iDRY Vacuum Kilns

Sponsors:

Kinda Home made boiler

Started by Rob30, October 24, 2018, 01:47:54 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Rob30

I have a pacific western boiler. I am having the cross pipes cut out because they keep leaking. The rest of the boiler is easily repaired if/when a leak shows up. I know I will lose some efficiency. So I am looking for other ways to get it back. Such as increasing insulation around the boiler. Any other ideas? I am thinking the exhaust changes maybe. I would be interested especially in what people have done when they make their own boilers more efficient. 
I heat with wood entirely. I have a wood stove and a boiler. I like the boiler because I load it less often, can leave for they day and the house is still warm. It burns more wood, however it heats multiple buildings and my hot water. I also have a limitless amount of firewood. It just works for our situation.  

mike_belben

Theres sort of two parts.  Combustion efficiency, and then heat transfer or storage efficiency


In general, combustion itself is always imroved by turbulance so as to help the remaining combustible gasses find sufficient unburned oxygen.  This can be done by electric blowers, by introduction or secondary air injection or by various louvers and such to help a flame swirl the burn space.   Every stove is different.  Make one little change and its different again.  Combustion is very dynamic.  


The other half is increasing the efficiency of what you do with the heat generated from the combustion event.  Burning hotter only to warm the sky over your house doesnt cut it.  You are trying to heat a medium that is being retained for your benefit.  It can be airspace you live in, concrete you walk on, the physical mass of your dwelling or domestic water.  Water is 800x more dense than air so its btu storing capacity is exceptional.  There are a lot of options here and not all will be feasible for everyone. 

One easy thing is to lengthen the path that flame has to travel to reach the smoke pipe.  Make it climb over and around baffles and scrub the walls of the firebox to get to the flue pipe entrace.   Next, make the flue path longer before the gases exit your chimney top.  Rocket stoves run the flue horizontal along the floor and often encase them in sand or cob or brick etc to make a mass storing device.  "Russian" masonry stoves are a huge tower of fieldstone for the same reason, mass to soak up the heat and release it slowly.  Radiant slabs and hot water storage tanks do the same, superstor is a common boiler add on.  

Possibilities are endless. 
Praise The Lord

thecfarm

As mike said,on the Heatmor that I have there is a 3 inch x 6 inch rectangle that runs the length of the OWB. Smoke goes to the feed door,travels the length of the boiler then exits the chimney.  On the CB that I looked at the top has baffles,kinda about 4 inches at angle,a v shape,I like the looks of that too.
Model 6020-20hp Manual Thomas bandsaw,TC40A 4wd 40 hp New Holland tractor, 450 Norse Winch, Heatmor 400 OWB,YCC 1978-79

Rob30

Thanks, I will consider your suggestions. I was thinking about changing the way the smoke exits the stove. Probably lowering the chimney intake that the smoke and heat cannot just rise out of the chimney. Or change the intake to run along the top of the stove so the intake is by the loading door, Also planning to put a floor grate in it, so the blower will be directed under the fire.
Inside the house we are retrofitting with in floor heating. It is a small house. We also heat the garage, we have not poored the floor yet and will be putting pex in the cement.

E Yoder

With the water cooled firebox like the PW has (and others) it'll be difficult to get a lot better reburn and better combustion efficiency.
Creating more heat exchange in the exhaust path could help, but keep in mind access for cleaning. A short piece of auger down the chimney could help create more impact into the water jacket.
Or save money towards a new gasification type boiler. 😀
HeatMaster dealer in VA.
G7000

Rob30

Eventually we will get a new boiler, but it is not in the cards now. I like the PW boiler for its simplicity other then the heat exchange tubes, which I have seen many other similar boilers have changed this part of the design. I like the auger in the chimney idea. 

Thank You Sponsors!