
It was a fun way to spend my lunch hour. I hope they do it again and more companies turn out.
Pete
CB E-Classic - They didn't have one hooked and running, but had several units there for folks to look at. I got to spend some time chatting with a couple of the higher ups from the company about my unit and some of the things I have run in to so far - very illuminating - more on that later. CB also had their Maxxim wood pellet unit there - nice looking machine
Greenwood Aspen - They had several models there and had a 175 hooked up to a load and running. Impressive unit. Under a load the exhaust was clear. The unit is well made all around. I like the integrated chimney with the ability to easily attach more sections if needed. I also like the anti-blowback door and catch - nice feature. The only thing I didn't like was the firebox seemed a little small. Otherwise pretty cool. Greenwood was wise to acquire Pro-Fab and add it to their line. They make a nice machine.
Hardy - Interesting. It looked like every other hardy I have seen - like a stainless fridge with a chimney. But this unit seemed small - and the firebox seemed small. I have heard that some of the companies out there are meeting the EPA guidelines by making the fireboxes and water capacities smaller so they run wide open longer. The unit was not running.
Wood Doctor - They had an outdoor pellet unit there. Not hooked up. I guess EPA and Vermont are adding outdoor pellet units to the list of acceptable units. I checked the EPA site tonight and there they were.
Wood Master - Another outdoor wood pellet furnace. Nice looking machine. Not hooked up. The rep tells me they will have an approved cord wood burner soon.
I guess what was interesting was who was not there. I was bummed Heatmor was not there as I have really wanted to see their approved unit. Their website still says little and there are no specs or pictures out there - has anyone seen one? Does it really exist?
Sequoyah Paradise was not there either - though I saw this one at the Forestry Expo this spring.
Also not there from the approved list -
Alternative Fuel Boilers
Bioheat Resources
Aqua-Therm
The two units getting the most attention were the E-Classic and the Aspen.
So back to the E-Classic. Word is that there is permanent fix to the issue of the fire going out coming to everyone who bought a unit whether they had the problem or not. He didn't explain what it was but said we'd all see it soon. Hmmm. I am glad they are doing something more permanent to fix this than a paperclip.
We talked about the gooey creosote in the firebox - normal with down draft gasifiers just like Eric J. said. Just scrape it to keep the level down and try to burn the driest wood you can to minimize it. .
Something else that was interesting had to do with chimneys. They encouraged me to add 8 more feet of chimney to my unit to improve the draft. They also now have these wide, beefy chimney clamps that allow you to add more chimney and secure it without bracing or guy lines. I was planning on doing this anyway so the confirmation was nice.
It was a fun way to spend my lunch hour. I hope they do it again and more companies turn out.
Pete
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