Indoor boiler question

[tjcole50]

Got the ok from insurance to install an indoor wood boiler in a detached garage. Actually an enclosed lean to off the back (currently wood storage) anyway. Without storage how long do some of these boilers burn for. Say at 10 degrees outside can i sleep a full 8 hours and not worry or will it need fed every 4-6 hours? I was looking at some econo burns which stated storage isnt needed. Clearly jt is bettter with storage but what can i expext without it? Thanks

 

[goosegunner]

A lot of variables here.

Heat loss of home.

Boiler size

Wood quality

The first year I had my Econoburn 200 I heated with out storage. My house is 2800 sq feet, 18 years old, heat loss of 46,000 at -15. It would go over night easily. Most of the time I would not fill it full. During warmer weather it became more difficult because it was best to use small loads of wood.

Since adding storage I would never want to go back. So much more convenient. It is hard to describe the difference.

If you would like to talk via phone send me a private message.

gg

 

[tjcole50]

1700 sq ft. Have an nc30 in the living room that does great but bringing wood in is getting a bit old as we have to walk up our deck to bring it in and all the mess. I store all of my wood off the back side of one of my detached garages. I have a door where i back my truck/trailer unload and stsck into lean to i would put the boiler in the garage itself. I figure if it radiates heat at all atleast it will heat the work space as well. From the boiler to the lean to would be a 5 ft walk to my stacks. My underground piping would only be a 30 ft run to the house. I was set on a p and m outdoor boiler. But if i can get 8-12 solid heat out of an indoor in my garage i will do that instead. Storage wouldnt be an option for sometime. Eventually i could put a 1000 gallon tank next to the unused side of our house if that helps but it mihht be a few years

 

[airlina]

I have been heating with an Econoburn 100 since 2009. Started with the boiler in the basement with no storage for the first 5 years. Got tired of the mess in the house , so last summer built a boiler shed and moved the boiler from the basement. Burned without storage in the shed last winter and completed phase 2 of the project this summer by adding 500 gallons of storage. Without storage the boiler did a fine job of heating my 1700 sq. ft log house but it required tending to burn it clean. By that i mean if you don't want it to idle , you have to batch burn based on the conditions outside. At night , I would load it to the max and adjust my thermostats to actually waste heat so the boiler wouldn't idle too much during the all night burn. I would get 9 hours of heat even on the coldest nights . I know I may be stoned for saying this but i am actually looking forward to some cold weather to see the difference this winter with storage added. I did a few test fires this summer and supplied my DHW for 4 days after getting the storage to 190 degrees . Bruce

 

[jasonh]

Airlina I won't stone ya. Im tired of this heat. Can't wait for fall and winter. I'm only 33 but my elder neighbors hate the winter. That's understandable. I'll get there some day.

To keep on topic, that's pretty impressive to heat without storage and make it work. Keep us updated on the changes from without storage to storage as far as wood consumption, ease of operation etc.

 

[tjcole50]

Airlina very slick n clean setup looks really nice. Cant decide on indoor in thr garage with no storage vs the typical owb gassifier of course. Posotives and negstives to both. Does the indoor boiler also hear that building through radiant?

 

[velvetfoot]

Ditto on the great setup!

 

[airlina]

Thanks guys, as other guys on this forum have said , their boiler shed turns into a man cave as mine has. As far as the radiant heat from the boiler goes- absolutely , even without the storage , the heat given off by the flue piping and boiler doors will radiate to your garage or shed. That was one of the reasons i initially installed the Econoburn in my basement-so any heat loss would be into the house. The only problem was the mess in the house with wood transport and storage , and dust control during cleaning of the boiler outweighed the heat loss advantage. Having operated last winter in the shed , I found it to be a much better setup than in the house. Another advantage to the shed is wood transport. In the photos you can see my wood storage area which is 200 feet from the boiler shed. I use pallets with sides to stack my wood which are transported by my tractor with forks attached from the storage area into the boiler shed as needed. Keeps the wood handling to a minimum which is key when processing your own firewood. Bruce

 

[maple1]

What would the negatives be on an indoor unit in an outbuilding vs. an OWB?

If you can get all your winters wood under cover with it too, you'll have warm dry wood all winter and a nice warm outbuilding.

 

[tjcole50]

The more i think the more indoor in garage makes sense. I mean hell i feed my stove by going outsidd to get wood anyway. Even if it gets a 6 hour burn similar to the stove at full tilt. It is still the same as feeding my indoor stove but i no longer have to bring the mess in. Econo burn the best burn time and overall regarded indoor boiler around here or what

 

[Buzz Saw]

@airlina, what's the dimensions of the room boiler room for your setup.

 

[airlina]

My Boiler shed dimensions are 14' wide (if you measured across the front) X 12' deep. Everything fits , but I had to angle the 500 gallon storage tank a bit for a good fit. If I did it again , I would make it 14'X14' , for my boiler with 500 gallons of storage. I can fit 2 pallets of wood during the heating season. Bruce