Installing wood furnace in cargo trailer

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catriverrat

New Member
Hearth Supporter
Sep 8, 2015
42
Iowa
I have just bought a old house that I am remolding and I don't think I will have time to get chimney and stove installed before winter.
My idea is to install my stove in a cargo trailer and pipe to the house has anyone done this before.
 
Thinking this would not work very well with a woodstove . . . wood furnace . . . maybe not so great either unless hooked up to duct work . . . but the biggest issue I would think would be getting the insurance company/inspecting agency (if required) to sign off on a very unconventional, temporary install.
 
Well, can't say it hasn't been tried.

[Hearth.com] Installing wood furnace in cargo trailer
 
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Prolly lasted the season, but it looks like leaks were an issue. Fact is that it probably would be only a day's worth of work saved to put it outdoors than in. And then you have materials that may be unnecessary for the in house install. Plus it is not going to work during an outage.

Let's start from scratch here. Describe the house and options for installing a stove or furnace right now. Is there a basement? Is there a chimney that could be lined and used? Do you have some cords of wood already dried and seasoned?
 
The house is a large two story with full basement with a older forced air furnace. At some time the chimney was removed down to the first floor. I do have a wood burning furnace from our other house that we moved. Also 6 to 8 cords of dry ash and oak ready to burn.
 
Good deal on the wood. Maybe continue to remove the chimney all the way down and then put up a metal, chimney up the chase? What is the wood furnace make/model?
 
begreen said:
Good deal on the wood. Maybe continue to remove the chimney all the way down and then put up a metal, chimney up the chase? What is the wood furnace make/model?
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The stove is a us stove company I think origary bought from tractor supply co.
 
If it's a Hot Blast model (1300-1500) then it would take 6" chimney pipe.
 
My idea is to mount the furnace in the front half of a 16' x 8' charge trailer with chimney though the roof. I thought is I had it approx. 10' or 12' from house I could duct it into existing house furnace ond duct work.
 
Personally I wouldn't do that for a number of reasons like: too short chimney, heat loss, wasted duct work, sealing from the weather, safety, and the fact that with another day's effort you have something permanent and safe instead of jerry-rigged and temporary.
 
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begreen said:
Personally I wouldn't do that for a number of reasons like: too short chimney, heat loss, wasted duct work, sealing from the weather, safety, and the fact that with another day's effort you have something permanent and safe instead of jerry-rigged and temporary.
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First of all I want to thank you for your time and options. The problem I have is if I want to continue to heat with wood my wife would prefer it be an outside furnace. I would think it would be safer. As for inslutating I'm a carpenter by trade so not a problem
 
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There is a lot of radiant heat that comes off the front of that furnace, and a little off the cabinet, that would be wasted in the trailer. That heat, combined with duct losses, kept my drafty, uninsulated basement in the mid to upper 60s.
 
Not safer really unless the furnace has issues like a rusting heat exchanger and in that case it is just as dangerous outdoors as in. Most safety issues are with poor installation, poor maintenance and poor operation. All are possible with and indoor unit as well as outdoors. But with a furnace so close to the house there are smoke issues blowing against the house instead of high up on the roof, there is poor drafting which can lead to incomplete burns and creosote buildup, there is electric shock risk if not on a ground fault circuit, there are multiple water leakage potentials which can degrade the unit as well as increase shock potential, there is water intrusion into the ductwork or flange where it meets the house, there is the danger of running a metal plenum close to wood, there is power outage overheating to be considered, and so on. Not a trivial deal to do it right. That's why you don't see this done frequently.
 
So you want a permanent outdoor wood burner to heat your home. Have you considered a wood boiler? It is easier to plumb hot water into the house for use than to duct air back and forth. Lots of folks have wood boilers outside in little sheds or just out in the elements. You could install a hot water coil in your forced air furnace and be in great shape. The wood boiler can be close to the home or a hundred feet away by your woodpile.

An outdoor wood furnace is not a good idea.
 
catriverrat said:
First of all I want to thank you for your time and options. The problem I have is if I want to continue to heat with wood my wife would prefer it be an outside furnace. I would think it would be safer. As for inslutating I'm a carpenter by trade so not a problem
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I'd be a lot more inclined to throw up some sort of concrete block or metal building to put the furnace in and then insulate the heck out of it and the duct work to/from the house too.
Still not the ideal setup though...the Hotblast should have been named the woodblast for the way they blast through a load of wood. Of course you are already familiar with that feature and really, it's not any worse, probably better than an OWB.
Also agree with the above comments about the loss of the radiant heat, not insignificant on the HB.
And then there is the issue of what happens to the furnace and the duct work during a power outage, if you can run the supply duct uphill the whole way then maybe that's not an issue.
As far as safer, if the furnace is installed and run correctly I would say that it is perfectly safe in the house, if I didn't believe that I wouldn't heat my familys home with almost 100% wood heat
 
brenndatomu said:
I'd be a lot more inclined to throw up some sort of concrete block or metal building to put the furnace in and then insulate the heck out of it and the duct work to/from the house too.
Still not the ideal setup though...the Hotblast should have been named the woodblast for the way they blast through a load of wood. Of course you are already familiar with that feature and really, it's not any worse, probably better than an OWB.
Also agree with the above comments about the loss of the radiant heat, not insignificant on the HB.
And then there is the issue of what happens to the furnace and the duct work during a power outage, if you can run the supply duct uphill the whole way then maybe that's not an issue.
As far as safer, if the furnace is installed and run correctly I would say that it is perfectly safe in the house, if I didn't believe that I wouldn't heat my familys home with almost 100% wood heat
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Okay thanks for the thought. The trailer I have is one of my old insulated job site tool trailers so heat loss is not a problem.
 
Is there any other concerns about power outage other than fans not running to blow heat into house. I do have a generator I use to power
part of the house in case of an outage.
 
The furnace should be installed so that when the power goes out the heat can still convect upward through the connected plenum and ductwork to avoid overheating the ductwork and furnace. Harder to do as described. Can you be sure you'll be home during all power outages?
 
Get a new wife!!!
 
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I sense you're committed to this idea, so perhaps the advice is wasted.

FWIW I'd either install it indoors properly or consider an OWB in an outbuilding. Why do a hack on a system you'll be staking your life on?
 
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hoverwheel said:
I sense you're committed to this idea, so perhaps the advice is wasted.

FWIW I'd either install it indoors properly or consider an OWB in an outbuilding. Why do a hack on a system you'll be staking your life on?
Click to expand...

I've burned wood for about 30 years only had one insendent that wasn't that bad.I just would like to continue and make what I have work. Thanks for your feedback
 
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catriverrat said:
I've burned wood for about 30 years only had one insendent that wasn't that bad.I just would like to continue and make what I have work. Thanks for your feedback
Click to expand...
Well if you have only had one incident in 30 years then you don't need to follow those pesky codes or instructions you will be fine.
 
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