How hard would it be to convert woodstove to heat water??

[michiganwinters]

I dont know if there is anyone doing this already...if there is let me know how its working and what your setup is. I have a PE summit and love it! I was thinking the only thing that would be better is to somehow have this also heating my water. Is this even possible? I know some indoor coal stoves have exchangers that can be purchased so why not with this stove. I dont use alot of hot water but it would be nice to not have my waterheater kicking on.

Any ideas??

Audrey

 

[webbie]

Best idea, IHMO, is to use a coil on the exterior of the firebox - in your case perhaps between the inner firebox and external jacket. There are some units which can fit inside the firebox, but there can be a problem with overheat, especially when the power goes out.

Here is an article that might help you get started:
https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/articles/domestic_dhw

 

[JustWood]

I have thought about doing this before and I guess the only thing that keeps me from doing it is the possibility of condensation from the pipes dripping on my furnace or blower. The way I'm set up I could only put the coil on the back of the stove to get any amount of heat and thats where the blower is.I could pobably rig up something to divert any condensation but right now I have bigger fish(projects) to fry.Maybe this winter I'll have more time to tackle this.

 

[sparke]

This is kinnda what Craig is speaking about. http://cgi.ebay.com/STAINLESS-STEEL...ryZ41987QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

There used to be one on ebay that mounts on the exterior of the stove. It is not there right now but check later. Search "wood Boiler" or "wood hot water"

 

[Ncountry]

At my last place I placed a coil of 1/2" copper on top of our old riteway stove, placed hot water heater behind and above stove, and plumbed coil into top and bottom of hotwater tank. My experimental system worked surprisingly well.Free hot water all winter.

 

[steam man]

Check out this thread-https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/13691/. There are other options. www.yukon-eagle.com has a device called the "hotrod" that goes into a firebox. I would make sure you have some safety devices and an install that prevents overheating.