Making a choice on a boiler this weekend...

[magnumhntr]

With the price of steel going through the roof, I am trying to make a decision by the end of the weekend and spend the money. Here are my reasonings...

OWB - I like the Woodmaster the best of all the models. Forced air draft, decent warranty, Mid priced. I was going to buy a CB but they lost my business when I called up asking about the upcoming gassifier and the salesman at CB fed my so much BS my eyes turned brown. So they lost my business right there. Plus after alot of research, I find alot of misleading statements from CB.

Gasifiers - I want one that is outdoors, stand alone, on board storage. There aren't any proven ones. I cannot babysit the thing all day to fill it every 8 hours or so. 12 would be acceptible, but nothing less. CB gassifier is out, but read above post on CB. Woodmaster has a gasifier coming out, but cannot nail down when, nor a price. EKO, Tarm, etc all need storage to meet my needs, and I cannot afford the added expence of storage. I really was wanting to get a gassifier, but am leary spending money on a Sequoya since it is a new company. Plus I see there is an added expence of having to replace the refractory after so much use.

Decisions Decisions.

Right now I am 99% on a Woodmaster 4400. But, tomorrow I plan on calling Cozy Heat and talking with them about an EKO, and will hopefully get some hard info from Woodmaster on their gasifier. If I cannot get anywhere with them to convince me otherwise, I suppose I will get the Woodmaster 4400.

With that being said. What kind of smoke can I expect to get if I burn well seasoned hard wood? Should I add a couple of extra sections to the stack? And will I get better/less wood usage if I burn seasoned wood vs green? I'm hoping to heat my new 1800 sq ft home and small workshop for 6-8 cords. Am I being realistic here, or fooling myself? After 2 years researching these things, you'd think I'd be able to nail down a decision by now.

Thanks!

Chris

 

[Nofossil]

I don't have any first-hand experience with OWBs, but I think it's safe to say that any wood burning unit will burn cleaner and more efficiently with drier wood. Also safe to say that they'll burn cleaner at high output rather than at idle. I've studied a lot of test results, and for many OWBs the particulate emissions are pretty much constant regardless of the burn rate. Particulate emissions are a decent measure of lost energy. it's kind of like measuring your fuel mileage when you have a hole in your gas tank - the faster you drive, the better your fuel mileage.

 

[SE Iowa]

There is no proven gassifier without onboard storage? Hasn't the Garn be around since the 70's. You might want to look at it. i think the smallest unit has something like 1200 gallons on integrated starage all in one (giant) box.

 

[magnumhntr]

Well, I talked to Dave at Cozy Heat, and he seemd to know what he was talking about, and I like what he had to say. So EKO guys, Dave says I should be able to get 10-12 hour burn times out of an EKO 40 without storage with my particular needs. So to steer me towards the EKO a bit more, what problems would I encounter with a pressurized boiler vs an open system like in a OWB? And what dangers to my family and myself are there with a pressurized boiler? I want to make the best decision to meet my needs. Also, what wood usage and square footage for you guys? I hope to make a decision this weekend as I had a vesectomy today and have nothing better to do than sit around and make decisions, lol.

Thanks!

Chris

 

[WoodNotOil]

With a correct installation there should be no risks with a pressurized gasifier like the EKO. My Tarm has two overheat loops that would take care of overheating, one with a pump, the other incase of power outage. There are expansion tanks and pressure relief valves. It should be safe.

In my experience OWB's burn a lot more wood than gasifiers. You would be smart to go with something like the Eko, Tarm, or Econoburn. Get it installed properly and add storage later.

 

[magnumhntr]

Another question ~ are the heat exchangers (ie radiator type in my forced air plenum) the same weather its for a closed pressurized unit or an open unit?

Thanks!

Chris

 

[WoodNotOil]

This link might answer your question: (broken link removed)

It appears that they can be used with any hydronic boiler. You could probably contact them or some other company to be sure.

Vesectomy - Ouch!

 

[magnumhntr]

Well after much research and consideration of all the facts involved. I've decided to get the Woodmaster. I know that the gasifiers are going to be more efficient, and in the end better for the enviroment. But in the end the biggest factors were the ease of use not only for me, but me wife as well will have to be able to keep the wood eater fed, and I don't know that she would do well with a gasifier. And the fact that the Woodmaster doesn't need to go inside, and I can get a good burn time out of it between loadings. Plus, I figure in a few years if I decide I don't like it, the resale value on it should be pretty good, as I don't think heating fuels are going to go down anytime in the near future.

That being said, I am also going to be a good neighbor as best I can. I will be ordering 2 extra lengths of stack to get the smoke up higher,(More if needed) and will only be burning seasoned wood. I won't be burning in the off season, and only wood ~ no trash, tires, etc. Hopefully this will be a good compromise until I wear it out and by then the gasifier market should be maturing here in the US.

Anyway, wanted to say thanks to the many guys that offered info and assistance. Hopefully I made the right choice for my circumstances.

Chris