What You Need to Know About Outdoor Wood Burners
Outdoor wood burners are an efficient and cost-effective method of heating homes and businesses. They also help reduce dependence on fossil fuels that are not renewable and help to create a more resilient energy strategy.
For efficient burning it is essential to use wood that has been well-seasoned. Unseasoned or green wood can have a higher moisture content that can create creosote and reduce performance.
Efficient
Outdoor wood burners have been in use for a long time. They are an energy efficient and eco-friendly method of heating your home. However, the design of OWBs, which encourages the slow and cooler burning, causes less combustion and a higher amount of smoke, creosote and particulates. These unburned fuels could cause health issues, fire hazards and degrade the environment.
Furthermore the visible plume of smoke that OWBs emit can cause neighbors to complain and result in DEC (Department of Environmental Conservation) enforcement action. This type of public relations issue could have a serious impact on the value of your property and could result in 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 produce smokeless, clean burning. This is achieved by using an air system that is negative pressure that pulls fresh hot, dry and filtered air from the bottom of the boiler and then pushes it out of the chimney at a much higher rate than conventional outdoor wood boilers. This is achieved through an innovative design that makes use of a multi-pass, water filled heat exchanger made of 409 Titanium Enhanced Stainless Steel.
When properly used when properly used, When properly used, the Pristine Series OWB has an efficiency of 99% for a cleaner and smokeless fire. It uses less wood and produces significantly less emissions than traditional OWBs. To maximize your OWB's performance, it is important to burn only dry, clean, seasoned wood. It is recommended to get your wood seasoned for six months or one year prior to burning it. This will ensure a more efficient and cleaner burn.
In addition to maximizing the efficiency of your wood stove it is also possible to increase its efficiency by performing an "dry burn" every week. This method reduces creosote, increases boiler efficiency and prolongs the life of your boiler. Lastly, by adding a creosote removal stick each when you load your stove, you can drastically cut the amount of creosote that you use. This product is available from Wisconsin Wood Furnace.
Clean
A wood-burning stove could be extremely dirty due to burned soot particles. They are difficult to remove, so clean any buildup on your stove's glass immediately. In the event that the soot is not removed, it will harden and be even more difficult to remove. It is essential to choose the right cleaner however, you should avoid damaging the glass surface by using anything that can scratch it. This could cause an area of weakness that could shatter glass when exposed extreme temperatures.
Make sure you let your wood stove cool completely before cleaning it. Make sure you protect the area around it with newspaper. This will prevent the ash from leaking and staining surfaces.
Based on the quality of the wood that you choose to use, it could take up to a year for your stove to become properly well-seasoned. The wood that is seasoned will not only burn better and will produce less creosote. This is the substance that builds up on your chimney, reducing effectiveness and creating a fire hazard. If you are using unseasoned wood or are just beginning a new fire in your outdoor wood burner the best thing to do is open the lower back door and scoop ashes out into a non-combustible container each week.
A sediment flush is recommended on your boiler every four years. This is a straightforward flush that takes five seconds from the bottom drain valve on your boiler. shed wood burner will remove any sediment that has built up in the system, and ensure that your boiler is operating efficiently.
After you have cleaned the outside of your outdoor fireplace, it is time to clean it. Before you begin, it's crucial to cover the area around the stove with newspaper. It is also advisable to wear protective eyewear and gloves. Also, you should have an shovel, a metal container for ash and an instrument for scraping. You can use a cloth for shield to shield the refractory from damage while you scrape away coal and ash deposits.
Simple to operate
Despite their popularity (they were among the 1990s' "it" trends, along with mullet haircuts) outdoor wood boilers, also referred to as outdoor furnaces or outdoor wood hydronic heaters are still often misunderstood. In contrast to their EPA-approved counterparts, popular wood stoves that are designed to burn at constant, low temperatures, these boilers have a higher fire rate and emit more smoke when operating. This is why some local governments have a policy of regulating or banning their use.
OWBs are best suited to homes with high levels of insulation. The visible, smoldering smoke can also be a source of complaint with neighbors, and has led to many OWBs being shut down or sued in the past. For OWBs dry wood that has less moisture content is needed to perform properly. Green or unseasoned wood can decrease efficiency, cause creosote build-up, and shorten the lifespan of the burner. Drying wood can take time and an instrument to measure moisture is a must for any homeowner.
Dual-stage wood gasification (OWGB) boilers, on the other hand, use a three-step process which makes use of the energy available in the wood. This results in less smoke. These types of furnaces are much more efficient than traditional OWBs and can be used with a larger variety of fuel. Wood gasification boilers need dry and seasoned wood. The majority of wood will season within a year. Oak and other hardy trees can take as long as two years to mature. This is because they have lower volume of water and a greater density. This lets them store heat longer, thus increasing efficiency and reduce pollution. The EPA's "Burn Wise" website and Cornell Cooperative Extension can help homeowners learn more about how to burn wood efficiently in order to reduce air pollution.
Low Maintenance
Modern outdoor wood stoves have been designed to be eco-friendly. Modern outdoor wood furnaces don't produce excessive heat or CO2. They also burn cleaner than indoor wood stoves. They also require less wood to provide the same amount of heat as traditional stoves.
Outdoor wood burners also require significantly less maintenance than indoor wood burners and are more forgiving when it comes to the moisture content of the wood. However outdoor wood burners can only be used with properly seasoned or "cured" wood. Certain kinds of wood can last for up to a year. It is crucial to make use of a moisture meter to check the water content of your wood prior to loading.
In the course of operation, it is essential to check the system regularly for the build-up of creosote. Creosote is a by-product of combustion, can build up in the chimney and flue if they aren't cleaned regularly. It can be eliminated using a special creosote removal product that is poured into the fire. Regular cleaning of the chimney and flue will help eliminate dangerous creosote accumulations, and increase efficiency.
Crown Royal Stoves developed a new airflow technology known as Negative Pressure Gasification to attain 99% efficiency in combustion. This technology is used in our EPA certified Pristine Series Outdoor Wood Furnaces to draw air upwards from the bottom and push all the gases through an insulated secondary combustion chamber surrounded by water with easy-to-clean turbulators. The result is a smokeless and pollutant free burn.