New wood burners.. outdoor or indoor?

tractormiallis · Mar 10, 2014

I am looking at a getting a new wood burner. The old octopus is out and am thinking of either a wood add on in my basement or one of the outdoor "water boiler" ones that so many have. Pros for an indoor in my view are not having to go outside and possibly less wood used as the outdoor kind seem to use a lot more wood. Pros to having a outside are having the wood dust mess outside, and fire risk outside, as well as insurance a bit cheaper. Now, my question is.. which would you choose? Give your experiences.. and what are some good wood stoves for my application.. brands..? Also, have heard the wood gasification boilers are not too good, anyone have experience with one?
Need to be able to burn wood and use my TRACTOR to haul it, to keep it tractor relevant!

oj · Mar 10, 2014

Have a neighbour with an outdoor wood boiler, we have a pellet stove in our main room... It's surprising how much dust even a pellet stove produces.

Neighbours outdoor stove need stocked twice a day in cold weather (-30) but it does take 4ft lengths, so no splitting needed unless the wood is really big diameter... so outdoor stove is a lot less work than an indoor wood stove. Also an outdoor stove give you options of heating more than just your house, you could heat a garage or shop too... neighbour heats house and 60 by 50 ft shop.

Given a choice, i'd take the outdoor unit.

Mark6005 · Mar 10, 2014

Not an opinion just an option. We have an airtight wood stove and the view of the fire burning stoking the stove and the warmth of the blower just makes the burning wood so much more rewarding. Everyone's situation is different

PJH · Mar 10, 2014

I've lived with wood heat nearly my entire life (65 yrs). Wood stoves in the house, whole house wood furnace in the basement, and now an outdoor boiler, all of them being good quality heat units. I'd never go back to packing wood into the house. I back a trailer up near the boiler and feed the wood right off of the trailer. Folks say the outdoor boilers burn more wood, and they are partially right, (apples to oranges) but think of the work you eliminate by never having to pack wood into a basement, (done that) or worse yet, a living room (done that too). And the ashes? HA! Been there, done that for years! Forgot to mention bugs. And bark. Grouchy wimmin. Insurance mandates. Chimney cleaning. I'll never go back to packing wood into the house. There's noticeable hatred for outdoor boilers from some folks, and sometimes it's justified. I saw one right in the middle of town last winter. Bad idea! I'm using a Hardy boiler that I installed in 1998. Only one I've ever had, so can't offer a comparison. There's lots of makers, and it seems that folks like what ever brand they're using. Good luck with your decision.

JD Farmer · Mar 11, 2014

http://outdoorwoodfurnaceinfo.com/forum/index.php?board=20.40
Lots of good information right here.

1948jr · Mar 11, 2014

I bought an outdoor unit 3 winters ago.... should have done long ago.

Bret4207 · Mar 11, 2014

I think OJ hit all the points I'd make. Big thing for us would be the domestic HW off the boiler. Plus, going from forced hot air to baseboard hot water would be a godsend for our sinuses! I can't wait for the day I have an OWB! The only down side is the power requirement for the OWB. Going to have to make sure I have a genset just for the boiler for those days the power is on again/off again.

longear · Mar 11, 2014

I put in the epa rated central last fall. I had a whole house coal furnace. We burned less than 1/3 of the wood we would have burned. And we were more comfy than before. I love it although it was pricy

Zachary Hoyt · Mar 11, 2014

We have an indoor gasification boiler in a little woodshed attached to one end of the building. It is nice in that you don't have to go outside to get to it but it is not right in the middle of the building where the mess would get everywhere.
Zach

Bill in IL · Mar 11, 2014

I have a home built wood boiler but house it in a 20 foot shipping container. I store about a 15-20 days worth of wood in there. Could probably get a month if it was stacked not dumped from the endloader. I have to go out in the cold to fire it but I am not in the cold when I fire it.

I would not go back to burning in the house unless I had a walk out basement. Getting wood in the house was a pain. Heat control was sometimes an issue either too much or not enough when really cold.

The other thing I did was to staple up pex tubing under the floor in the house. It gives a steady even heat though a little slow to react so I still have hot water forced air.

IrvIA · Mar 11, 2014

Just heard the other day that SOBamma and the EPA are fixin to put the wood stove folks out of business by making it impossible to meet emission requirements. You might want to check it out. Another loss of our freedoms.

Irv

caterpillar guy · Mar 11, 2014

Had old stove for wood in the house. Now have an outside one. Uses more wood but am heating the whole house and no oil/gas. No mess in the house. No splitting unless it is bigger than 2 ft in diameter. Can cut it about 3-4 ft long so less cutting. I would not go back to an inside stove. I wold however like to put a shed over the wood to help keep it dry during use instead of having to cover it up all the time.
We use old pickup frames for wood hauling. Can cut it long enough to fit across the frame so no floor needed.

New wood burners.. outdoor or indoor?

tractormiallis

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oj

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Mark6005

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PJH

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JD Farmer

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1948jr

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Bret4207

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longear

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Zachary Hoyt

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Bill in IL

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IrvIA

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caterpillar guy

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