EPA Phase 2 Certified Furnace

[lampmfg]

After a lot of time and effort, I'm extremely excited to announce that Lamppa Manufacturing has become the first and only current wood furnace to gain EPA Phase 2 certification. I have attached our test as well as a comparison sheet we have done with the Phase 1 certified furnaces. Also, I included an article about our company as well as a paper that was written by Daryl Lamppa going into more detail on the testing results.

Thank you to all who have and continue to support Small American Manufacturing! It's been you who have allowed us to continue down this path.

(broken link removed)
http://www.timberjay.com/stories/poised-for-growth,13580
(broken link removed)


(broken link removed)

Garrett Lamppa

 

[BoiledOver]

Pretty good efficiency ratings for a wood burner. Snipped from your report.

 

[Highbeam]

Not to sound morbid, but what are the long term plans for kuuma? The product is great but will the company or design be sold to someone else soon?

 

[Buzz Saw]

Not to sound morbid, but what are the long term plans for kuuma? The product is great but will the company or design be sold to someone else soon?

Why would they sell, especially soon?

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

 

[WoodyIsGoody]

After a lot of time and effort, I'm extremely excited to announce that Lamppa Manufacturing has become the first and only current wood furnace to gain EPA Phase 2 certification. I have attached our test as well as a comparison sheet we have done with the Phase 1 certified furnaces. Also, I included an article about our company as well as a paper that was written by Daryl Lamppa going into more detail on the testing results.

Congratulations! That's quite an achievement. I know it was a long road but it sounds like all your hard work, testing and steady improvements have paid off!

Well done.

 

[Highbeam]

Why would they sell, especially soon?

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

Very small shop and the young one is 68. No other employees are ever shown. None of my business except when buying something like this I want to know i won't need parts from us stove! Also if volume was cranked way up then maybe prices will come down. Maybe you want to buy now before the design is sold to somebody who isn't willing to build them so well

 

[STIHLY DAN]

Good job, We who have had your furnace had no doubts that you would pass. I hope your design is patented so no one can steal it.

 

[lampmfg]

Very small shop and the young one is 68. No other employees are ever shown. None of my business except when buying something like this I want to know i won't need parts from us stove! Also if volume was cranked way up then maybe prices will come down. Maybe you want to buy now before the design is sold to somebody who isn't willing to build them so well

We've been making much progress over this past year. We hired a General Manager who has taken a large burden off the young 68-year-old and got some additional welders. My dad has scaled his welding way back and does much more quality control now instead. We also have been working with the City of Tower on a new building which should help us improve production without impacting quality.

Last year before the testing was finalized we had gone back and forth with a couple of prospective buyers but in the end, we couldn't pull the trigger on a sale. We plan on making these for the long run so no one should be worried about getting parts from US stove -lol.

 

[Highbeam]

We've been making much progress over this past year. We hired a General Manager who has taken a large burden off the young 68-year-old and got some additional welders. My dad has scaled his welding way back and does much more quality control now instead. We also have been working with the City of Tower on a new building which should help us improve production without impacting quality.

Last year before the testing was finalized we had gone back and forth with a couple of prospective buyers but in the end, we couldn't pull the trigger on a sale. We plan on making these for the long run so no one should be worried about getting parts from US stove -lol.

Thank you Garret. I am very impressed with your furnaces and you should be proud of the accomplishments. Congratulations on your success.

 

[JRHAWK9]

Good job, We who have had your furnace had no doubts that you would pass. I hope your design is patented so no one can steal it.

I thought of this too. What's to stop some of the larger companies from buying one and reverse engineer what they accomplished through 30 years of trial and error.

 

[Highbeam]

I thought of this too. What's to stop some of the larger companies from buying one and reverse engineer what they accomplished through 30 years of trail and error.

As other furnace companies become more desperate to meet the 2020 requirements, or die, they may be willing to make some very attractive offers for the design. Heck, the kuuma has already won EPA certification and can be put right on the assembly line. 2020 is only a couple of years away.

 

[lampmfg]

Nice article run today in the Duluth News Tribune.
http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/news/4329352-iron-range-wood-furnace-factory-needs-room-grow

 

[lampmfg]

https://www.mprnews.org/story/2018/04/25/wood-heater-makers-push-back-against-pollution-rules-mn
We haven't raised our furnace prices since becoming the first furnace to pass the EPA 2020 regulations #7yearsislongenough

 

[BoiledOver]

Yeah, it seems your neighbor and competitor has been rather lazy in their R&D department. The following quoted from the mprnews.org article, text changed to bold by me:

"But even if it helps Central Boiler in northwestern Minnesota, a delay or rollback of emission standards would be bad news for a northeastern Minnesota company.

Lamppa Manufacturing is betting its future on the new emission standards. The small company in Tower, Minn., builds indoor wood furnaces that are already far cleaner than the new emission standards.

The company invested a lot of time and money to develop the first wood furnace in the country to meet EPA 2020 standards and expected that would give it an edge in the market, said general manager Dale Horihan.

"Now, if they go ahead and back these rules off, it's really not fair," said Horihan. "These manufacturers have had seven years to perfect and meet this new requirement. And now they're asking for two or three years on top of that." "

 

[lampmfg]

(broken link removed to https://www.planetforward.org/idea/burning-a-fire-under-innovation-tensions-in-the-home-furnace-industry)

This just ran today.

 

[blades]

A bit twisted but the gist is there- Got to love the chart ( below poverty level) what a crock , not a true representation of the wood burning fraternity.

 

[Mojappa]

Wish I could’ve been able to finagle a way to cover the expense of a Kuuma. Had to settle for a Drolet that i hope to modify and get similar performance (operation-wise) from it. If my furnace experience is a good one and I end up needing to replace my furnace I know where I’ll be investing next.

 

[JRHAWK9]

https://forgreenheat.blogspot.com/2018/04/trump-administration-to-change-obama.html

Not so good news for Lamppa, but great news for all the whining procrastinating companies out there.

 

[Mojappa]

Still can’t fathom how having a cleaner overpopulated world is viewed negatively except by a small number of CEO’s that don’t want to increase expenses at any cost. I seem to remember reading somewhere that we were a democratic nation but time and time again the wealthy minority is catered to at the expense of the majority. this isn’t a left vs right thing, it affects everyone and their offspring, you’d think it would matter more but sadly.....

 

[blades]

Simple - money talks- follow the money trail- type of government makes no difference.

 

[lampmfg]

https://forgreenheat.blogspot.com/2018/04/trump-administration-to-change-obama.html

Not so good news for Lamppa, but great news for all the whining procrastinating companies out there.

This is terrible news!

EPA does not anticipate that any party would be prejudiced by the requested extension, which is supported by Petitioners, and is not opposed by Respondent-Intervenors. No merits briefs have been filed, and oral argument is not yet scheduled.

We are extremely prejudiced at this if that counts for anything.

 

[JRHAWK9]

This is terrible news!

EPA does not anticipate that any party would be prejudiced by the requested extension, which is supported by Petitioners, and is not opposed by Respondent-Intervenors. No merits briefs have been filed, and oral argument is not yet scheduled.

We are extremely prejudiced at this if that counts for anything.

Don't want to play the what-if game. However, I can see the EPA now changing the test procedure and making everyone re-test again.

 

[woodey]

Makes me wonder what results other manufacturers could have achieved at this point had they chosen to invest more time and money into R&D rather than to lobbyists. SHAMEFUL

 

[JRHAWK9]

Makes me wonder what results other manufacturers could have achieved at this point had they chosen to invest more time and money into R&D rather than to lobbyists. SHAMEFUL

In my conversation awhile ago with a local Hearth & Home retail store (SBI dealer), they did not seem overly concerned and flat out told me they didn't think the 2020 standard would stick when it got closer. I also emailed SBI directly and they seemed to take the same stance. Claimed the certification numbers were too tough and didn't see how any wood burning furnace would be able to comply. I did email them back when the VF100 passed and told them if a little mom & pop company can do it there are no excuses why a large company with a much larger R&D budget couldn't figure it out as well. IMO, the industry as a whole just didn't put much, if any, resources into complying but directed these resources into making excuses and trying to fight the certification instead. They just didn't seem to be taking it seriously.....or seriously enough to want to be part of the solution.

 

[JRHAWK9]

Wish I could’ve been able to finagle a way to cover the expense of a Kuuma. Had to settle for a Drolet that i hope to modify and get similar performance (operation-wise) from it. If my furnace experience is a good one and I end up needing to replace my furnace I know where I’ll be investing next.

I've learned many years ago it's best to cry once than to either have buyers remorse or to spend even more $$ in the long run to get what you originally wanted. One example which comes to mind is when I bought tires years ago for one of my cars. I really wanted a set of BFG KD's (King of Dry, a dry only tire). I didn't want to spend the money so I went with something cheaper but still had great reviews. Well, I know I made a mistake driving the car on the way home. The car felt like it was riding on a pillow, something I hated. Those tires didn't last 1,000 miles and they were replaced by the KD's I originally wanted. By trying to save money it actually ended up costing me more money in the long run.