FBWNDR wrote:
On Jan 27, 1:37 pm, "Bob F" wrote:
Andrew wrote:
On Jan 25, 4:29 pm, "Bob F" wrote:
FBWNDR wrote:
I'm trying to determine the pros and cons of having a wood boiler
installed on my property. If you haven't heard of these, the
boiler is built to circulate water around the firebox. The water
gets pumped into a heat exchanger which is located in the main
heating duct of the house. The existing indoor furnace pushes the
air around the house.
......

Fuel moisture content Wood fuel lbs/hr Available BTU/Hr in fuel
45% 71 246918
35% 60 260936
25% 52 268641
15% 46 275632

So, I guess that little fan does push enough air to burn enough
wood. So now I have to look into the pollutant problem. According
to this thread, there are a few states where these are being
outlawed.

That chart says something significant for drying your wood well,
expecially when you consider the cleaner burning of dry wood. Even
if you calculate in that 15% wood is lighter than 45%, you still get
way more heat out of less wood.

I agree that drying the wood will save some money. But the boilers
are rated at 100,000 BTU, which is less than half of the energy
released from the wood. If the wood is not combusted, then it is
going out of the stack in the form of gases and particulates. I sure
would like to know what kind of smoke to expect.

Is the unit EPA certified? That would be a good indication. If it isn't, it is
likely to be pretty dirty. Otherwise, they would get the certification.