Seton burn time

[RickH]

:question: I have a Seton W-90 thats been in use about 1 month.I can not seem to keep wood in it. It takes forever to get the water up to temp if it drops below 120. That is even with it being over filled with good hardwood. An example tonite I got 3 hrs out of it being overfilled with big unsplit peices. All that was left was very few coals.
I am running it at 185 on temp. and the house temp. on 70. We have a 3 yr old , 2400 sq ft. house tucked back in the woods. I am using a heat exchanger in my forced air. I am getting an average of 92 at the registers. Has any one ever checked their air temp.? Getting a little frustrated on this. Any thoughts?





Seton W-90
Forced Air Heat Exchanger :
Stihl O-25

 

[seabee570]

air temps....you might have to lower the fan speed setting to get a little higher air temp at registers....92 is gonna feel cold,body temp 98.6......you also need to check the water flow and pressure drop thru the coil in air handler.Is the coil sized right? how many btu's is it. If you have pressure gages in and out of the coil that would help. You could try partially closing the outlet valve at the coil if you have one and see if discharge temps come up.another thing is are you sure you are getting 180-185 at the coil.something is outta wack....if you have 185 degree water.You could try lowering the pump speed if you can....

 

[seabee570]

you should also have a bypass at the boiler to return some warmer water back to the boiler.it can be a loop with a ball valve,or a mixing valve set to return 140 degrees...by returning a little warmer water it can help the unit recover come up to temp a little faster

 

[trailhound68]

Oh boy, there are so many things to consider. Draft is a big consideration for these boilers, measure it, get the temp too, open closed & in between. It'll be a tough road but you'll get it. Dry dry wood will burn quick on a big draw. Splitting? Don't. Pine or oak?

 

[gundog24]

getting 4 to 6 hrs of burn time to a load of split suger maple and birch. heating a 2800 sq. home, baseboard , three zones , room temp set at 73 Have large round oak for next season, hoping to get longer burn time with that. This is my first season with a seton 90 , and there's always room for improvement.

 

[danmitchell9]

I have a National Stoveworks Thermo Control boiler (hot water, but the boiler itself is similar). I've put a damper in the 8" flue to extend the burn some. It's set to circulate at 120F, but I try to get it toward 180F if possible. Running the oil for a bit in the morning helps get the cooled water up to temp faster (I have a switch at the burner so I can turn off the oil when I want). Some mornings it gets down around 110F, but it takes quite a bit of time to get below 100. Getting it hot from there DOES takes a little time (as you know). I crank a quick, hot, starter fire and then close down the flue damper and secondary burn damper to keep the heat in. And bail the wood to it...and wish I had a gasifier that I can't afford.