outdoor wood boiler for shop

[jay potter]

I am looking into a outdoor boiler to heat one of my shops. it would tie in to an existing forced air furnace. The shop is 1800 sq ft in part of a old carriage house and not very well insulated. I was wondering if any creekers are using outdoor boilers and if the heat output could keep up with iowa winters.

[John Shuk]

I'm pretty sure Bill Grumbine either has or plans to be operating one. You might want to get his input.

[Dev Emch]

I am looking into a outdoor boiler to heat one of my shops. it would tie in to an existing forced air furnace. The shop is 1800 sq ft in part of a old carriage house and not very well insulated. I was wondering if any creekers are using outdoor boilers and if the heat output could keep up with iowa winters.

One word of advice..... INSULATION!

[Andy London]

I don't however one of the mills I buy lumber from heats his house 2,800 sq/ft, his warehouse 9,000 sq/ft and his kiln with one.....just uses slab wood year round for burning, I believe it's a wood doctor. he has had it 5 or 6 years and claims although expensive to install, he hasn't bought any oil in five years, that he would buy another in a second.

Check your local code to ensure it's o.k. to have an outdoor burning unit, I know here in the city they are not allowed.

[jay potter]

I should have said that the shop has original old bead board wainscoating on the walls. I have looked into storms for the windows and blowing insulation in to the ceiling by carefully cutting the floor boards on the second floor and blowing cellouse in. but the side walls have fire stops inbetween the studs and the site is a historic site so cutting up the walls is not going to happen.

[Dev Emch]

Ouch. What I have learned the hard way is that the heating with wood is a two way equation. With massive insulation, you need a handful of popcicle sticks. Without, your buying wood by the cord.

Your right about codes. For some bungled up, typical government reason that makes no sense, you often find two sets of codes conflicting with one another. You have the codes that govern central heating systems and what is allowed. Then you have the codes that govern wood burning stoves or as they say applicances rated for class A solid fuel use. Like I said, wood stoves. In our area, because wood is the fuel and the system is actually a central heating system, there are conflicts in the code that can cause all sorts of issues. One guy up in Steamboat has spent a year negotiating with the local hudlums to allow him to install a $10,000 Danish woodburning hydronic furnace. I dont know but all this recycled bovine high protein feed really makes me wonder if its worthwhile.

[Andy London]

Your right about codes. For some bungled up, typical government reason that makes no sense, you often find two sets of codes conflicting with one another. You have the codes that govern central heating systems and what is allowed.

A real sore spot with me, In 1986 I bought 4 1/2 acres on a lake 20 min outside the city for our future dream home and workshop...things were right so we built in 1987. Now the city has expanded and four years ago we were no longer part of a community but the city. The #1 things that burns me is I am no longer allowed any camp fires yet I had them for years. You can't even see my nearest neighbour which would be at least 1,000 feet away....seems some people in the city don't like smoke or the smell of burning wood and of course the tax rate is the same as the city yet we do not have any of the services......oh government:rolleyes: .

I still heat my home with hardwood as it's still fairly cheap.