Wood Stove Parts

Paul Hundrieser asked:


Wood pellet burning stoves are a new and very popular way as a means to provide heat. Pellet fireplaces and stoves burn pellets as a primary source of heat. Wood pellets are generally made from sawdust, coming from sawmills, recycling centers, furniture manufacturers, etc. However, pellets may also be made out of corn, grass, or other waste products. They are very tightly compacted enabling them to be burned very efficiently and in turn produce a high source of heat. Since the wood pellets are usually varying in size from a half up to an inch, and somewhat lightweight, they are very easy to transport. Pellets can be purchased for about $1.00 per 10lbs. Also, since they are actually made from wood, they are very environmentally friendly.

Pellet stoves are generally freestanding stoves specifically designed to burn wood pellets, however fireplace inserts can be purchased to allow your standard wood-burning fireplace also. You can learn more about the difference between each here. Each pellet fireplace and stove contains a “hopper” which can hold anywhere from 30 to 130lbs of wood pellets. Each stove also has a fan to vent all gases outside. You can even install certain stoves and fireplaces in such a way to replace your old source of heat, whether it is gas or electric, and use them to heat the whole house.

With the cost of conventional utilities such as gas and electricity continuing to go up, Pellet Fireplaces and Stoves continue to gain popularity, and are a much more efficient and environmentally friendly alternative.

Christiane Perrin asked:


The heating season is approaching quickly and it is high time to install that wood burning stove or pellet stove you have been thinking about. Which one will it be?

The first thing to check is the availability of pellets in your area. At this point in time, you might not be able to purchase pellets locally. And purchasing locally is important, since it means that there is a sustainable fuel supply in your area.

Contact the nearest store that sells pellet stoves and ask about a list of pellet suppliers. Theres should be at least two in your area. Ask about prices, availability and where they get their pellets from. You want to make sure that the pellets for your stove are from a local and sustainable source. As with anything, shop around and compare prices, proximity, and delivery guarantees.

What Are The Differences Between Wood And Pellet Stoves?

Pellet stoves burn more efficiently and cleanly than wood burning stoves.

All pellet stoves require an electrical connection, while only those wood burning stoves with blowers require an electrical connection.

Wood burning stoves require a functioning chimney or approved vent, whereas most pellet stoves require a conventional flue. Important: check your particular model and your localcodes!

Pellet stoves distribute the heat by blowing hot air into the space. These stoves do notget very hot to the touch. This can be a deciding factor if you have small children. Pellet stoves are quick to provide heat, and quick to cool down, once the fire is out.

Wood burning stoves radiate heat. Some models also have fans to blow hot air into the space. Wood burning stoves get very hot to the touch and keep radiating warmth, long after the fire has burnt down.

Wood pellet stoves require less attention than cord wood burning stoves:

Pellets are delivered in bags, or filled into a pellet bin in your basement. You will have to bring the bags into your house. Pellets are fed into the stove via augers. You fill the pellet hopper, which is integrated into the top of the pellet stove, with approximately 40 lbs. of pellets. You set the temperature dial at the stove to the desired temperature. The stove can be a self-igniting model or be started with a starting gel and match. The pellets will feed automatically as required to maintain the temperature. A wood pellet stove can heat your home for up to 40 hours, without requiring any more of your attention You refill the pellet chamber as needed You empty the ash bin every few days
Wood burning stoves require a good amount of work:

Wood is “dumped” in front of your house and you will have to stack the wood, cover it and bring it into the house as required. Kindling is required to start the stove. You can buy kindling, collect it in nearby woods or from a wood-processing manufacturer (such as flooring or furniture manufacturers) or chop it yourself. You will have to build the fire and start it manually. You control the temperature by adding more wood, opening and closing the air supply damper. Keeping in mind that the wood burning stove is slow-reacting. Your wood burning stove will heat your home, unattended, for up to 12 hours, depending on stove size, wood being burnt, and setting of the air supply damper. You will need to empty the ash bin daily.
Wood pellet stoves are considerably more costly than wood burning stoves. You can find a good wood burning stove for under $ 1,000, whereas a good, reliable pellet stove will cost over $2,000.

Cost for pellets and cost for cord wood depend to a large extent on the region you live in. In some regions pellets are more expensive, in other areas cord wood tops the list. Some areas have experienced pellet shortages, with the increase in popularity of pellet stoves.

Wood burning stoves are more messy than pellet stoves.

Your Personal Preferences

After reading the above comparison, your personal preferences will also help you decide.

How important is it to you to have the cleanest burning and most efficient stove? How much work are you willing to do? Some people like stacking and chopping wood. Building a fire in the stove every morning can be a wonderful ritual to start the day. How much money do you have a available and are willing to spend on a stove? Do you prefer the radiant heat of the wood burning stove or the hot/warm air blowing from the pellet stove? Would you like to cook a winter soup on the wood burning stove?
Other Deciding Factors

In addition to the personal preferences, the following factors must be considered:

Are you physically able and willing to do the work required for a wood burning stove? Do you have the time required to tend to the stove? How easily can you install electrical power for you pellet stove? How easily can you add a chimney or vent stack? Are power outages a real possibility in your area? Will you have a back-up generator for the pellet stove, or will you need the wood burning stove as a heat source?

Heating your home with wood, be it pellets or cut wood, requires considerably more work than simply flipping a switch on your oil or gas-fired furnace. The benefits though, in my opinion, outweigh the hard work and the sometimes messy living room. No matter which option you choose, you can heat your home with a sustainable fuel with either a wood burning stove or a pellet stove.

Wood Pellet Production Guide

Megan S Jones asked:


Good Reason 1

For many, the principal reason to install a wood burning stove is quite simply the unique look and feel of a real fire, without any of the usual effort, smell, mess or danger. Installing a wood burner is for a great many people first and foremost a lifestyle choice; it pushes all the right buttons and stirs up emotions associated with our basic human desire to feel warm and safe.

It also goes without saying that what looks good and feels good typically sells well too; there is quite a bit of anecdotal evidence from estate agents and homeowners that having a wood burning stove installed will help a house sell that much more easily. Note however that a wood burner is unlikely to make your house actually worth much more on the property market, but it can go some way to help you get a sale at your asking price that bit more quickly.

Good Reason 2

Recently there has been a rise in the number of people installing wood burning stoves and boilers because wood burners are not only highly efficient but much cheaper to run than regular gas, oil or electric heating systems; over three times cheaper in many cases, and even better in some situations. But consider the pros and cons carefully because wood burners are not the answer for all people, for a variety of reasons (follow the link following this article for more information on this subject).

Good Reason 3

We are, of necessity, becoming more environmentally aware these days; if you tend a garden you will already have noticed changes in the climate and every energy utility bill is a reminder that how things have been up till now is not sustainable for the future. But unlike burning fossil fuel such as oil, gas or coal, burning wood forms part of a pretty much balanced carbon cycle.

The crucial difference between fossil fuels and wood biofuel from trees is that trees are living organisms – they absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and using sunlight convert it to cellulose fibers (i.e. wood). When managed as a renewable resource, trees planted to replace those used as biofuel in wood burning stoves will over their own lifespan absorb exactly the same amount of carbon dioxide as is released by the burning process. This is potentially an endlessly renewable and sustainable cycle that emits negligible excess CO2 into the atmosphere. Fossil fuels by contrast are not remotely renewable or sustainable and represent a one way street where CO2 emissions are concerned.

Good Reason 4

Forget tree-hugging sentimentality and hand-knitted eco-credentials; there are compelling economic reasons to go green these days (as well as very sound environmental reasons too of course). Conventional fossil fuel is on the down slope as regards supply which can only increase the price over time. Additionally, ever tougher legislation and regulations means that installing a mix of renewable energy sources starts to make eminent financial sense. For new buildings the regulations are becoming so tight that many architects and builders automatically elect to install wood burning stoves and boilers simply because make it then becomes so much easier to comply with new building regulations on carbon footprints.

Good Reason 5

Many modern wood burning systems really can do it all, with capabilities for cooking, whole house space heating, hot water and heat storage. These vary from wood burning stoves that have that traditional kitchen range look and a back boiler supplying hot water to radiators and the main hot water cylinder, to sleek, stylish, modern designs that also serve as a central feature in the main living space. Combine a wood burner system with solar thermal heating a much more sustainable future beckons – financially for you and environmentally for the planet.

Good Reason 5.5

When it comes right down to it, wood burning stoves have to rank among the most basic and ancient of human technologies, which probably accounts for the deep rooted affinity most people have for them.

Consider all the millennia of progress that has led up to modern heating systems then ask yourself this: when was the last time you recall gathering with friends and family to sit contentedly around the gas boiler?

I rest my case.

Follow this link for more information about installing a wood burning stove including a checklist of points to consider first.

Wood Pellet Stove And Boiler Guide

Eamonn Horgan asked:


Firstly, Let me explain my initial involvement. One of my business partner had decided to purchase a farmhouse in Bulgaria and when he was kitting out the house with its furnishings he invited out. It was a lovely hot day when we arrived, but quickly the weather turned nasty, snow up to a meter deep! We finally struggled through the whited out countryside to a beautiful pink farmhouse heavy with snow. As I remember we walked the last 1/4 mile! We entered the living area and the very first thing we saw was what I in my stupidity, or cheap Bulgarian wine, believed to be a TV. After I realised it was a multi-fuel stove, my first thought was “why no gas, how are you going to heat your central heating” remember the snow? Well after 15 minutes we not only had a toasty room, but every radiator in the house was hot to the touch.

Now my past experience of wood stoves was like most peoples, you know a couple of old timers sitting around a pot bellied stove chewing tobacco in an old western on the telly, so the experience was an epiphany. What would be the outcome if we used the brand in his living room to develop an ethically based company around. In this article I wont divulge how we set the company up. Mainly because its a novel in its own right, but because what I what to do is give a little advice to people looking to lower those large nasty utilities bills, whilst helping good old mother earth. Another thing multi-fuel stoves are hypnotic , sitting in front of those flames is so relaxing, especially in these stressful times.

So lets start with the basics, What is a stove? This may sound odd if you know, but, let me explain. I’ve been asked if its a cooker a boiler or even an open fire. What it is, is a sealed unit that can come in many shapes and sizes. From the pot bellied stove, as discussed above, to a Prity built in, that has three glass sides! It can be a stove that just heats one room, a cooker, a stand alone boiler or a combination of all three. Oh before I forget, the difference between a open fire or basket and multi-fuel stove is very straight forward. The open fire draws cold air in towards the fire, remember being at your grans and your fronts hot and your back is freezing? Well thats the back draft, the other problem is a large percentage of heat literally goes up in smoke! With wood stoves its sealed so its heating the air in the room, acting, if you like as a separate radiator.

Multi-fuel or multifuel, this is another term that can be a bit confusing to the novice, so here goes. Multi-fuel means that the stove can burn any of the following; wood, coke, coal, wood-coal, peat, brickets or biomass (that’s stuff like pellets or even corn, another article I feel).

This brings me seamlessly on to an important part. Can you burn wood and/or coal in your multi-fuel stove. As a general rule of thumb if you live in a smokeless area, no. If you remember your history lessons, Britain was blighted by smog and chemicals in the air until the mid 1960’s and if you live in a city you should only use a smokeless fuel, but who buys all the wood and coal for sale in the petrol stations in Manchester is beyond me, maybe outer towners from Cheshire?

Now using a multi-fuel stove with a built in boiler as part of your central heating. Now this is some thing that really will save you pounds over a year. Remember that gas bill that looked like you were paying Fred the shreads pension? Well this is how it works I’ll use my business partners Prity built in as an example. Im not going to muddle your mind with Kw’s and BTU’s, this is a beginners guide after all. Simply put the stove has a built in water tank next to the fire, this heats up and flows via a connecting pipe in to your radiators.

In the summer when hopefully, hollow laugh, you wont need a roaring fire you switch back to your existing boiler. You can even get a gizmo that can have both systems working in unison. Its not something you should attempt unless of course your a fully qualified plumber think CORGI.

Finally a couple of words of caution, when you have your multi-fuel stove installed only use a HETAS trained fitter. This means that you pass all current building regulations including for insurance and HIPS. Have your flue pipes swept by a reputable chimney sweep on a regular basis. We have this information on our websites as do the majority of other reputable companies. With a nice bye for now, a lot of local authorities across the UK now offer a grant scheme for individuals looking to install multi-fuel stove, so check out your councils site. I hope this has been of some help and you feel ready to make the leap. Heating comfort with a green conscience!

Vic Hanson asked:


I don’t remember for sure exactly how this project got started but I was over at Brad and Gina Shaw’s house here in Cotahuasi, Peru, where we work as missionaries. Brad was talking about trying to make solar cookers to help the people here. One of our church members was looking for a new burro to replace his mother’s burro that had died. She needed the burro to haul firewood for cooking. Because Cotahuasi is a large village and a majority of people still use wood cooking fires, the nearby sources of firewood have been depleted. It takes her a full day every week to go and get a week’s worth of firewood. Without a burro, she would have to go oftener and bring back less wood each time; only what she could carry on her back. Our area usually gets eight to nine months of sunshine a year so solar seems like a good option for a supplemental cooking source. Brad also mentioned the need for more fuel-efficient wood stoves, rather than just a fire on the ground with three stones to support the pot.

Brad had seen a large parabolic solar cooker in Tomepampa, a village about 20 minutes away. He suggested we go look at it so we hopped in the car and went right away. The cooker wasn’t at the home where he had previously seen it, but they told us where it currently was and we were able to go and look at it. It was about five feet in diameter, made of shiny sheet metal attached to a framework of angle iron and a parabolic dish made of one-inch wide metal bars. We were told that it cooked quite rapidly and worked well, so we took measurements and lots of pictures to guide us in making one. However we knew it wouldn’t be an immediate solution to the mother’s problem because the shiny metal wasn’t available here in Cotahuasi.

That evening I did some research on the Web to learn as much as possible about solar cookers and hopefully find some plans for building one. I did see a photo of one that looked very similar to the one we saw, but there were no plans for making it. One of the best sites I found was that of Solar Cookers International, based in Sacramento, CA. Their website is included below, they have many different types of cookers and the plans to make them available as downloadable PDF files. I was anxious to make one right away, rather than waiting until after my next trip to Arequipa where I could hopefully find the materials for the large one we had looked at.

They had smaller parabolic ones, some of them using an umbrella for the parabolic form, others required building your own out of cardboard or wood. The plans that caught my eye were for a box cooker, lined on the inside with aluminum foil and using a piece of glass on top to trap the heat inside of the box. That appeared to be the easiest to build with the limited materials I had available, especially as I could see a large box on a pile of stuff on the other side of the room from where I was sitting at the computer. I excitedly went through the list of materials to see what else was needed. I soon found a big problem; I didn’t have any aluminum foil. They didn’t recommend using glass mirrors, which I knew I could get in Cotahuasi, and aluminum foil wasn’t available. The mission of Solar Cookers International is to promote solar cooking in third world and developing nations, where many people are still dependent on wood fires. The plans had a section on substitute materials that could be used in areas that don’t have access to all of the normally used items. Instead of aluminum foil, it said that aluminized polyester film (Mylar®) could be used, although I didn’t notice the warning until after I had built the cooker. It said not to use it on the inside of a box cooker because it could melt and give off fumes, but neither of those has been a problem.

I knew I had seen some material like that somewhere in my house so I started searching around. I soon found it! Every morning I have a half of a small bag of Angel Zuck Cereal for breakfast. It is available in larger bags but they are more expensive per gram than the smaller ones, as is often the case here in Peru. They are “plastic” bags but the inside is a shiny reflective surface, just like the Mylar balloons that are so popular. I dug through my garbage for as many as I could find there, and then emptied a few more bags into a plastic container to come up with what looked like enough to line the inside of the box. I buy the cereal by the case and now I had an empty cardboard box as well as the empty bags. About this time I came up with the exciting idea of packaging everything needed to make the solar cooker, along with instructions, inside the large cereal box. Then you could give the whole box to a needy family, they could eat the cereal and then make the solar cooker!

I soon realized that this wouldn’t work as you need two boxes, and one has to be larger than the other, along with a piece of glass too big to fit into the cereal box. So I went and got the first box I had seen, it had contained panetone, which is a Peruvian fruitcake, popular at Christmas time. The boxes weren’t quite as big as recommended, but the cereal box would fit perfectly inside the panetone box, leaving room to put the necessary insulation between the boxes. It was now late and I needed to get to bed, but I could hardly wait until morning to start building the cooker.

I had everything I needed now except the glass and the adhesive to attach the shiny plastic to the box. Still trying to make it as simple as possible, so that those with limited resources could duplicate it, I checked the substitution list and was reminded that you could make a paste from flour and water. I started on the construction and all was going well. I used crumbled up newspaper and cardboard scraps to insulate the airspace between the boxes, although it says you can use dry plant fibers, feathers or wool, items most people here would have, but I didn’t. When it came time to attach the plastic foil, I mixed up some flour and water paste and attempted to glue the foil onto the inside of the box. But as the directions also stated, it can be hard to get it to stick. The flour paste didn’t hold it at all so I had to go buy some glue at the stationery store. That worked better but still didn’t hold the edges well, plus there were lots of bumps and wrinkles in the foil. The directions also said not to use tape on the inside of the box, but I had some high temperature shiny foil tape that I had bought in the U.S. so I used that. I use the tape to make ultra light backpacking stoves out of aluminum soda cans (search the web for “Pepsi can stoves” if you are interested). I did feel bad about using something that I didn’t think was available here, but I just saw a similar tape at the new Maestro (Ace Hardware) Home Center in Arequipa.

The only thing left now was to make the lid for the cooker, which takes another piece of cardboard, that came from one of my storage boxes (originally my kitchen stove box). I have a friend who used to have a hardware store here; he came by while I was working on the cooker. He said he would be gone all day but he still had some glass and would cut me a piece when he got home in the evening. However he never showed up and didn’t answer my phone messages. After a few days I gave up and went to the glass shop to get a piece there. The owner was out of town and the shop was closed. It was about two weeks later before he got back and I finally found the store open to get the glass. Finally I finished the cooker, but it was too late in the day to try it out. I was very eager to test it the next day but then we had a couple of unusual cloudy days during our normally sunny dry season.

At last the time arrived, a beautiful sunny day. I decided to keep it simple for the first try and just made plain white rice. I put too much water in it so it was quite sticky, but it worked! It was time for the real test – pot roast. The beef here is not hung and cured, so it is normally very tough. A crock-pot slow cooker works the best for making a pot roast, taking about eight hours on low. It was a perfect test for a solar slow cooker. On my first try, the weather turned cloudy after about 4 hours so I had to finish it in the oven. Then I was busy (and there were a few more cloudy days) so I couldn’t try it again for a couple of weeks. It also isn’t possible to buy roast beef here every day. It is usually only available a few times a week, early in the morning (6 or 7 am) on the day they butcher. I stopped at the meat market and the owner said they would have some early in the morning so I asked them to hold two kilos of boneless beef for me until I got there.

In the morning, after getting the beef and peeling carrots and potatoes, it was 10:30 before I set the cooker out in the sun. I turned the box every two hours or so to keep it aimed at the sun, and brought it in at 4:30 when the sun went behind the mountain (a disadvantage to living in a canyon – late sunrises and early sunsets). It smelled so good and it looked done, just like in the crock-pot. The taste test confirmed success, all was cooked and the beef was fairly tender. On my second try a few weeks later I set the box out in the sun to preheat while I was cutting up the veggies, and then browned the meat in a fry pan like the crock-pot recipe book says, to give it a head start. Again it was good, but not falling apart tender like eight hours in the crock-pot. Looks like I will have to get up earlier next time and have it ready by 9:00 when the sun hits my cooking area.

Besides making a larger, parabolic cooker, I plan on experimenting with more efficient wood burning stoves as well.

Wood Pellet Stove And Boiler Guide