Heating a Treehouse

[luludahl]

Hiya,

Just wanted a general opinion of the best stove (or other) to heat my 100 sq ft treehouse. It's 8' x 12', 13' tall with a sleeping loft a lots of glass and no insulation (yet?). For electric is has a small solar panel and a deep cycle battery. It's in the catskill mountains so it gets pretty cold but I'm not sure I'd sleep in it in the dead of winter with the wind and all. I want an efficient little stove that's safe. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Lulu

 

[stoveguy2esw]

i'll be honest , i do not know if there is even a guideline for what could be used in that application, (neat looking house though i think its kool!) pellet is likely out due to power constraints, so wood would be alternative, gas doesnt seem feasable , but may be doable, although the tank would have to be on the ground. maybe elk or sombody might know if there is a guideline for a woodstove in a tree house. i dunno where to go with this. would also be interesting to know what the flue requirements would be , especially with the trees surrounding the home the way they do. wish i could be more helpful, hopefully sombody in here will be able to advise you better than i can.

EDIT: is it actually built in a tree or on stilts anchored in the ground , cant really tell from the picture but that would be important to know

 

[luludahl]

Yes, it is indeed a toughie seeing as though the structure itself isn't legal. The house and deck sit on top (unattached) three beams that are mounted by GL (it's specific to treehouse building) brackets to each tree. The stilts (5 of them) are there as added support to the beams though they aren't attached. Essentially everything is touching. Think suspension system.

The deck, however, is 150 sq ft so it may be possible to route the chimney out a way that would leave the trees unscathed. The largest distance between trees is 25'.

Thanks,
Lulu

 

[stoveguy2esw]

wow , this is gonna be a tough one, im back to im not sure where to go with this. is this going to be a habitat or just a weekender. either way im not sure a woodstove would be a good idea. take into account also that i have exactly ZERO experience with the type structure you have here, but my gut is telling me that a woodstove may not be a good idea although i may be wrong, but sombody who knows a lot more than me about this structure needs to advise you on this. i am not qualified. man's gotta know his limitations. im sorry i cant be more helpful hopefully one of the pro's in here can help you.

 

[Harley]

I gotta admit - that does look kind of neat, but I'm thinking there's no aproved application for a setup like that - it is unique.

For heating - I guess I'd recommend long underwear and blankets.

 

[n6crv]

What about one of the wood stoves that are made for tents? I have seen some that the chimney and flue pipe all kind of fold together for storage.
Don

 

[nshif]

How would you even get firewood up there?? is there an elevator??? how do you even get up there or better yet how did you get the building materials up there. That is just to cool, which I suppose is why you need to heat it.

 

[stoveguy2esw]

actually , maybe a direct vent gas wall unit. provided it could be run off a smaller tank like an "rv" tank 50 lb tank, would probably be only good if this is a "weekender" that way the tank could be up there as well. a large tank with this thing possibly swaying around is a no-go with gas lines coming from the ground due to working lines possibly creating a leak , gas line would have to be able to move and im not thinking that would be a good idea. im just shooting in the dark on this one.

 

[BrotherBart]

Small outdoor wood boiler on the ground with the hot water piped up to the treehouse.

 

[senorFrog]

I think it's way cool!

I'd get something Low Cost, High Value like an Englander. Make sure it's steel because it will weigh less. I'm sure you could use some block and tackle and get it up there. Same for firewood. Go to a Boats US or West Marine and pick up some good block and tackle w/braided or nylon line.

Hell, if your in MASS I'll give you a hand. The .gov can eff the hell off and shove the permits right up their a$$. Power to the People!

 

[MrGriz]

That is very cool! You can definitely throw the words "approved", "code" and "standard" out the window on this one. This gets back to good old fashioned garage engineering.

I would say that as small a steel stove as you can find would be the answer. Just how air tight is that place? The idea of a stove designed for a tent is a great one.

 

[stoveguy2esw]

[quote author="senorFrog" date="1190427467"]I think it's way cool!

I'd get something cheap like an Englander. ![/quote


i prefer "inexpensive" im kinda proud of our product line

but then cheap is faster to type, so no offense really taken bro.

 

[KeithO]

I think using some kind of liquid fuel would be best for highest BTU/lb of weight. I would consider modifying kerosene burning products to take diesel, since the diesel fuel is by itself a lot safer and less combustible / volatile than kerosene. And if you get 2007 reduced sulphur (on highway) diesel, it will also not have the bad smell previously associated with diesel.

 

[senorFrog]

stoveguy2esw, no offense intended. I fixed my post. They look like a great stove to me. If I was in the loop, I might have gone that route.

 

[stoveguy2esw]

stoveguy2esw, no offense intended. I fixed my post. They look like a great stove to me. If I was in the loop, I might have gone that route.

hey bro, i was just yankin your chain , i actually do appreciate your mentioning my product and i understand your meaning , i was just playing, but dont get me wrong i am extremely proud of the product we field at ESW i have stated here in this forum that "bang for the buck , i'll put our line up against anyone in the industry" no hard feeling here man.

 

[luludahl]

thanks for all the ideas! i was definitely kicking around the idea of either the little cod (http://www.marinestove.com/codinfo.htm) because it seems to be made for movement or a small camp stove (though are they more dangerous?). seeing as though it's only 100 sq ft, i reckon anything i get is going to heat it more than adequately.

to answer some questions: i'm pretty married to the idea of burning wood; the structure is relatively airtight but there's no insulation and lots of glass (the walls are 12" rough cut shiplap); it is only a weekender house for now.

and as for how i get things up to that deck:

 

[stoveguy2esw]

no kidding thats a cute little bugger, and epa certified too. i didnt know aabout that little stove , glad you posted it , nice specs for a little unit too. interesting though , i didnt see any outside the dwelling pipe on thier site , granted i just took a quick peek (bookmarked for later) but if a woodstove is viable somthing like this is the best candidate IMHO

 

[luludahl]

oh.. and it was built by me, two carpenter friends, a generator and a whole mess of patience. the previous owner had the land 'selectively' (= 40 of my oldest trees) logged 3 days before i closed on it so i tried to incorporate as much of the downed trees he left behind into the building process. that was the least i could do just short of suing his ass.

 

[jpl1nh]

luludahl, absolutely unique and very cool! You took my childhood playspace and grew it up! How do you use it? Is it a vacation spot? Hunting, fishing? I get the impression you don't reside there. And I must say that "little cod" is really cool too. I was gonna recommend Woodstock Stove's "mini franklin" but its a gas stove and the little cod looks like a really good option.

 

[Gooserider]

Cool treehouse for sure, and I was also going to suggest the Little Cod - figured it's designed for boats so probably a bit better on clearances and such than the bigger stoves, and probably a good match for the area. Probably won't give tremendously long burns, but I don't see any way around that.

Gooserider

 

[senorFrog]

I'd get that insulation up fast! Especially underneath the floor.

Please post some pics when finished.

I understand the reluctance to say, but more or less where are you located? Pacific northwest?

 

[Corie]

Hey Mike, wouldn't it be neat if we made one of those? It would have to run on a 4 inch chimney though, but still a little one room heater would be pretty nifty.

 

[elkimmeg]

Tree house like that beats a sling sitting in a tree hunting just stick the gun out the window. Oh do remember to open it up first.

 

[senorFrog]

I get the feeling that lulu isn't much of a hunter.

 

[luludahl]

hahahaha you couldn't be more right senorFrog, not a lick of hunter in me. i do fish the bass out of my pond on a rare occasion.

the house is in the catskill mountains in upstate, ny. so it gets cold! i think i've narrowed it down to these:

http://marinestove.com/sardineinfo.htm

(broken link removed)

i'd go with the 'scout' on the last link but something in it's look doesn't fill me with so much confidence in that an ember wouldn't fly outta somewhere? hhhhm. if i go with the sardine i'll just spend a weekend insulating and that little guy will probably do the trick, no?