Woodstove and baseboard heating

[a4guy256]

I currently supplement my oil boiler heat at home (appox 1000 sf) using a Vermont Casting Intrepide II wood stove evenings and on the weekend. It works great to heat the living room where it's located, but the rst of the house just gets colder. Here is my idea. I was thinking of installing 2 6" x 18" radiators behind my stove on either side of the catolitic converter (or one 8" X 16" begin the converter section). I was then going to tied it directly into my base board heating on one side of the stove. I have very easy access in the basement to the plumbing. Along with this I was going to install a second circulation pump that I could independently control from the living room. To control the pressure, I would install a pressure relief value along with a bypass with shut off values for the whole thing as a safety precaution. I figured the existing expansion tank on the boiler would be sufficient and the pressure relief valve on the boiler would be a back up. A thermostat and pressure gauge that would be viewable from behind the stove would also be installed. I haven't yet gotten a data logger with thermocouples to check what the temps are behind all these spots, but just wondering if anybody had any thoughts or suggestions,. Thanks!

 

[maple1]

I don't think you will move much heat to other areas - if that is what your aim is.

It would likely keep pipes from freezing - if that is what your aim is.

 

[peakbagger]

I have friend that does this quite successfully in Portland Maine. He only has one flue so he heats with an oil boiler in the shoulder seasons and then switches to a wood stove during cold weather. He has a home built heat exchanger made up of short lengths of Slant Fin laid next to each other with 180 returns between the sections. This sits directly on top of a fisher papabear. He then puts patio blocks on top of the exchanger to hold it tight against the stove. The stove is in his basement of his ranch which heats the main part of the house quite well but he also has a large addition with a separate foundation that doesnt heat so well. He uses the boiler circulator and thermostats to run water through the coil 24/7. Normally the heat goes to the zone in the addition. He has a separate zone in the basement of the addition with fan forced hot water heater (Modine). If the water temp in the coil goes over 180F the unit heater zone turns on to dump heat.

He also has valves and unions on the coil so he can remove it if the power is out and he needs to run the stove without the heat exchanger. He can have it removed in about 5 minutes.

I have been trying for years for him to get a wood boiler and do it right but he is happy with this home brew system. I expect with a wood boiler he could cut his wood usage in half but he is happy with it and his wife like the warm floors. His system is rare as he thought it out and made sure its safe. Since he is hacked into his oil boiler which was installed to code, he has low water cutoff, T&P relief valve, auto fill and an expansion tank. I think a lot of home brew systems arent as well thought out, usually they forget an expansion tank and a relief valve.