I need to learn enough to choose...

[hoverwheel]

I am absolutely committed to cease using gas to heat my home for a panoply of reasons.

My first pass involved the use of two pellet stoves. This might not have been the best winter to start.

My wife is not happy and says if she isn't warm next winter (melt the paint off the walls warm) that I will be sorry.

I believe her.

I have access to a mason (friend) and will build a triple flu chimney in the spring serving a fireplace, a wood stove and a furnace or boiler. I believe in wearing a belt AND suspenders.

I have an existing gas fired warm air furnace on my side and an old convection furnace on the other side.

Total sq feet to be heated on my side is a little over 2000sf. The other side will stay pellet stoves for now. Better insulation and more open layout.

I would like to run baseboard hydronic radiators in order to get heart to a couple areas of the house that are quite cold and not well served by warm air ducts. On the other hand a boiler to serve such a system is quite a bit more complicated.

The easier solution is to install an add on furnace to the existing furnace and use the existing warm air ducts. However that can't hit the rest of the house the cold areas that is. And I worry if it can deliver enough heat into the ducts.

My preference for either central heat solution is to use a stoker coal heater. I like the koker keystoker.

I'm looking for guidance in choosing which heating model, manufacturer, etc.

I need a solution that doesn't require constant attention, operates reasonably economically, can be installed DIY and KEEPS MY WIFE WARM!

I can plumb and wire and have access to tradesmen to do the parts that are scary.

Any suggested reading, links, advice?

 

[GENECOP]

A lot of great Info here.....check out and Google Rocket Mass Heater.....I loaded a few PDF's I found online, very interesting concept and they are supposed to use very little wood....also check out Garn.....

 

[GENECOP]

Sent from my iPad
Rocket Mass HeateRs: Superefficient Woodstoves YOU Can Build The New Updated Version of: Rocket stoves to Heat cob Buildings Ianto Evans Leslie Jackson A Cob Cottage Company Publication 2006, 2007

 

[STIHLY DAN]

The kuuma is load and go. No fiddling or adjusting at all. Actually kind of boring.

 

[brenndatomu]

The easier solution is to install an add on furnace to the existing furnace and use the existing warm air ducts.

The kuuma is load and go. No fiddling or adjusting at all. Actually kind of boring.

Here's your link...(broken link removed)

 

[jebatty]

After looking at the Kuuma Vapor-Fire, it would be high on my list if I could use a forced air wood furnace in my house -- still thinking a bit if that would be possible. I haven't spent much time looking at other wood furnaces, but the test numbers on the Vapor-Fire are excellent.

 

[flyingcow]

Put low temp rads with trv in each room. Run pex to rads.

 

[Vizsla]

I have run radiant panels in some old homes with very little access and almost no drywall damage or removal. Just have to be creative, with fishing thru walls, yet still do it the right way. Using panels has a lot of flexibility and with TRV's either now or later all the control you will ever want. Pricey yes, but crazy efficient use of BTU's.

 

[Karl_northwind]

I've installed panel rads with TRV's in a few places (old and new) now and have gotten rave reviews. one customer said: i know if it's cooling off in the house, I need to fire the boiler again, because that means the water temp is below 115F. this is in sub zero temps. if you're going to go thru the work of installing a boiler, panel rads and trv's is hard to beat, and if you're doing forced air, the kuuma laampa sounds like a solid unit.

karl

 

[hoverwheel]

I can see I have a lot more research to do...

I'm somewhat nervous about an outdoor wood furnace/boiler because of the need to go out to it perhaps several times per day. I don't mind a daily or every other day chore to feed and groom the thing but my work keeps me away longer than the burn time. Also unsure how my town will react to it.

I do like the sound of conveniently running pex to even remote parts of the house for heating...

 

[GENECOP]

Most types of heating we are discussing here requires two-three times a day visitation...Filling...servicing...Etc...

 

[flyingcow]

If you size your storage properly should look at once a day fire sometimes two when it's brutal cold out. Low temp emitters will help alot in getting the most out of your boiler.

 

[flyingcow]

I have an indoor boiler in an out building. With 820 gals of water in basement. Works well for me.

 

[Clarkbug]

You could put in a gasser with a storage tank, then run pex to radiators as you need to. You could also put coils in your ductwork for the furnaces so that you can heat with water instead of the gas, and use some of your existing infrastructure. If you have enough storage, you can keep the visits to the boiler down.