Thinking about wood furnace

[Rairdog]

Hey all, new here. I just bought a house and moved in but the furnace is shot. Living with Mr. Heater buddy heaters, elec space heaters and propane salamanders..lol. Washing machine froze up today...you get the picture. I am a contractor, mostly finish carpenter of 40 years, but can build a house from ground up except for charging an AC and installing high eff furnace. I can break duct and fab plenum.

Anyhow the house is 2200 sf but I don't need to heat 1/2 of it to a comfortable temp. The attached garage is 24x40 with truss' at 12 ft. I was thinking of a wood furnace in the garage that could dump heat when I get the wood shop set up. The garage also would let me duct directly into the both levels really easy and to the main areas I want to heat. I could also build controlled temp room if needed to house the unit.

I was looking at the Shelter's at Menards and reading reviews which seem to suck and it led me to this forum. I would appreciate any advice or links to help me research the wood furnace option. Easy blower replacement and the less pc boards that fry the better. Thanks in advance...RD

 

[begreen]

Check with the local inspecting authority. Most jurisdictions do not permit a wood burner in a garage. Also check with the insurance company. They may except this if it is in its own utility room.

 

[Rairdog]

I will check the code...previous owner had a wood burner in the garage and there is still a boot. I was trying to avoid $2500 in b vent stack going through 2nd story inside house plus have garage heat.

 

[begreen]

A wood stove or furnace will need class A chimney as soon as the flue passes through a wall or ceiling.

 

[maple1]

I think I would maybe concentrate on a better basic non-wood system for heating the house first. I.e, get the existing furnace situation fixed. Freezing washing machine? Yikes.

 

[E Yoder]

What ductwork/heating system do you already have? Any?
My experience is with outdoor boilers, so I'm thinking along the lines of tieing one into an old duct system and not putting anything inside, putting in chimney etc.

 

[Rairdog]

The old Coleman furnace is shot. There is a plenum that is hacked up with holes so I will fab a new one. There is is some 6 in flex runs but not tied in to plenum. The previous owner left a shed full of 7 round 14x4 in register boxes, take offs and 90's. It basically needs all new duct. I have demoed subfloor/floor joists around the bathroom and closet that holds the old furnace. There were 2x6 spanning 11 ft which were sagging and I will replace with 2x10s. It also needs some foundation repair in this area.

It's wide open and will be easy to run all new duct at this point. I only paid 27k for the house and will have it paid off in 5 years...it's a bit of a project. A HVAC buddy quoted me 10k for 95% Ducane and 3.5k for 80%. I would still have to pay for and run all the duct. He would fab the plenum and make the tie in for warranty purposes. On the bright side....I got a hot shower and toilet...lol

 

[3fordasho]

A HVAC buddy quoted me 10k for 95% Ducane and 3.5k for 80%. I would still have to pay for and run all the duct. He would fab the plenum and make the tie in for warranty purposes. On the bright side....I got a hot shower and toilet...lol

$10K for a 95% gas/propane furnace is nuts, especially if no duct work is included. I've bought several for under $1k, run a gas line, 110vac, thermostat wire, 2" PVC for combustion air - easy - the duct work is more labor intensive. If the $10K includes a/c , then the price is more understandable.

 

[brenndatomu]

I was looking at the Shelter's at Menards and reading reviews which seem to suck and it led me to this forum.

Good for you doing the research...you have come to the correct conclusion...you'd be better off with your current heating situation than with one of those bombs in the house...that's why Menards has discontinued selling them...and they are on clearance.

I was trying to avoid $2500 in b vent stack going through 2nd story inside house

Menards sells Supervent class A chimney (what you need) and you should be able to put one up for well
under $1000...I have put up 3 of them now (the first one is over 8 years old) and they work well.

I think I would maybe concentrate on a better basic non-wood system for heating the house first. I.e, get the existing furnace situation fixed. Freezing washing machine? Yikes.

Yes, fix the current situation first...even if you just install electric baseboard as backup...that will pass muster with the insurance co...wood heat by itself wont.

A HVAC buddy quoted me 10k for 95% Ducane and 3.5k for 80%. I would still have to pay for and run all the duct.

80% for $3500...that's no deal...and a 95% for $10k...that's getting screwed! HE gas/LP furnace should only run $500-$1k more than a 80%. You should be able to buy a good brand/model HE furnace for $3500, or a bit less.
Look at the Drolet line for affordable wood furnaces that actually work and not take your life into your own hands! Also, Englander makes the 28-4000, which is even cheaper than the Drolets, but is also manual controls, like a wood stove.
If you look around here for a bit, you will find threads on this same topic that have popped up just recently...can't wait until Menards is out of these things!

 

[brenndatomu]

Locally, I see ads regularly that read something like: Ameristar 80kbtu HE NG/LP furnace, with 2 ton AC, $3499 installed...would have to think it would be even cheaper if you have a buddy in the biz...

 

[Rairdog]

My HVAC buddy was quoting a 110k btu and 5 ton compressor if I recall. He was just guesstimating since it will be some long runs I think. Plus his 10yr warranty through his company. He won't do it "on the side". There are plenty of cheap Goodmans around but had one at last place and it never kept up in extremes.

I do have a 6' baseboard in the bathroom and 2-6's and a 4' that were left here. My electric bill was $175 last month and that's just a couple space heaters part time and baseboard set at 50.