Shaver OWB ..... 4 years and counting

[ngzcaz]

$ 3200 was a real deal..Payback on that unit probably will be this year if have your own wood supply. Does your unit have the lid type blower ( new style auto open and close ) or the slide flap you open or close manually to adjust your draft. There's some holes in the blower to suck in air, I had mine about 1/3 to 1/2 open if that's the case. Is the thermostat still attached to the back of the furnace ? :msp_smile:

 

[Backus]

Its the blower with the side flap set at 1/4 to 1/3 open and the original water heater style adjustable thermostat. I've run it with the flap wide open and it seems to move too much air out the chimney. Seems to me that the gentle cycles are an advantage and add to efficiency?

 

[ngzcaz]

Absolutely... some guys that put larger more powerful blowers on their units, in my opinion, are blowing a lot of heated air out the chimney. The trick is to get the right air opening. Too much air and the heat goes out the chimney, too little and heat recovery is slow and a black soot covered door instead of a light to medium brown color. One reason behind the flapper type blower is that it shuts the flow of air off pretty well when the unit shuts off. If you have a really hot fire going the fire itself may keep pulling air thru the openings and could result in a hotter fire ( and water temp ) than you wanted plus wasted wood. At least that's the current rationale.
I still have the stock thermostat and for my small home the temp variations aren't a concern. While the company ( I called and spoke with a rep ) may tell you 5 to 7 degrees variation its the thick steel that is slow to cool and slow to heat that causes the wide fluctuations that some members experience. That's one of the reasons I try not to go above 160 on the stat..

 

[Backus]

We ran the unit all summer for dhw and temp ran past the shutoff temp only once due to larger than 1/4 air opening and overloading with very dry slabwood. Ran it at 1/3 last winter and temp never ran up after stat shut off. Going to stay with 1/4 I think unless something changes when it gets very cold. Yesterday got a 24 hour burn with oak and birch slabwood with night temps in the 20's and day in the 40's. Easily get 16 hour overnight burns without losing water temp during the cold of winter.

 

[ngzcaz]

We ran the unit all summer for dhw and temp ran past the shutoff temp only once due to larger than 1/4 air opening and overloading with very dry slabwood. Ran it at 1/3 last winter and temp never ran up after stat shut off. Going to stay with 1/4 I think unless something changes when it gets very cold. Yesterday got a 24 hour burn with oak and birch slabwood with night temps in the 20's and day in the 40's. Easily get 16 hour overnight burns without losing water temp during the cold of winter.

Sounds like you have everything pretty well set. I wouldn't mess with anything except insulation if you feel ambitious. I have a sawmill nearby and was thinking slab wood during the summer. His is mostly softwood so winter use might be asking a lot although I routinely burn bigger softwood until December or so. Of course temp dictates what you use and how often you fill it. That's some mighty fine burn times. Especially in your neck of the woods.

 

[Backus]

Probably the most important part of the system is the quality of insulation on the underground pex line. We did not cut corners there and ordered top of the line from Badger pipe. Our unit works this well due to an efficient installation. Many of the headaches expressed by folks are related to the setup once the water leaves the furnace.

 

[ngzcaz]

Probably the most important part of the system is the quality of insulation on the underground pex line. We did not cut corners there and ordered top of the line from Badger pipe. Our unit works this well due to an efficient installation. Many of the headaches expressed by folks are related to the setup once the water leaves the furnace.

For sure......... I only have a short run of about 40 ft to the house and its less than 2 degree difference between the OWB and the gauge inside the house. If snow is melting where your pipe is buried that's a lot of heat going to waste.. Don't know what's happening in your backyard but here in NE Pa. the daytime temps are like in December.. If this keeps up I'm going back down in the woods and start cutting again. :msp_sad:

 

[Redbird]

Can't complain about my 165. Went online in Dec. of 2008 running 2 houses with it, yeah it uses wood and I have to load it more often but......... Purchased 90% of the wood I use (i cut when it's convenient) and still heated both houses for less than 1200 total. How many people heat there house for 600 a year? Propane was running me 1500-2000. I did the blower/damper mod and installed my own temp controller in series with the original. If one goes bad I just switch over to the other. Also modified the pipe inside the firebox to try and keep heat from going up the chimney. Rarely ever see a 2 ft flame shooting out the top. Still on original blower (hope i don't jinx myself). Upgraded pumps (I'm moving water a long way). Like most have said it is simple and does what it is designed to do, keep my house warm in the winter. :msp_smile:

 

[ngzcaz]

What did you do to the pipe inside the boiler ? I'd had guys tell me they just put a thick log crossways to make the smoke go around and stay in the firebox a bit longer to 1/2 round ( cut lengthways ) piece of 6 in diameter steel all the way to the bottom, same basic idea, make the smoke stay in the firebox longer. No one said so far they just lowered the pipe even more in the firebox. Seems with a thick ash bed that wouldn't be a viable idea. I've had my ash bed almost as high as the bottom of the pipe.

 

[Redbird]

I did the half pipe but I left about 2-3" of space underneath so I could clean out the ashes that built up underneath and behind the add-on. Drilled and tapped the top to existing flue pipe and welded round bar to bottom of of half pipe and drilled holes in the plate that supports the grate/fire to set the round bar down in to brace the bottom against wood being tossed in. Also stacked a couple firebrick in the ash area in front of blower to keep the fan from blasting air straight at the door. I actually have replace the heat shield on my door. It warped so bad the bottom edge was touching the actual door. My brother just picked up a 250 or 290 off c-list to heat his house. Brand new last year purchased by someone and never installed. I think he got it for about 5k. He hasn't got it fired yet but won't be long. I think his propane usage will decrease dramatically

 

[ngzcaz]

Yours is the first I've heard to redo the heat shield. I guess with heating 2 homes you have it fired more than some. . It would seem you shouldn't have much of a creosote problem in the chimney. That's a good idea to have a clean out space under the added pipe and also the brace for it. The firebrick is interesting as well. Did you notice a difference in burn times when you added the half pipe ?
Too bad the original contributors to the Shaver forums apparently haven't found this thread yet. I'd be interested what they have to say after four years. Add on's like yours with the firebrick and pipe are well within the reach of almost anyone that put one of this units in and is able to lift the logs to toss them in. And very little cost to give it a try. There's been no negative feedback that I can recall from adding insulation in between the heat shield and the door. Mod's ranged from fiberglass insulation to rock wool to sliding firebrick between the door and heat shield. :msp_smile:

 

[Redbird]

Don't know if there was any difference in burn times. If I can't see heat or smoke coming out I know it's time to check it. When it's stuck in the 20's here it's load @ 10pm, 5 am, Noon and 5 pm. If it's 30's @ night and 40-50's during day a few sticks in the am, and mid afternoon and pack it full at night. If I just had my house (built in the 90's, well insulated, Other house built 30's some insulation) and stove located closer I could likely get by with loading twice a day in the worst weather we see. My setup is not the best and I didn't go with the $12 a foot insulated pipe either, couldn't afford another 5-6k at the time. Some heat loss to the ground (snow will melt after a couple days). I'm still way ahead, someday I might actually relocate the stove and piping/insulation to minimize my heat loss more. Till then i'm fine dealing with what i've got :msp_sleep:

 

[ngzcaz]

One thing that's happened twice this year ( last night being the second ) is the fire has gone out on me. Here in NE Pa. its been really wet for what seems a loong time. Add to that a mix of fresh cut soft woods, junk wood and warmer temps and you have a recipe for your fire to go out. There's just no ash bed to rely on and unless the boiler is calling for more heat it just goes out. Less wood in one answer but its hard not to almost fill it when you open the door. At least for me..

 

[Redbird]

Once I started getting ahead on wood and making sure of 6+ months drying it makes a big difference in usage as well. I've had mine with no fan for so long you can't even see smoke in the firebox but once fan kicks again it will "come back to life". These things might burn anything you throw in them, but the drier the better. First couple years mine would sizzle out the ends where it was still green, less moisture is definitely more heat.

 

[ngzcaz]

No question about it. Normally my seasoned soft wood can last 12 to 24 hrs when its 50 give or take a few degrees.

We here in NE Pa escaped most of the damage that plagued the inland shoreline from hurricane Sandy but we still had enough wind to knock down large branches and a few trees. Trying to get rid of the stuff Hurricane Sandy left is a real chore. Large branches are the most work and yield little if any real addition to the wood pile. Unlike a lot of folk around here I find the larger well seasoned 6 to 10 inch ( after splitting ) split softwood can go a long way to make the supply last. As can be expected, unless wood is split it just doesn't dry out the way it should. I can get usually get by until New Years before switching to the hardwoods. And as a plus it burns pretty clean. Like you sometimes I don't see any smoke coming out the chimney, maybe a wisp or two of smoke to let you know something is still going on inside the boiler.

What state do you call home ? Any damage from Sandy ? :msp_biggrin:

 

[Redbird]

VA,Blue Ridge mtns No damage in my immediate area, just some wind. snow to the southwest and north and rain and storms to the east. Lights flickered a few times but that's it. No call for the generator.

 

[ngzcaz]

VA,Blue Ridge mtns


Is Virginia the state with the Crooked Road or Crooked something ? Lots of music festivals along its border ? Saw it in the Smithsonian a year or so ago. Nice writeup.. :msp_smile:

 

[Canton]

Have to agree with ngzcaz. This is my first year with an OWB so I still not really sure what I'm doing, but wet wood certainly seems like an issue. My wood pile consist of hard and softwood, mostly dry. Unfortunately, I wasn't smart enough to cover it. I haven't had my furnace go out yet, but I've caught it pretty close a couple of times already. When I cleared for the furnace I cut a lot of black gum. No sense trying to split it, but I'm sure as heck going to burn it - probably not dry yet.

 

[ngzcaz]

Just mix it with your dry stuff. The colder it gets the less chance it will go out.