Which owb to buy

[Henry and Wanda]

Hello,
I have a friend who is interested in buying an OWB. He doesn't know anything about them as to which brand or model to buy. What are the major things to consider when buying one and which brands are the best performing ? I know everybody has his own opinion, but that's what I want to hear !! Thanks

Henry and Wanda

 

[wooddog 066]

IMO,theres alot of furnaces out there but only a few good efficient ones i have a model 300 biomass direct and i love it i heat 2300 sq ft and have had it running since oct 1st and have burned about 5.5 to 6 cord and unlimited hot water for showers but to check out the furnaces yourself go on www.biomassdirect.com and they have some great insight videos and pics and prices of there furnaces hope this helps if ya happen to call ask for fran and tell her Jarrod to ya about them and she will take care of ya!!!

 

[Como]

Why an OWB?, there is much better technology available.

 

[indiansprings]

I have a bunch of wood customers with OWB's, I would look at Central Boiler and Woodmaster's products based on what I've seen and by the amount of wood used. Some of my customers are using Hardy's, they seem like they use more wood, possibly due to the small water jackets they have.

 

[mhyme71]

I own a central boiler classic 5036 i heat 1500 sq ft and am very happy with it. 2 years it has probably saved me 250 a month in propane during winter and 30 bucks for hot water a month

 

[wooddog 066]

check out the biomass direct you wont be sorry i used to burn heating oil now i burn nothing STRICTLY ALL ON THE OWB Best investment i ever made!!!

 

[J.W Younger]

I have a bunch of wood customers with OWB's, I would look at Central Boiler and Woodmaster's products based on what I've seen and by the amount of wood used. Some of my customers are using Hardy's, they seem like they use more wood, possibly due to the small water jackets they have.

The hardy does have a small compared to most water capacity, but being all stainless is a plus and I have had very few issues with mine.IDK how it compares with others on wood useage.I use about 7-8 cord per year.

 

[Como]

check out the biomass direct you wont be sorry i used to burn heating oil now i burn nothing STRICTLY ALL ON THE OWB Best investment i ever made!!!

I wonder if the people who bought their previous incarnation products would agree with you?

Not sure they realised quite how limited the warranty would be.

 

[TMFARM 2009]

i recommend the one that doesn't catch your house on fire... thats the one i would pick....just my .02 :hmm3grin2orange::hmm3grin2orange:

 

[mtfallsmikey]

Just finished up my 3rd year with the Central CB5036, love it. But, depending on what you want to heat, how much $$ you have to spend, etc. will influence your choice.

 

[rburke65]

Owb

como...What is the better technology?

 

[wooddog 066]

I agree with rburke65 whats better technology COMO? other than having a gaswell and having freeheat!!!!!I wouldnt trade my outdoor furnace for anything hardly any splitting, freewood were surrounded by it,no dirt in house or smoke!!!! NO BRAINER TO ME THE GOVERMENT CAN STICK THERE FOREIGN OIL

 

[William Balaska]

I just bought a 6048 I'm going to do a thread on my install. I did a ton of research the 5036 and 6048 stoves come highly reccomended by owner's and their construction is excellent. I did buy two extra lenghts of chimmney and draft fan for it to burn wood that's not perfectly cured. IMO central, woodmaster and portage and main are the best i've seen.

 

[mtfallsmikey]

More important than the brand of boiler, is your system design and installation. Don't let your dealer size your boiler on you total sqare footage alone. Do a detailed heat loss calc., size your HX's, piping, pumps, etc. correctly. A bad install is a total waste of a lot of resources. See disclaimer below.

 

[Como]

Your standard OWB is a metal box surrounded by a water jacket. The temperature of the burn is limited, but it can burn pretty much anything with the disadvantage of low efficiency and high emissions.

But my wood is free and I have no neighbors. Well the first is never true unless you have volunteers to process it etc, the later may be a more logical comment if the wind blows the smoke away from your house and you do not care.

To burn wood efficiently you need to burn at 2000F, aka Gassify. Some OWB manufacturers have produced hybrid models, I know someone who has a CB one. Better but the inherent compromise of the design limits their operation.

I would look for a boiler that was designed to gassify, ********** is a good source of info.

As a general comment investing in insulation etc as a first step produces the best return, see what load you have left and go from there.

How many sq ft your house is seems a very poor guide, heat loss is measured in btu's not sq ft. Sq ft is just one of the factors.

 

[atlarge54]

Your standard OWB is a metal box surrounded by a water jacket. The temperature of the burn is limited, but it can burn pretty much anything with the disadvantage of low efficiency and high emissions.

But my wood is free and I have no neighbors. Well the first is never true unless you have volunteers to process it etc, the later may be a more logical comment if the wind blows the smoke away from your house and you do not care.

To burn wood efficiently you need to burn at 2000F, aka Gassify. Some OWB manufacturers have produced hybrid models, I know someone who has a CB one. Better but the inherent compromise of the design limits their operation.

I would look for a boiler that was designed to gassify, ********** is a good source of info.

As a general comment investing in insulation etc as a first step produces the best return, see what load you have left and go from there.

How many sq ft your house is seems a very poor guide, heat loss is measured in btu's not sq ft. Sq ft is just one of the factors.

Como, What type of woodburner do you use?

 

[Como]

Como, What type of woodburner do you use?

At the moment, 2 wood stoves, one pellet stove.

One wood stove is akin to an OWB, very large, throw a match in in to get it going , puts out a lot of heat but it certainly burns a lot.

My other one is a quarter the size, produces probably 2/3rds the heat but uses a fraction of the wood the other stove does.

I have a Triangle Tube Boiler, very efficient but still burns Propane.

This will be the back up to the Garns, due in a few weeks. I am not trying to suggest that Garn is a best solution in all cases, I looked at many. There was a Viessmann Boiler that could have been my first choice but not available in the US, yet?.

If I had gone that way I probably would have gone with Viessmann for Propane as well.

There are many options, what suits one person may suit another.

An OWB might be a good solution, but I think it would be pretty rare set of circumstances. At least upgrade to the hybrid.

 

[atlarge54]

At the moment, 2 wood stoves, one pellet stove.

One wood stove is akin to an OWB, very large, throw a match in in to get it going , puts out a lot of heat but it certainly burns a lot.

My other one is a quarter the size, produces probably 2/3rds the heat but uses a fraction of the wood the other stove does.

I have a Triangle Tube Boiler, very efficient but still burns Propane.

This will be the back up to the Garns, due in a few weeks. I am not trying to suggest that Garn is a best solution in all cases, I looked at many. There was a Viessmann Boiler that could have been my first choice but not available in the US, yet?.

If I had gone that way I probably would have gone with Viessmann for Propane as well.

There are many options, what suits one person may suit another.

An OWB might be a good solution, but I think it would be pretty rare set of circumstances. At least upgrade to the hybrid.

Wow if you're going Garn you're serious about woodburning-----Hope you keep us posted on your install. You are right OWB's aren't the solution in many many cases. I'm guessing you're in the NE US. Is there any chance you've consulted heaterman from **********? He's done lots of Garns but he's in Michigan.

 

[HawkenGlobalYUK]

two cents

The Empyre Gassifier I bought has some minor shortcomings but I've saved a lot of wood this last winter by not burning the old OWB, almost half of the wood consumption from the rotting Hawken Energy I had to suffer through the year before. they need to work on some of internal insulation issues, but this is an easy mod. And it doesn't leak.

 

[hoogie]

i'm with Hawken..I've got an empyer gassier pro200 two yrs now not a single problem with it. you owe it to yourself to really look into a gasser...less wood use for the same heating as the dragons out there. i cant imagin having a regular owb when you can by a gassier