Ulta-Mate

[Sailfish218]

Bought a house with a Ulta-Mate model 880 wood furnace in the basement. Can’t find a manual for this unit. Need help finding a manual/operating instructions for this furnace.

 

[brenndatomu]

Never heard of it...have any pics?

 

[Sailfish218]

Hope this helps

 

[Burnin Since 1989]

Please post a pic of the front as well. Could be very similar to other wood furnaces.

 

[brenndatomu]

Please post a pic of the front as well. Could be very similar to other wood furnaces.

This ^ ^ ^
I see it was made in Owosso MI...I know some people up that way...I'll ask around, see if anybody knows anything about these machines, or the company...

 

[begreen]

I've heard of Hearth Mate and Energy Mate furnaces, but this is the Ulta-Mate question.

 

[Sailfish218]

This is a wood furnace. It has a blower and the round duct is tied in to the forced air oil furnace. I assume the blower is controlled by a temperature switch but I would like more information on the unit before starting it up.

 

[salecker]

Aww it's so cute...
Never saw a wood furnace so small

 

[brenndatomu]

This is a wood furnace. It has a blower and the round duct is tied in to the forced air oil furnace. I assume the blower is controlled by a temperature switch but I would like more information on the unit before starting it up.

So the fellah that I know that lives near Owosso is over 80, still has a good memory, and did not know that there was ever a wood furnace manufacturer in town, or at the PO/address listed on the tag in your pic there.

That said, just from looking at the pics there, it appears to have a thermo switch to kick the blower (duct/distribution blower) on the back of the unit...the temp controls would be the knob on the front labeled "low-high"...I'd say you turn it to high to start/build the fire, then turn it to the desired setting (probably take some trial n error to figure out the best settings) once the fire is well established.
It looks like that temp control probably has a bimetallic spring in there, so once you set it, it will open n close the damper to keep the fire at least somewhat at the temp you set it for.
No idea how well it will actually work, may be great may be a huge disappointment...many units that have the bimetallic spring work fairly well, but only one way to find out for sure.
As with any wood burner, you must have DRY wood! That means wood that is 20% or less moisture content, as measured with a moisture meter ($20-30) in the center of the wood, immediately after being split open, wood at room temp (not frozen!) and meter pins parallel to the wood grain. Measuring on the outside, or ends of the wood, means nothing.
Generally, any wood that has been cut, split, and stacked, for 3 years (and top covered for at least the last 6-12 months before use) will be ready to burn. Some species can dry faster. Buying "dry wood" from almost any firewood seller generally means it's not ready to burn this year...if you find one that actually has ready to burn wood, don't lose his number!
The chimney has to be right...it is the engine that powers the stove...the best stove/furnace in the world will not work well if the chimney is not providing proper draft (high, or low draft, neither one is going to work well)

 

[begreen]

UMI might have been a small machine shop in Owosso that built a limited run of these units.