What You Need to Know About Outdoor Wood Burners
Outdoor wood burners can be an economical solution to heat homes and businesses. They also reduce the need for fossil fuels that are not renewable and help in implementing a sustainable energy strategy.
Well-seasoned wood is essential for efficient burning. Wood that is not seasoned or green may have a higher moisture content, which can create creosote and decrease performance.
Efficient
Outdoor wood burners have been around for a long time. They are a cost-effective and green method to heat your home. However, the standard design of OWBs, which encourages a slow, cooler fire that causes poor combustion and more smoke, creosote, and particulates. Unburned fuels can cause health problems, fire hazards and degrade the environment.
Furthermore the visible smoke plume OWBs generate could cause neighbors to voice their concerns. This could lead to DEC (Department of Environmental Conservation), taking enforcement action. This kind of public relations issue can cause serious damage to the value of your property, and could even lead to your OWB being shut down.
Crown Royal Stoves has a line of outdoor wood furnaces that are EPA Certified. The Pristine Gasification Series uses technology to maximize combustion efficiency and provide a smokeless, clean burn. This is done with a negative-pressure air system which pulls in fresh dry heated, filtered air from the bottom, and then pushes it through the chimney much faster than traditional outdoor wood boilers. This is achieved through the unique design of a multi-pass, water-filled heat exchanger made from 409 Titanium Enhanced Stainless Steel.
Properly used, When properly used, the Pristine Series OWB can achieve an efficiency of 99% for a smoke-free and cleaner fire. It uses less wood and produces significantly fewer emission than traditional OWBs. To maximize the effectiveness of your OWB it is crucial to burn clean, seasoned, dry wood. It is recommended that you get your wood seasoned for six months or one year before burning it. This will result in an efficient and clean burn.
You can increase the efficiency of your wood-burning stove by performing each week a "dry burn". This method reduces creosote which increases the efficiency of boilers and prolongs the life of your boiler. In addition by putting in a creosote remover stick each when you load your stove, you will be able to drastically cut the amount of creosote used. The product is available through Wisconsin Wood Furnace.
Clean
The soot particles left behind after burning wood can make a stove look very dirty. These are very hard to move, so if you see any spots of buildup on the glass of your stove, wash them immediately. If the soot isn't removed, it will begin to harden and make it more difficult. Using the correct cleaners for the job is vital and you should also make sure you're not damaging the glass's surface with anything that might scratch it. This could leave a weak spot that will break the glass if it's exposed to high temperatures.
Before you begin cleaning your wood stove, it is important to ensure that it is unlit and completely cool. Be sure to protect the area around it with newspaper. This will prevent the ash from spreading and staining surfaces.
It could take up to one year for the seasoning process of your stove to be complete, depending on the quality of the wood you select. Wood that is properly seasoned will not only burn better, but will create less creosote. This is the kind of material that builds up on your fireplace, reducing its effectiveness and creating the potential for a fire hazard. If you're using unseasoned wood or are just starting a new fire in your outdoor wood burner, the best thing to do is open the back door to the lower part and scoop ashes out into a non-combustible container each week.
A sediment flush should be performed on your boiler every four years. This is a straightforward flush of five seconds from the bottom drain valve on your boiler. This will eliminate any accumulation of sediment inside the system and keep your boiler in top working condition.
Once you've completed the sediment flush, it's now time to clean the outside of your outdoor wood burner. Before you begin, it's crucial to cover the area around the stove with newspaper. It is also helpful to wear protective eyewear and gloves. Also, you should have a metal ash container along with a scraping tool as well as shovel. You can use a cloth as a shield to protect the refractory while you remove ash and coal deposits.
Simple to Operate
Despite their popularity (they were one of the 1990s' "it" trends, as were mullet haircuts) outdoor wood boilers, also referred to as outdoor furnaces or outdoor wood hydronic heaters, are frequently misunderstood. They're not the same as the well-known EPA wood stoves, which are built to burn at low temperatures and continuously. They use a higher rate of burning and produce more smoke. Certain local governments restrict or ban their use.
OWBs are best suited to homes with high levels of insulation. Smoke that is thick and smoldering could cause annoyance to neighbors, resulting in many OWBs to be shut down or sued. In order for OWBs to operate properly they should be operated with dry wood with low moisture content. Using green or unseasoned wood decreases efficiency, causes creosote accumulation and can shorten the life of the burner. A moisture gauge will allow you determine how long it takes for wood to dry.
In contrast, dual-stage wood gasification boilers (OWGB) employ a three step process which makes use of the available energy in the wood and results in much less smoke. These types of furnaces are far more efficient than conventional OWBs and can be used with a wider range of fuel. Wood gasification boilers need dry, seasoned wood. Most wood can be seasoned within a year, but oak and other hardy species can take two or more years to fully season. They are less watery and have a greater density. This lets them store heat for longer, thereby increasing efficiency and reducing pollution. The EPA "Burn Wise" website and Cornell Cooperative Extension are great sources for homeowners to learn how to efficiently burn wood to reduce pollution to the air.
Low Maintenance
Modern outdoor wood stoves have been designed to be environmentally friendly. In contrast to indoor wood burners which emit significant smoke modern outdoor furnaces burn cleanly without the release of excessive heat or carbon monoxide. They also use less wood to generate the same amount heat as traditional stoves.
Outdoor wood burners require less maintenance than indoor wood burners, and are more tolerant when it comes to the moisture content of the wood. However, outdoor wood burners can only be used with properly seasoned or "cured" wood. It can take a year or more for some types of wood. Use a moisture meter before loading to measure the amount of water contained in the wood.
During operation it is important to inspect the system periodically for creosote accumulation. small wood burner is a byproduct from combustion and can accumulate in the flue and chimney when it is not cleaned frequently. It can be removed using a special creosote removal product that is poured into the flame. Regularly cleaning the flue and chimney will remove dangerous creosote accumulations, and increase efficiency.
In order to get 99% efficiency from combustion, Crown Royal Stoves designed a brand new air flow technique known as Negative Pressure Gasification. Our EPA certified Pristine Series outdoor wood furnaces make use of this technology to draw air from the bottom, directing all of the gasses through an insulated water-surrounded secondary combustion chamber that is easy to clean turbulators for a smokeless & pollution free burn.