What You Need to Know About Outdoor Wood Burners
Outdoor wood burners are an affordable method of heating homes and businesses. They also help to reduce dependence on fossil fuels that are not renewable and contribute to a resilient energy strategy.
Wood that is well-seasoned is crucial for efficient burning. Wood that is not seasoned or green may contain more moisture, which can cause creosote to accumulate and reduce performance.
Efficient
Outdoor wood burners (OWBs) have been around for years and are an extremely energy efficient and environmentally friendly method of heating your home. However, the design of OWBs that encourages the slow and cooler burning that results in poor combustion and more smoke, creosote and particulates. These unburnt fuels can cause health problems as well as fire hazards and deteriorate the surrounding environment.
Moreover the visible smoke plume that OWBs produce can make neighbors angry and result in DEC (Department of Environmental Conservation) enforcement actions. This type of public relations issue could cause serious damage to 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, smokeless burning. This is accomplished with a negative-pressure air system that draws in fresh, dry heated, filtered air from the bottom and pushes it up the chimney much faster than traditional outdoor wood boilers. This is accomplished through an innovative design that utilizes a multi-pass water filled heat exchanger made of 409 Titanium Enhanced Stainless Steel.
If properly utilized, the Pristine Series OWB achieves an efficiency of 99% for a cleaner and smokeless fire. It requires less wood, and produces significantly less emissions than traditional OWBs. To maximize your OWB's performance it is essential to only burn dry, clean, seasoned wood. Seasoning your wood for six months or more prior to burning is recommended. It will ensure a more efficient energy efficient and efficient burn.
You can boost the efficiency of your wood-burning stove by executing every week a "dry burn". This method lowers the amount of creosote in your home which improves boiler efficiency and extends the life of your boiler. Lastly by putting in a creosote remover stick each when you load your stove, you will be able to dramatically reduce the amount of creosote that you use. The product is available through Wisconsin Wood Furnace.
Clean
A wood-burning stove could be very dirty due to burnt soot particles. They are extremely difficult to remove so if you notice any areas of build up on the glass of your stove, wash them right away. Any soot that is not eliminated will become hard, making it even more difficult to remove. Using the right cleaning products for the job is essential however, you must also ensure that you're not damaging the surface of the glass with anything that might scratch it. This could result in an area of weakness that could break glass when exposed to extreme temperatures.
Before you begin cleaning your wood burner it is important to ensure that it is unlit and completely cool. Also, be sure that the area around it is covered with newspaper. This will prevent any spillage of ash that could stain and mark surfaces.
It can take up to one year for the seasoning of your stove to be complete, based on the quality of wood you use. The wood that has been treated with a seasoned finish will not only burn more efficiently, but also produce less creosote. This is the kind of material that accumulates on your chimney, reducing efficiency and creating the risk of fire. If you're using unseasoned wood or you're just starting an outdoor fire fireplace, it's recommended to open the lower backdoor and scoop out all the ashes into a nonflammable container every week.
It is also recommended to perform a sediment flush on your boiler at least every four years. This involves a simple five-second flush from the drain valve on your boiler. This will eliminate any sediment that has built up inside the system, and will keep your boiler in great working condition.
After wood burning stoves ideas 've completed the sediment flush, it's now time to clean the exterior of your outdoor wood burner. Before you begin, it's crucial to cover the area around the stove with newspaper. Wearing gloves and eye protection is an excellent idea. Also, you should have an ash container, a shovel ash container and scraping tools. You can make use of a cloth as an insulator to protect the refractory while you take off coal and ash deposits.
Easy to Operate
Despite their popularity (they were one of the 1990s' "it" trends, as were mullet haircuts) outdoor wood boilers, also known as outdoor furnaces or outdoor wood hydronic heaters are still often misunderstood. They are different from the popular EPA wood stoves, which are made to burn low temperatures continuously. They use a higher rate of fire and generate more smoke. Some local governments limit or prohibit their use.
OWBs are ideal to heat homes with insulation levels that are high. Smoke that is thick and smoldering could be a nuisance for neighbors, which has led many OWBs to be shut down or sued. For OWBs, dry wood with a lower moisture content is required to function properly. Wood that is not seasoned or green can reduce efficiency, cause creosote build-up, and shorten the lifespan of the burner. Drying wood takes time and an instrument to measure moisture is essential for every homeowner.
In contrast, dual-stage wood gasification boilers (OWGB) make use of three steps of process which makes use 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 various fuels. Wood gasification boilers require dry and well-seasoned firewood. Most wood can be seasoned within a year, however oak and other species with a hardy structure may take two or more years to fully mature. This is because they have a lower water content and denser mass. This lets them store heat longer, increasing efficiency and reducing pollution. The EPA "Burn Wise" website and Cornell Cooperative Extension are great resources for homeowners to learn how to efficiently burn wood to minimize air pollution.
Low Maintenance
Modern outdoor wood stoves are designed to be environmentally friendly. Modern outdoor wood furnaces do not generate excessive CO2 or heat. They also burn cleaner than indoor wood stoves. They also require less wood to generate the same amount of 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. Outdoor wood burners are only suitable for wood that has been properly "cured" or dried or. Some types of wood can take up to a year. It is important to use a moisture meter to check the water content of your wood before loading.
When operating, it is essential to examine the system on a regular basis for the accumulation of creosote. Creosote, a by-product of combustion, may build up in the chimney and flue if they are not cleaned regularly. It can be removed with a special creosote removal product that is poured into the fire. Regular cleaning of the chimney and flue will help eliminate dangerous creosote buildup and improve efficiency.
To get 99% efficiency from combustion, Crown Royal Stoves designed an innovative air flow technology known as Negative Pressure Gasification. This technology is used in our EPA certified Pristine Series Outdoor Wood Furnaces to pull air up from the bottom and push all gases through an insulated secondary combustion chamber which is surrounded by water, with easy-to-clean turbines. The result is a smokeless, pollutant-free burn.