Wood furnace power outage backup?

[HadleyPA]

So I put a Johnson energy systems wood furnace in my basement over 10 yrs ago. So far I have been lucky in that I have not had an extended power outage during usage except once and I was home at the time so it was no biggie to get out the generator for a few hours. I have been thinking about a backup power unit for the blower in the event the power were to go out at night or during the day while at work. I have the two deep cycle batteries that I take off my camper every winter and put in the basement next to the furnace anyhow so I was thinking about using them and an inverter to power the blower if necessary. I have a 400 watt inverter which may not be enough but I am not at home right now to check the blower motor but I can always get a larger inverter if necessary. My question is does anyone know what I need to get to allow the blower to automatically switch power sources in the event of an outage?

 

[JRHAWK9]

I have a Kuuma Vapor Fire 100 wood furnace and it's designed for gravity flow in case of a power outage. I just have a normally open/powered close damper in the supply duct which stays open except when the LP/AC blowers turns on, then it closes to prevent back feeding the wood furnace.

Are you sure yours is not designed for gravity flow?

 

[HadleyPA]

The tag on mine says in event of power outage shut off draft in door and do not fill with wood. To me that says do not run without blower. That being said when I first put it in I ran it a few evenings with a small fire before I got the duct work or blower hooked up. It heated the basement like any normal stove would and boy did it make the hardwood floors in the bedroom above feel good on your feet.

 

[dave_dj1]

Here: https://www.arboristsite.com/commun...rnace-pellet-stove-outside-boiler-etc.291932/

 

[3fordasho]

I have this inverter charger with transfer switch attached to a 12v deep cycle battery.
https://theinverterstore.com/product/1000-watt-pure-sine-inverter-charger-12-vdc-to-120-vac/
In the event of a power outage it automatically switches from line power to battery/ inverter power. When line power comes back it automatically switches back to line power and also recharges the battery. I calculate my single battery will run the fan a good 4-6hrs, plenty of time to let the load burn down to a manageable level. This particular inverter has "pure sine" output so it can also be used to power items with sensitive electronics.

So I put a Johnson energy systems wood furnace in my basement over 10 yrs ago. So far I have been lucky in that I have not had an extended power outage during usage except once and I was home at the time so it was no biggie to get out the generator for a few hours. I have been thinking about a backup power unit for the blower in the event the power were to go out at night or during the day while at work. I have the two deep cycle batteries that I take off my camper every winter and put in the basement next to the furnace anyhow so I was thinking about using them and an inverter to power the blower if necessary. I have a 400 watt inverter which may not be enough but I am not at home right now to check the blower motor but I can always get a larger inverter if necessary. My question is does anyone know what I need to get to allow the blower to automatically switch power sources in the event of an outage?

 

[alleyyooper]

My england 28-3500 heats the house so well with out the blower I may have turned it on a couple times in the last 3 years.

Just let the heat radiate thru the floors and transfer thru the heat ducts with out the blower.

Al

 

[NSMaple1]

The tag on mine says in event of power outage shut off draft in door and do not fill with wood. To me that says do not run without blower. That being said when I first put it in I ran it a few evenings with a small fire before I got the duct work or blower hooked up. It heated the basement like any normal stove would and boy did it make the hardwood floors in the bedroom above feel good on your feet.

That doesn't directly translate to do not run without blower.

A correct install will allow for safe operation with no power - heat should radiate/convect up through the ductwork without the blower running. (it won't pump out as much heat as when everything is under power of course). If there is too much horizontal run off the top of the furnace, or any downward run (a big no no), then the install wasn't proper. If the draft door hangs up when the power goes out, that's a malfunction - then the fire might well over power the convection effect.

Having said all that - nothing beats redundancy (for operation & peace of mind), so if I had some good batteries laying around not doing anything I might get one of those switching inverters and set something up. You could maybe use it to power other things in an outage also - might avoid dragging a genny out. But you want to make sure the battery area is well vented - they can off-gas nasties when charging.