What You Need to Know About Outdoor Wood Burners
Outdoor wood burners are a cost-effective method of heating homes and businesses. They also reduce the need for fossil fuels that are non-renewable and help in implementing a sustainable energy strategy.
To ensure efficient burning for efficient burning, it is crucial to use seasoned wood. Green or unseasoned wood has a higher moisture content and may cause creosote accumulation, which can affect performance.
Efficient
Outdoor wood burners have been in use for a long time. They are an energy efficient and green method of heating your home. The typical design of OWBs promotes an older, cooler fire which results in poorer combustion and a higher amount of smoke and creosote. These unburned fuels could cause health issues, fire hazards and degrade the environment.
Additionally, the visible smoke plume produced by OWBs could cause neighbors to voice their concerns and result in DEC (Department of Environmental Conservation) enforcement action. This kind of public relations issue can be a significant impact on the value of your property and could result in your OWB being shut down.
Crown Royal Stoves offers a line of EPA Certified outdoor wood furnaces known as the Pristine Gasification Series that utilizes technology to increase the efficiency of combustion for a clean, smoke-free burning. This is achieved through a negative pressure air system that pulls in fresh dry heated, filtered, and heated air from the bottom, and then pushes it up the chimney at a much faster rate than traditional outdoor wood boilers. This is accomplished through a unique design which uses a multi-pass water filled heat exchanger constructed of 409 Titanium Enhanced Stainless Steel.
When properly used when properly used, when properly used, the Pristine Gasification Series OWB can achieve a 99% combustion efficiency to create a cleaner, smokeless fire that requires less wood and generates significantly fewer emissions than traditional OWBs. To maximize the effectiveness of your OWB it is essential to burn clean, seasoned, dry wood. Seasoning your wood for six months or more prior to burning is recommended. It will ensure a more efficient, more energy efficient burn.
In addition to maximizing the efficiency of your wood stove it is also possible to increase the efficiency of your wood burner by performing the "dry burn" every week. This technique reduces creosote which increases the efficiency of boilers and extends the life of your boiler. Lastly by putting in a creosote remover stick every when you load your stove, you can drastically cut the amount of creosote used. This product is available from Wisconsin Wood Furnace.
Clean
A wood burning stove can become very dirty from burnt soot particles. They are difficult to get rid of and therefore, you must remove any buildup from the glass of your stove as soon as you notice it. Any soot that is not eliminated will begin to harden, making it even more difficult to remove. Using the right cleaners for the job is vital, but also be sure you're not damaging the glass's surface by using anything that could scratch it. This could lead to a weak spot that can shatter glass when exposed extreme temperatures.
Before you begin cleaning your wood burner, you must ensure that it is not lit and completely cool. Make sure to surround it with newspaper. This will stop the ash from leaking and staining surfaces.
It could take up to one year for the seasoning of your stove to be completed, based on the quality of wood you select. Wood that is properly seasoned will not only burn more efficiently, but will create less creosote. This is the substance that builds up on your fireplace, reducing its effectiveness and creating a potential fire hazard. If you are using unseasoned wood or just beginning a new fire in your outdoor wood burner the best thing to do is to open up the lower back door and scoop ashes out into a non-combustible bin every week.
A sediment flush should be carried out on your boiler every four years. It is a simple flush of five seconds from the drain valve on your boiler. This will remove any sediments that have built in the system and ensure that your boiler is operating well.
After you have cleaned the outside of your fireplace outside It is now time to clean it. Before you begin, it's essential to cover the floor around the stove with newspaper. Wearing protective eyewear and gloves is an excellent idea. You should also have a shovel, a metal ash container and an instrument for scraping. You can use a cloth for shield to protect the refractory as you scrape away coal and ash deposits.
Easy to operate
Outdoor wood boilers (also known as outdoor furnaces, outdoor wood hydronic heating systems, or outdoor wood heaters) are often misunderstood in spite of their popularity. They were among the "it" trends of the 1990s, alongside hairstyles for mullets. Unlike their cousin the EPA's popular wood stoves which are designed to burn at low, constant temperatures, these boilers have an increased fire rate and produce more smoke when operating. Some local governments limit or prohibit their use.
OWBs work best for homes that have high levels of insulation. freestanding wood burner smoldering, dense visible smoke is also a cause of complaint with neighbors and has led to numerous OWBs being shut down or sued in the past. For OWBs dry wood with a lower moisture content is needed to function properly. Green or unseasoned wood can decrease efficiency, cause creosote to accumulate, and shorten the lifespan of the burner. A moisture gauge will allow you determine the time it takes for wood to dry.
In contrast dual-stage wood gasification boilers (OWGB) make use of three steps that uses more of the available energy from the wood and results in a lesser amount of smoke. These furnaces are more efficient than conventional OWBs, and can be used to fuel a wide range of fuels. Wood gasification boilers require dry and 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 larger mass. This allows them to retain heat longer, thus increasing efficiency and decreasing pollution. The EPA's "Burn Wise" website and Cornell Cooperative Extension can help homeowners learn more about burning wood efficiently to minimize pollution to the air.
Low Maintenance
Modern outdoor wood stoves are designed to be eco-friendly. Contrary to indoor wood stoves that generate significant smoke, modern outdoor furnaces burn efficiently and without the creation of excessive carbon monoxide or heat. They also require less wood to produce the same amount of heat as traditional stoves.
Outdoor wood burners require less maintenance and are more forgiving of moisture content in wood than indoor wood burning stoves. Outdoor wood burners are suitable for wood that has been properly "cured" or seasoned. It can take a year or more for certain kinds of wood. Use a moisture meter before loading to determine the amount of water in the wood.
In the course of operation, it is crucial to check the system regularly to check for accumulation of creosote. Creosote is a byproduct of combustion and can build up in the flue and chimney in the event that it is not cleaned regularly. It can be removed by pouring a creosote removal product into the fire. Regular cleaning of the chimney and flue will eliminate dangerous creosote and improve efficiency.
Crown Royal Stoves developed a new airflow technique called Negative Pressure Gasification to attain 99% efficiency in combustion. Our EPA certified Pristine Series outdoor wood furnaces employ this technology to pull air from the bottom, pushing all the gasses into an insulated water surrounded secondary combustion chamber, which is easy-clean turbulators for a smokeless & pollution free burn.