home made wood boiler/owb

I know there are a few of you guys that built your own wood boiler and I am in the process of getting/finding the material to build my own. just wondering if or what you would change?and any good ideas or plans? I am building mine out of an old fuel tank with a 500 gallon propane tank as my fire box with a 18x20 door. I want it to be around 4 foot long and hold around 150 gallons of water. any pictures or ideas would be cool

I have built several and my two cents : larger door, water in the door, circulate water thru your door at all times, spend the money on the spray foam insulation when finished.

woodman6666 said:

I have built several and my two cents : larger door, water in the door, circulate water thru your door at all times, spend the money on the spray foam insulation when finished.

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well i wish i would of built the door larger but thats the first thing i built i proly could incorporate the watter threw the door that wouldnt be hard.i plan on putting it in a small barn so maybe that would help with the insulation as well

The ones I built have a 28" x 32" door, just about right. I do not circulate water through my door but if I did I would put it on the return loop. CJ

Here's my home brew:

http://arboristsite.com/firewood-heating-wood-burning-equipment/143845.htm

H-Ranch said:

Here's my home brew:

http://arboristsite.com/firewood-heating-wood-burning-equipment/143845.htm

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thanks man good job on your build.looks similar to what i want to do.i want to use the 500 gallon propane tank as my fire jacket.how much water does yours hold and how much wood you think ya burned in a season?

ogden said:

thanks man good job on your build.looks similar to what i want to do.i want to use the 500 gallon propane tank as my fire jacket.how much water does yours hold and how much wood you think ya burned in a season?

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I believe it holds about 170 gallons and I'm heating a 2500+ square foot house with 20 and 30 foot ceilings in most of it. Burned maybe 5 full cords in a partial season last year and about 8 full cords this season mostly with a mix of maple/poplar/ash when it's moderate and hickory/oak when it's cold.