On 07 Jan 2004 15:05:14 GMT, (Bpyboy) wrote:

well, I said that I was going to let you guys on how my brother's outdoor
boiler is fairing, in central wisconsin this year. Well, all things
considered, it worked fantastically. He got his house buttoned up just in time
for winter, and had the stove in far too late to get cut and properly season
wood for heat.

So he had been roving the fence lines trying to find some standing dead wood,
or fallen trees (some a couple years old and getting "spongy"). He also adds
some pallets that are sawn about in half (perfect size for the enormous
firebox), and occasionally raw, green wood.

We were in the process of building a woodshed for him just last week.

Still, considering that he's using damp and green wood mainly, it works
terrifically well. And the problems with creosote are largley eliminated.
There are serious deposits on the walls of the firebox and up the stack, but as
the boiler is like 150 feet from his house, a chimney fire would not really be
a cause of alarm. The forced air system really blasts the coal, and in short
order roasts the moisture out of the greenest logs.

I'm sure the efficiency of the system, using poor quality wood, is WAY below
what it should be, but I think, next winter, with properly seasoned wood, it
would work wonderfully.

just and update .
The only REAL problem I saw was that the whole deal (boiler, delivery, and
trenching the pipes into his house) cost about $5k (YIKES) but his gas furnace
kicks on only once in a while, so there are big savings there, and again, with
better fuel, the gas heater might not even be needed at all.

anyways, we cut and split about 3 cords of wood, and have it stored at a
neighbors house for use next winter. by then it will be nice and seasoned, and
ready to torch!

anyone have a good method of taking apart pallets? they seem to make excellent
fuel (mainly dry oak), but with all the nails and stuff, it's a little
un-nerving to cut. We had been using a sawzall to tear them in half, then dump
the whole deal into the fire box, it worked, but is sort of time consuming.

thanks, stay warm
John



"Aren't cats Libertarian? They just want to be left alone.
I think our dog is a Democrat, as he is always looking for a handout"
Unknown Usnet Poster

Heh, heh, I'm pretty sure my dog is a liberal - he has no balls.
Keyton