Wood stove hack-secondary burn tubes added

[wigglesworth]

I wondered what that thing was in the top of my stove

Seriously though, i never heard of it, and i thought you know i have a tube in the top of my stove that has a dampner knob on it. Well wouldnt you know, it works. I dont have glass doors, but i opened the door and there it was flames burning on top of the wood until the fresh air hits and then they disappear. Cool thread.

 

[vwboomer]

I think I may give this a shot this spring. The worst that can happen is nothing changes and then just leave the valves shut.
I don't think I'm allowed to upgrade to a better furnace, so any improvements I can make on what I have is worth the effort.

Question on the baffle though. On mine, a baffle is built into the collar that sits in the exit to the radiator:

Do you think I would need an additional baffle plate to keep the air down farther, or would the existing baffle sufficiently restrict flow?

 

[KsWoodsMan]

Nice, very nice install. It even has a clean look and I like how you went close to the floor to pick up cold drafty air from low in the room for the secondary combustion.

Excellent idea running the pipe to the rear of the stove and back to the front for additional preheating. Maximizing exposure to the air tubes before releasing the air in the chamber.

Now the stove is even more of a Wood Saver.

 

[outdoorlivin247]

Those were pics thru the door (with the door opened). Any closer and I melt the camera. Since the door is cast I can't see in and take pics during the burn.

I saw the door was cast, that is why I said it...Trying to be a smart :censored: ...That didn't work...I can only imagine it being very intense above the wood w/ it closed...

 

[sesmith]

I saw the door was cast, that is why I said it...Trying to be a smart :censored: ...That didn't work...I can only imagine it being very intense above the wood w/ it closed...

Duh! I just now went back and saw the "JK" No wonder your 1st post confused me!

 

[FJH]

sesmith

I think ya should do a how to write up on this project where ya got the parts ect and have the Mods stick it to the top of the page a very usefull and relitivly easy day project for people that got the time and skills to do so! But DON'T call it a hackjob thou its a clean looking add on.Call it a retrofit.

Again a Nice worth while project.

 

[mtfallsmikey]

I knew those tubes reminded me of something.....had a friend who made a gas grill out of a 275 gal. flat oil tank. He used 1" black pipe with holes drilled in it for the burners, bought air shutters to fit the pipe. Could do 60 chicken halves at once.

 

[FJH]

Being it is supported front and rear I for see no problems my self!
The rear support may need to be beefed up abit bigger washers or somthing otherwise I'd say good to go.The tubes may droop who knows ,Time will tell I guess.

 

[FJH]

If black iron worked I'd expect to see in in modern epa stoves. I've only seen stainless.

True

 

[flotek]

wow ..youve done a wonderful job ,i d love to have that done to my englander addon wood furnace you should start a small business doing them o n the side ,just think of the wood and effort that would save a person over the years ,not to mention the added heat ,they should have come stock this way

 

[jester31780]

just asking

do you save more wood with the secondary burn tubes add if so how much

 

[sesmith]

do you save more wood with the secondary burn tubes add if so how much

Yes, but too soon to tell how much really (I only put them in last weekend), but a conservative estimate based on this week's wood use would be 15%. If it really Is that much, I'll be pretty happy, as it would lower my typical use from about 6+ cords per year to around 5. This year I was heading for closer to 7 with the cold weather (I used 3 by Jan 10th). We'll see what happens the rest of the season.

Also, below are some pics of the smoke about 20 minutes into a new burn today. The 1st one is with the secondary drafts open. The 2nd is with the secondary drafts closed off.

 

[sesmith]

If black iron worked I'd expect to see in in modern epa stoves. I've only seen stainless.

The thinner gauge stainless heats up quicker so it comes on line sooner. I'm sure they also engineer the hole size and position and direction of flow to maximize the secondary burn. If I just spent 2500 on a new stove I wouldn't want to see something as low tech as black iron in it! (And if the stove was soapstone, I'd want to see something like kryptonite in it. ) That doesn't mean that black iron won't work...actually it works pretty well. I imagine I'll have to replace it eventually, but the stainless tubes are also made to be replaced when needed. Is this 27 year old stove of mine as clean and efficient as one of the new EPA certified stoves? Heck no. But it is a lot cleaner and more efficient than it was.

 

[FJH]

Sesmith where did ja get the flanges to go throu the front of the stove what are they called if some one wants to go to a store to buy these a guy should know what they are called.Thats what I was saying about a bit of a write up on the project its a nice clean install the only change I would make would be a set of ball valves althou more pricey they would be more conviniant.
A real fine install bro. Give it some thought on the write up.Ya got the pics
a few words on where ya got the parts what the parts where called ect.

 

[sesmith]

I don't buy into your line of logic. Basically you are saying stainless steal is used for the bling.

My $2,400. stove is cast iron.

No, I'm not really saying that. There are a lot of high temp stainlesses out there for just that purpose (ie, burn tubes, grill burn manifolds,etc) so they can be thin and hold up well to heat and corrosion. I am saying if I bought a new stove, I'd want this good stuff, made for the job and not black pipe with holes drilled into it BTW, black "iron" pipe is really black steel pipe these days, so I'm assuming it should hold up reasonably well in a steel stove. It certainly won't melt, at worst it might sag and/or corrode with time.

Nothing wrong with cast iron. It's got better heat transfer properties than steel. These new stoves are low-tech looking works of art on the outside and high-tech designed wood burners on the inside (and you do get what you pay for).

 

[sesmith]

It's hard to tell from the pics, but if you have room to extend the shelf to make the flame travel a bit longer, that will help some also.

here's another thread with a few pics of my furnace modded.
http://www.arboristsite.com/showthread.php?t=37370&page=2
and one with some pics of the door that I made.
http://www.arboristsite.com/showthread.php?t=77617

I meant to reply to you earlier and say what an awesome job you did on your furnace. Especially the door. I'd love a view like that, but with the drafts in my door, it adds a complication. I could, I suppose, cut a viewing window in the stove over the door...stop me before I get the sawzall out! Or worse yet, the

It would be hard to make my baffle longer cause it just fits up in there. I could make a 2nd piece that clamps on to it and extends it, though. Might try that sometime.

 

[Zodiac45]

No, I'm not really saying that. There are a lot of high temp stainlesses out there for just that purpose (ie, burn tubes, grill burn manifolds,etc) so they can be thin and hold up well to heat and corrosion. ).

heck yeah, look at most chimney liners and flex flue. It's all that 316T stainless alloy. Very thin and last for years.

 

[FJH]

Just to show I'm paying attention.......

The quote is from this threads opening post.

Well done Bro ,I wern't paying attention thanks'

 

[HardyOWB]

Excellent job on the modificaiton. Has anyone done this modification to an OWB? I have a Hardy OWB which has a forced air blower that blows air under the fire. So, I already have an opening (no need to cut another). The opening is about 2"x2" so I could easily run a 1" pipe through there. I think I will give it a try unless, anyone has some concerns.

 

[sesmith]

Excellent job on the modificaiton. Has anyone done this modification to an OWB? I have a Hardy OWB which has a forced air blower that blows air under the fire. So, I already have an opening (no need to cut another). The opening is about 2"x2" so I could easily run a 1" pipe through there. I think I will give it a try unless, anyone has some concerns.

Look at the posts from Moddoo earlier in this thread. He's done what you're looking for.