Rate my setup :)

[oska]

Hi,

We have a harman mark III stove, and I burn a mixture of wood and coal most of the time (it's just so warm outside right now that I cannot ethically burn coal - it would be such a waste). I just wanted to post a picture of our setup, it's the stove, with two makeshift fans, and an outside air vent - you can also see the bucket of coal and a pile of pine wood.

This is not going to win any award for clenliness, but it has so far kept our 2000 sq foot house in the mid 70s.

I only feel terrible because I've burned like 1/2-1/3 of a chord of wood, and like 1/4 of a ton of coal already, and it's only in the mid 40s during the day

Please let me know your thoughts and suggestions.

http://imgur.com/6j56X0V

 

[realstihl]

Dem fans are a little close.

 

[begreen]

One fan would probably be sufficient. It should be 3' away from the stove.

 

[oska]

Why should it be so far away from the stove?

 

[begreen]

3 ft is not very far. There are plastic components that can be considered combustible.

 

[jatoxico]

What are you trying to do with fans? The stove won't (shouldn't) overheat. If you want to move heat to warm another room you'd be better off blowing cold air from the unheated room into the stove room.

 

[oska]

Why do you think it's best to move cold air to warm air? The only way I can imagine doing this is by using a register booster and pushing the cold air downstairs into the stove room? But I already have one of them and blow it upstairs instead. So there's a total of 4 fans - the one in the stove, the two on either side, and the register booster.

I'm trying to create a convection current around the stove to accelerate the amount of heat being dumped off of the metal and into the little room.

Ever since I set up these fans the entire house heats up considerably quicker and to a higher temperature.

I don't know how I could quantify this increase - maybe I could try firing the stove up with and without the fans and record the temperature upstairs? Sounds like so much work

 

[edyit]

the general idea is that its easier to move cooler denser air along the floor back towards the stove with a fan this in turn will be replaced with warmer lighter air forming a convection loop. it seams counter intuitive but it works.

 

[Toomb]

Your husband is a lucky man.....my wife would stroke if i tried something like that. You know, it has to look pretty..........

 

[oska]

Your husband is a lucky man.....my wife would stroke if i tried something like that. You know, it has to look pretty..........

Not married, just me and my father live together - he doesn't care too much. Playing with this stove gives me something to do with my spare time - and I enjoy trying to figure out new ways to make it run more efficiently.

 

[Rank Bull]

The outside air comes in the front of the stove? Through the metal duct?

Just curious.

 

[oska]

Yeah, it gets sucked through due to draft from the fire - no fans or anything. I can usually watch the metal tube wobble which I assume means air is being pulled through.


ONE QUESTION:

Where on the chimney black pipes should I stick my thermometer? Does it go right in the beginning, or like in the middle, or wayyyy up top?

Thanks!

 

[edyit]

about 16" up from the stove top

 

[oska]

Thankies!

 

[English BoB]

Its Redneck, but it works and if it get you by go for it.

bob

 

[rwhite]

Man, maybe I'm to OCD but that set up is a cobbled mess. Is the ducting for under-air to allow a wood stove to burn coal? I have never in all my years of burning seen a need to have a fan blowing across the stove (much less 2). If it all works great. I have cobbled some thing together over the years that have worked but still weren't right, and I would never ask for a rating on them.

 

[oska]

As I've explained earlier, the fans are there to dramatically increase the amount of heat dumped from the stove into the room. When the fans are off, the room is like 5-10 degrees cooler - so it's very effective.

Yes, the pipe is there to pull air from the outside to ignite coal.

Where do you think I can put the fans? This is a downstairs den-like area , and all the hot air goes up from the stairs to the rest of the house. There are two vents above the stove that allow for air exchange between the various levels.

 

[Dix]

I'll bite.

Why the foil ducting feeding air into the stove? Where's the air control?

If it's in the 40's (F) outside, there usually isn't much need for heat, unless the house is drafty.

 

[oska]

The air control is behind the air duct - it's a simple device that is affixed to the front with nothing more than a little weight on the bottom - not attached or anything because then it would void the warranty.

Wow you don't heat your home until it's in the 30s?? Once the inside air temperature drops down around 60 or so I put on the heat - if I'm out of the house I usually just leave it alone though - but since I'm around most of the time I tend to want the house in the 70s all day long.

 

[Dix]

40 F is usually my line.... house maintains 60 - 65 F on it's own when it's 40 F outside, unless it's been bitterly cold, windy, etc.

An over night fire in the centrally located chimney insures radiant heat for quite some time, a win / win for me.

Burning at those temps is probably one of the reasons you've gone thru the coal & firewood that you have.

If it were me, I'd be saving for the colder temps of Jan / Feb / March. Sucks to run out. Been there, done that.

 

[firefighterjake]

Installaton: D+ . . . not sure about the OAK . . . looks kinda hacked in to me . . . and I am the Prince of Hack Jobs (for some projects). While it may be entirely safe, my own feeling is whenever I see things that look like they were put up in 10 minutes without neatening things up I always wonder if any other shortcuts were taken anywhere . . . it's just how I think . . . the truth is your installation may be fantastic and quite safe.

After-Market Accessories: D . . . as mentioned fans (which are combustibles) are too close. Also, if the desired effect is to move heat then one fan pointed towards the stove from an adjacent room should suffice . . . if the desired effect is to move the heat off the stove and cool it down I suspect one fan located at least 3 feet away should suffice.

Heat Production: C . . . seems about average if you're still learning how to run the stove.

Cleanliness: D . . . again whenever I see a set up like this with what appears to be coals or coal scattered on the hearth I find myself wondering if shortcuts have been taken or how the person disposes of their ash, if they think about combustibles being too close to the stove, etc. I will not say a clean hearth is a safe hearth . . . but again . . . that's where my mind goes. While burning wood is messy and I can guarantee you right now if you go to my home you will no doubt find some fine ash and woodchips on the hearth or near the woodbox, I still try to make a concerted effort to keep it as clean as possible.

Not trying to be harsh here . . . honestly, that's not me . . . but since you asked to rate it.

 

[oska]

That last post was awesome, thank you for your input

 

[sequoia]

Hi,

We have a harman mark III stove, and I burn a mixture of wood and coal most of the time (it's just so warm outside right now that I cannot ethically burn coal - it would be such a waste). I just wanted to post a picture of our setup, it's the stove, with two makeshift fans, and an outside air vent - you can also see the bucket of coal and a pile of pine wood.

This is not going to win any award for clenliness, but it has so far kept our 2000 sq foot house in the mid 70s.

I only feel terrible because I've burned like 1/2-1/3 of a chord of wood, and like 1/4 of a ton of coal already, and it's only in the mid 40s during the day

Please let me know your thoughts and suggestions.

http://imgur.com/6j56X0V

If I'm understanding things right, the more air you blow cross the stove, the quicker you cool the stove. The quicker the stove is cooled , the more rapidly your fuel is consumed. By bringing cool air into the stove room, gently, with a fan, it pushes the warmed air elsewhere in your home. I live in a mobile home with a narrow hallway to the back third. The stove is in between kitchen and living room ( front two thirds ). I set a fan low in back of hallway and our back rooms, while not as warm as stove room, are very comfortable. Kudos for helping dad by taking charge of heating duty.

 

[madison]

I'll ditto firefighterjake (plus a like for his comment)

And to pile on: A+ "most likely to be a fire hazard", seriously, please make sure to have a functioning appropriately located smoke detector with a fresh battery and fire extinguisher nearby. Splits of wood leaning on fans pushing them towards the stove?

 

[CentralVAWoodHeat]

Yikes