Wood furnace

[fun4now]

they putting the coils inside the heat chamber ?? i would think a buffer plate would be needed. been trying to find time to design some thing that would allow heat to the bottom of the tank to heat large quantities at one time. like heating a 30 gal. tank the them pumping from there to the house. using a small coil to heat water that then heats a tank some where else to be used for heating seems like its just adding a process and reducing the heat up time. i suppose it could also reduce the cool down time too??? i have to finish up my son's new room first then i'll put more time into it.

see pic for my first idea.

[Sberry]

I thought about something similar but didn't want to get involved in the extensive plumbing it would involve at this location. I could open the can back up and add a coil at some time in the future if I incorporate this into an addition.

[JTMcC]

I keep thinking of making something similar with some of the large bore pipe I have laying around, my questions are this:

1) What is that you covered the stove with? Insulation? What type? Is that all the insulation you intend to use?

2) Did you build a case around the stove for heat exchange? I've thought about a firebox enclosed in an outer shell, the outer shell with the blower and ducted to the inside.

3) You're ducting this into the existing central heat ductwork? What are you doing about air return?

JTMcC.

[Sberry]

I have a couple ports in the heat/return raceway underneath my trailer from a central air unit I used elsewhere, the return has filters in it and am going to make some adapters this week to connect it. The insulation on the outer jacket is not on yet, I will post it up when I finish it. I am going to use 3 1/2 inch batt from building project with fire resistant paper on it.
The core of the stove is actually 20 inch pipe I got from a job 20 yrs ago, 1/2 wall and I cut it length ways and added about 10 inches of plate to make it oblong. Put 1/4 plate top and bottom. I has the stove, was used in a couple garages and I adapt it for this project so I didn't have to build from scratch.

2) Did you build a case around the stove for heat exchange? I've thought about a firebox enclosed in an outer shell, the outer shell with the blower and ducted to the inside

Yes, what you see in the pic is the containment shell, I am working on the blower now, a blower from one of the dryers I used for the containment shell. I am using the bottom half of an upper thermostat from a water heater for a switch loop to turn the blower on when it comes up to temp. I have to pipe the hot (I will insulate the pipe) about 8 or 10 ft to the hot duct of the trailer and the return is about 3 ft away, will use common dryer flex tube for some of it.

[Sberry]

I don't know if you can tell the unit is oblong from the second pic of the thread, there was a side air intake but I plug that off now and I enlarge the door to make it easier to fill. I am going to fashion some sheet over this to keep the weather off the insulation. Its going to sit under a carport kind of thing.

[JTMcC]

Any progress?

I'm thinnin about a pipe furnace inside a larger pipe sleeve with insulated ducts going in with hot air and one going out with return air. Mine would be on a self contained skid that I can set/remove with a forklift and wouldn't be fancy enough to plumb into the existing ductwork, just feed in thru a window with louvers. The window sports a water cooler in the summer which works well in our dry desert climate.
I'm also thinnin about putting a large amount of heavy (2") iron in there to soak the heat and only run it at night. We warm up pretty good during the days here but have quite a few moderatly chilly nights in the 10 to 15 degree range. Not stupid cold, but still calls for some heat.

JTMcC.

of course with a blower, maybe up at the window instead of at the furnace. I'm planning on putting this thing at least 15' from the house.

[Sberry]

I have been doing other things for a couple of days and will get back on it this week. My blower will draw air from the house, pressurizes the shell around the stove, forces the heat into the house. With a heavy stove you might be able to draw the heat but typically furnaces are pressurized as it there would be a leak in the combustion chamber it would force air into the burner box vs drawing exhaust gas into the heated air.

[JTMcC]

That makes sense. But in my line of work, if I can't build a non leaking system I'm in big trouble

I intend to leave the door outside of the outer jacket envelope so my heavy wall pipe would have to corrode thru to develop a leak.

JTMcC.

[Flyingpig]

Youre going to need more than the dry vent to get the cold air back. Cold air requires more space than hot air. Intake valves on all engines are much larger than the exhaust. Cold air returns are larger than the hot air runs. Since youre just passing the air thru the hot box youll need no less than equal size in and out.

Not trying to mash your dream. I think its great. Id just hate to see you overheat the thing due to lack of air flow.

By the way, Ive been thinking of doing the same thing but using water as the medium. Ill have to run mine 50 ft or more from the house.

[fun4now]

Flyingpig

By the way, Ive been thinking of doing the same thing but using water as the medium. Ill have to run mine 50 ft or more from the house. keep us posted on your progress. it sounds like you are planing similar to my plan, although i will be closer to the house. i need the house as a wind block, its crazy windy here.

JTMcC & Sberry
do you guys get a lot of snow ??? or just cold ?? have you considered some form of solar heat options ??
there are some simple drop in a window systems that look promising as well as some more complex options that have a better heat collection system.

i added a few pic's
the first is a simple out the window idea that lets cold air in and as it heats the air in the front it pulls in more cold as the hot flows out the top. sorry i had to make a quick drawing of that one, i cant find the pic ??

the next 3 are of a design thats supposed to collect maximum heat all day long due to a convex reflector shining on an air heat chamber, this one requires a forced air system to move the heated air. the wright-up said forced air was the way to go, but it looks like heating water might be a better idea ??

unfortunately i get very little sun and lots of wind, so my hopes for the solar option are not looking too good, but i may look into the forced air one.