Cleaning Out Wood Furnace

[ronwood]

wiam,

How well does the clothes dryer work using the outdoor furance? Is there a kit that you can buy to convert the clothes dryer?

Thanks
Ron

[woodbowl]

Is anyone smart enough to burn summer wood and get the benefits of air conditioning?  ;D ;D

[woodmills1]

By the way the firebox in my free heat machine is round and stainless( not an option)  It is real easy to use side of a flat shovel to rake coals to one side then shovel ash into the wheel barrow.  Standing dead red oak seems to burn complete with little or no ash, while junky wood will build up quite a bit.

[OneWithWood]

My CB is not stainless.

Chet, sorry if I am the source of your nightmare!  :D  Actually there is a lot of room inside there but the headroom is lacking. 

[Furby]

Is anyone smart enough to burn summer wood and get the benefits of air conditioning? ;D ;D

There was some talk of that earlier this year. ;)

[woodbowl]

Sounds like talk alright. : .............I've got an old camper refrigerator that uses propane to cool with. Is this the direction?

[Furby]

Yup, but bigger.
Buzz and Deadheader were in on it........ do a search. ;)

[wiam]

Ronwood,  no kit, dealer told me how.  Not too big a deal.  Takes a little longer to dry but no 4500 watt elemnt running.   :D

Will

[woodmills1]

can you expand on the clothes dryer option?  maybe parts or pics.

[SwampDonkey]

This morning uncle digs out the wooden drying rack and puts the bedding on it to dry next to the kitchen stove. The fall has been mild enough that he has only been using the kitchen wood stove to heat the whole farm house and he doesn't burn wood at night when in bed. 'Old Fashioned' he exclaims.

[wiam]

Woodmills, first you disconnect the heating element. 8)  That is the most fun part.  Then you go to the parts store and get a medium sized automatic transmission cooler(that is what is in my Dad's), or any other cooler you might have sitting around.( I have an oil cooler that is going in mine)  Cut a hole in the back of the dryer just smaller than the cooler.  I drilled holes in the corners and used the nylon straps that came with the cooler.  Then you need to put duct tape over any vent holes in the back of the dryer.  I ran 110 volts from one leg of the heating element to a circulator. 


Will

[woodmills1]

sounds right doable.  Got lotsa hot water so might try it, but why the circulator?

[wiam]

The circulator moves the hot water to the dryer, just like any other zone.  The switch in the dryer that runs the heating element will turn on the circulator when the dryer call for heat.

Will

[woodmills1]

I get it, mine is using the water to feed my hot air system so I don't have any other than the circulator on the furnace itself.

[wiam]

My circulator for the main loop is in the basement not on the furnace.  In the basement is a manifold with 7 circulators going to different things including my hot air heat.

Will