What You Need to Know About Outdoor Wood Burners
Outdoor wood burners are a cost-effective solution for heating homes and businesses. They also reduce dependence on fossil fuels that are not renewable and contribute towards a resilient energy strategy.
Wood that is well-seasoned is crucial for efficient burning. Wood that is not seasoned or green may have a higher moisture content, which can cause creosote to build up and slow down performance.
Efficient
Outdoor wood burners (OWBs) have been around for many years and provide an energy efficient and environmentally friendly method of heating your home. However, the standard design of OWBs that encourages the slow and cooler burning that causes poor combustion and more smoke, creosote and particulates. These unburned fuels could cause health problems and fire hazards. They also degrade the environment.
Furthermore the visible smoke puffs that OWBs produce can cause neighbors to complain. This could result in DEC (Department of Environmental Conservation) taking enforcement action. This kind of issue could affect the value of your property, and may cause your OWB being closed down.
Crown Royal Stoves has a range of outdoor wood furnaces that are EPA Certified. The Pristine Gasification Series makes use of technology to maximize combustion efficiency and create a smokeless, clean burn. This is achieved with a negative-pressure air system which pulls fresh, dry, heated, filtered air from the bottom and pushes it through the chimney faster than traditional outdoor wood boilers. This is achieved through a unique design that utilizes an encapsulated, multi-pass heat exchanger constructed from 409 Titanium Enhanced Stainless Steel.
If properly used properly, When properly used, the Pristine Series OWB has a 99% combustion rate for a smoke-free and cleaner fire. It consumes less wood and produces a lot less emission than traditional OWBs. It is important to use dry, clean and seasoned wood to increase the performance of your OWB. Seasoning your wood for six months or a year prior to burning is recommended. This helps ensure a smoother and more efficient burn.
You can boost the efficiency of your wood-burning stove through every week a "dry burn". This technique eliminates creosote build up, keeps your boiler efficient and extends its life span. By adding a creosote-removing stick to your stove each time you fill it up, you can dramatically reduce the amount of creosote you need to use. This product is available through Wisconsin Wood Furnace.
Clean
The soot particles that are left in the aftermath of burning wood can make a stove appear very dirty. They are difficult to get rid of so make sure you remove any buildup from the glass of your stove as soon as you notice it. Otherwise the soot will become harder and more difficult to remove. It is essential to select the right cleaners however, you should avoid damaging the glass surface with anything that may scratch it. This could result in an area of weakness that could break the glass if it's exposed to extreme temperatures.
Before you begin cleaning your wood burner, you should make sure that it's not lit and completely cool. Also, ensure that the area around it is covered with newspaper. This will stop any ash spillage that could stain and mark surfaces.
It could take as long as one year for your stove's seasoning to be completed, based on the quality of wood you select. Seasoned wood will not only burn better, but will create less creosote. This is the kind of material that builds up on your fireplace, decreasing its efficiency and creating an opportunity for fire hazards. If you're using unseasoned wood or just starting a new fire in your outdoor wood burner the best thing you can do is to open up the lower back door and scoop the ashes into a non-combustible container each week.
A sediment flush should be carried out on your boiler every four years. This is a simple five second flush from the drain valve on your boiler. This will remove any debris that has accumulated inside the system, and will ensure that your boiler is in good operating condition.
After you've completed the sediment flush, it's time to clean the exterior of your outdoor wood burner. Before you begin, it's crucial to cover the stove's perimeter with newspaper. Wearing gloves and eye protection is also a good idea. You should also have a metal ash canister along with a scraping tool as well as a shovel. You can make use of a cloth as shield to shield the refractory from damage while you remove ash and coal deposits.
Easy to operate
Despite their popularity (they were one of the 1990s' "it" trends, along with mullet haircuts) outdoor wood boilers, referred to as outdoor furnaces or outdoor wood hydronic heaters are still often misunderstood. These units are not like the popular EPA wood stoves, which are made to burn low temperatures continuously. They have more fire and generate more smoke. This is why some local governments regulate or ban their use.
OWBs are great for heating homes with insulation levels that are high. Smoke that is thick and smoldering could be a nuisance for neighbors, resulting in many OWBs to be shut down or even sued. In order for OWBs to operate properly they should be operated with dry wood that has a low moisture content. The use of unseasoned or green wood can reduce efficiency, cause creosote build up and can reduce the lifespan of the burner. Drying small wood burning heater takes time and the use of a moisture gauge is a must for any homeowner.
Dual-stage wood gasification (OWGB) boilers however they employ a three-step procedure that utilizes more of the energy available in the wood. This results in less smoke. These furnaces are more efficient than conventional OWBs, and can be used to fuel various fuels. Wood gasification boilers require dry, well-seasoned firewood. The majority of wood will be seasoned within a year, however oak and other species with a hardy structure could require two years or more to fully season. They are less water-based and have a denser mass. This allows them retain heat for longer, thus increasing efficiency and reducing pollution. The EPA's "Burn Wise" website and Cornell Cooperative Extension can help homeowners understand how to burn wood efficiently in order to reduce air pollution.
Low Maintenance
Modern outdoor wood furnaces are designed with the environment in mind. 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 use less wood to generate the same amount of heat as traditional stoves.
Outdoor wood burners require less maintenance and are more forgiving of moisture content in wood than wood burning stoves that are indoor. However outdoor wood burners can only be used with properly seasoned or "cured" wood. Certain kinds of wood can take up to a year. Use a moisture meter before loading to check the amount of water in the wood.
In the course of operation, it is important to regularly check the system for creosote build up. Creosote is a byproduct from combustion and can accumulate in the chimney and flue when it is not cleaned frequently. It can be eliminated using a special creosote removal product that is poured into the flame. Regularly cleaning the chimney and flue will eliminate dangerous creosote buildup and improve efficiency.
In order to attain 99% efficiency in combustion, Crown Royal Stoves designed a new air flow technology called Negative Pressure Gasification. Our EPA certified Pristine Series outdoor wood furnaces utilize this technology to pull air from the bottom, pushing all the gasses into an insulated, water-surrounded secondary combustion chamber that is easy to clean Turbulators to ensure a smoke-free and pollution-free combustion.