Do you use a wood chute?

[brenndatomu]

I need to install a wood chute from the garage into the basement at my sisters house. It's shouldn't be too difficult, just cut a hole through std. 8" cement block. But I was hoping to get some ideas/pictures of how some others may have done this, as far as materials used, how you made the door, etc, etc. I figure no sense in making this any harder or uglier than it needs to be! Thanks!

 

[cantoo]

I put mine down a basement window. I use a plastic slide to direct the wood across the basement floor. It will slide about 15' across the room. My plastic is heavy 1/2" thick black stuff it was the center core in a roll of Big O filed drainage tile. but I would think a kids slide would work too.

 

[Kevin in Ohio]

My Dad made one when I was kid as it was just for the standard fireplace. Once he made his own stove we decided to make it bigger. It'll hold about 3/4's of a cord. We went cheap as his house sits on sheet limestone so when we dug it out we saved all the rock to reuse. We poured a concrete floor and sloped it about 10 inches with the low towards the door. It also goes about 12 inches lower than the door opening and I'd suggest doing that as well. Trash and debris comes off the wood and it acts like a catch all if you will. We laid the sides up with the sheet limestone with mort in between, block, bricks or whatever will work fine.

For the door we just framed it with 2X's and used a piece of plywood for the door. Made up a simple latch and got some good hinges. Been in use now 30 years with no problems. I'll attach a pic for you.

As you can see, he fills it from the outside but it the same basic thing you want to do. You can see his lonely oil furnace(in the top left corner} that hasn't been run in over 40 years!

 

[Butch(OH)]

'round here most houses had a coal door at one time. Mine still has, Although I didnt bother to search it I'd bet they are still available. They are built tough to get banged around but lack insulation. I fixed that with spray foam.

View attachment 311850

 

[Whitespider]

I agree with the coal door/chute. People still burn coal... check with a building supply company, those doors have to be available somewhere.
Tossing firewood in like that tends to raise a lot of dust, but fortunately, behind those old coal doors is a walled-in room that held the coal... if you put up some sort of walls (even hang plastic) it will keep dust from filling the whole basement.

Here's a picture of my... um... "employee" sending a load in the house.

 

[brenndatomu]

Yeah, I had thought of the coal chute door too. I figured it would be easier to fab up a wood door than to find a coal door though.
There is a shared block wall between the basement and the garage. The garage floor is about 2' below the sill plate. In other words, once the hole is cut and I'm standing in the basement looking through the chute hole, I will be looking right at the cars tires. My plan was to make a 16"x16" hole, just not sure if I want to take out the block directly under the sill plate or go down one and have the bottom of the hole right down at the garage floor. The plan is to make a nice wood door for the inside and the outside too, maybe have some rigid foam insulation on the inside of both doors. Then I need to come up with some sort of heavy duty rolling cart (the wood gobbler is at the other end of a long ranch house) to build a box on, that will be placed in the basement directly under the hole. I'm sure it will need to be somewhat overbuilt to take having chunks dropped on it from 6' or so above. A slide, pipe or some other inexpensive means of controlling/guiding the wood into the box and not all over the floor is in the plans too.

 

[Whitespider]

Best check local code (and maybe the insurance company) before cutting a hole into the basement at, or near, garage floor level. In many areas of the country that isn't legal to do anymore... and will void certain aspects of homeowners insurance. Supposedly, fuel and exhaust fumes, as well as spills can enter the basement creating a serious health and/or fire hazard.

 

[CWME]

WS, looks like you have yourself a good "employee" there! What is his chute made from?

 

[Whitespider]

That's a galvanized steel slide from a child's swing set... one of those sets built from lumber you buy as a kit from the likes of Menards.

 

[brenndatomu]

Best check local code (and maybe the insurance company) before cutting a hole into the basement at, or near, garage floor level. In many areas of the country that isn't legal to do anymore... and will void certain aspects of homeowners insurance. Supposedly, fuel and exhaust fumes, as well as spills can enter the basement creating a serious health and/or fire hazard.

Hmmm, good point spidey...