# How often do you clean your outdoor wood boiler?



## jrider (Nov 30, 2011)

I recently bought a Portage and Main OWB - the Optimizer 250 gasification boiler. It has the heat tubes in it that you are supposed to clean with a wire brush. How often do people clean theirs out ? How about how often do you empty the ashes at the bottom of the unit?


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## Peacock (Nov 30, 2011)

Rake the coals to the back and shovel out the ashes about every week when burning a lot. Maybe once a month in the summer. Add a couple scoops of lime/ashtrol every few days.

Mine has burn in constant use since May of '09. CB5036.


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## 1harlowr (Nov 30, 2011)

I have a Hardy and how often I shovel out the ash depends on 1. type of wood and 2. how cold it has been. Some wood I have to shovel out once a week and others I have to shovel every couple weeks, even when the temps outdoors are the same. 
Summer times I don't shovel but maybe once a month.


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## gwiley (Nov 30, 2011)

I actually climbed into my CL5036 and scraped the fire box out with steel putty knives....ONCE!

"cleaning" the OWB for me means shoveling ash out once every 2-3 months.


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## beerman6 (Nov 30, 2011)

gwiley said:


> "cleaning" the OWB for me means shoveling ash out once every 2-3 months.



yep.


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## jrider (Nov 30, 2011)

Does anyone have a gasification unit? Or more specifically the Portage and Main?


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## VTWoodchuck (Nov 30, 2011)

beerman6 said:


> yep.



Same here.


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## kemer (Nov 30, 2011)

jrider said:


> Does anyone have a gasification unit? Or more specifically the Portage and Main?



My brother has one I'll tell him to chime in.


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## jrider (Nov 30, 2011)

How many ashes do you get in a 2-3 month time period? Must be a lot?


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## russhd1997 (Nov 30, 2011)

jrider said:


> How many ashes do you get in a 2-3 month time period? Must be a lot?



About a 15 gallon barrel full.


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## MNGuns (Nov 30, 2011)

gwiley said:


> I actually climbed into my CL5036 and scraped the fire box out with steel putty knives....ONCE!
> 
> "cleaning" the OWB for me means shoveling ash out once every 2-3 months.




I take a half dozen shovel fulls out of the CB every couple of weeks, and brush the stack once a year.


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## Dogsout (Nov 30, 2011)

Peacock said:


> Rake the coals to the back and shovel out the ashes about every week when burning a lot. Maybe once a month in the summer. Add a couple scoops of lime/ashtrol every few days.
> 
> Mine has burn in constant use since May of '09. CB5036.



Might be a stupid question, but what is the lime for?


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## benp (Nov 30, 2011)

jrider said:


> I recently bought a Portage and Main OWB - the Optimizer 250 gasification boiler. It has the heat tubes in it that you are supposed to clean with a wire brush. How often do people clean theirs out ? How about how often do you empty the ashes at the bottom of the unit?



I clean out 2-3 five gallon buckets a weeks of ashes on average. Once every other week or so the "orange cone of cleaning" gets utilized. Get the stove seriously ramped up where there is a 1-1.5 foot orange cone flame coming out of the top of the chimney. Let that go for a few minutes and then shut her down. Works well. 




Dogsout said:


> Might be a stupid question, but what is the lime for?



I have always used a cup of pulverized lime for creosote control. Keeps everything flakey and dry for the most part as opposed to the tar. Just my experiences with it.


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## Iska3 (Nov 30, 2011)

I take out a pail or two of ashes every other week and once they cool I pour them along my road ditch to kill the brush. I try to keep my ashes down to a min. Seem to get more heat that way. 

Lime will neutralize the ash and stop the rust on the inside.


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## J.W Younger (Nov 30, 2011)

Intresting thread (on the ash removal) cause the colder it is the less ash it makes. Gotta be going somewhere,out the stack is my guess. May not be the sharpest tool in the shed but I have been heatin with it over 2 decades and the temps have a lot more to do with the ashes made than the wood types. I've burned a cord without removing any ashes and have filled a 5 gallon bucket from 1 loading.
This is with a hardy h2 and the ash door has to be opened before opening the loading door (if you wanna keep the hair on yer face and body) so the ashes are checked each loading.
By far the most ashes removed per wood burned are during the summer mos.


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## J1m (Dec 1, 2011)

jrider said:


> Does anyone have a gasification unit? Or more specifically the Portage and Main?



Yes - I have the P&M 250.

We started burning it in the 3rd week of September - and although there was a much steeper learning curve than we thought there would be, we couldn't be happier with it.

In terms of cleaning it out, I know P&M suggests every two weeks. And with the exception of one time I let it go for about three weeks, I've kept up with it pretty religiously. The amount of ash I get during clean outs is about one small galvanized pail full. Most of that ash is from the heat exchanger tubes that you have to brush out - but it's just fine black stuff which doesn't really amount to much.

I was cleaning the ash/coals out of the secondary burn chamber every few days, but then I realized that most of that was still active coals. Since I didn't want to lose the heat potential from unburnt wood - I've now decided to clean out the bottom only once every two weeks when I clean the rest of the unit.

As far as the rest of the feedback you've been getting - I can only attribute those thoughts/comments to the fact that gassification units are a lot different than conventional OWB's. This thought of getting 15 gallons of ash, scooping ash/coals out with a shovel, ash/flame coming out the stack just simply does not happen with the P&M.

Let me know if you have any more questions!


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## karlk (Dec 1, 2011)

I have a P&M optimizer 250, I clean it every 2 weeks. I made a new rod for the smaller tube brush out of 1/4" round stock steel and use the factory supplied rod for the 6 vertical tubes. I burn year round for domestic hot water.I went a month between cleaning a few times with no problems. It doesnt take long to clean, about 15 min.


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## hoogie (Dec 1, 2011)

I have any empyer pro200 gasser, I clean the tubes every 2 weeks, and I clean out the secondary every 3 days...I've noticed on my secondary if i go longer then it dosent gassify as well...I think empyer says to clean it out ever other day or so...Hoogie...


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## John R (Dec 1, 2011)

gwiley said:


> "cleaning" the OWB for me means shoveling ash out once every 2-3 months.



That's all I do.


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## jrider (Dec 1, 2011)

Ok, so dumb question - how can you tell if its gassifying properly or not?


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## J1m (Dec 2, 2011)

jrider said:


> Ok, so dumb question - how can you tell if its gassifying properly or not?



The word "properly" is kind of subjective. It depends on whether or not the nozzle is clogged with coals or wood, the kind and moisture content of the wood you are burning, the temperature at which your fire is burning - and probably a half a dozen other factors.

But there are several ways you know it's gassifying. The first, most obvious way is to open the bottom door of the furnace while the fan is running. If there is a blueish/orangish/yellow blow torch (with the accompanying sound of a blow torch) coming out of that rectangular hole in the primary fire box: it's gassifying. The second way you know is to look at the exit of your stack while the fan is running. If it is billowing smoke, you're not burning the unspent gasses and therefore not gassifying. If all you see is heat waves obscuring the background scenery - you're gassifying. If it's a mix of a little steam and the same heat waves, you're _probably_ gassifying but burning less-than-ideal moisture content wood.

Did you happen to buy your unit used? Seems a little odd that someone would invest $11,500 for the unit plus installation costs and not fully understand the concept of gassifying. Either that or your dealer just didn't do a great job of explaining it to you? Curious.


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## jrider (Dec 2, 2011)

I bought it new and have the general concept of gassification. But after reading all the things I've read in some of these forums, I began to wonder if mine is working properly and I am doing everything right. 
I have virtually no smoke literally within 10-15 seconds of the fan kicking in and yes it does sound like a blow torch. As far as color of the "flame" shooting downward, being color blind, I always question anything that involves specific colors but your range of color and description of sound tells me everything is working perfectly.


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## hoogie (Dec 2, 2011)

J1m said:


> The word "properly" is kind of subjective. It depends on whether or not the nozzle is clogged with coals or wood, the kind and moisture content of the wood you are burning, the temperature at which your fire is burning - and probably a half a dozen other factors.
> 
> But there are several ways you know it's gassifying. The first, most obvious way is to open the bottom door of the furnace while the fan is running. If there is a blueish/orangish/yellow blow torch (with the accompanying sound of a blow torch) coming out of that rectangular hole in the primary fire box: it's gassifying. The second way you know is to look at the exit of your stack while the fan is running. If it is billowing smoke, you're not burning the unspent gasses and therefore not gassifying. If all you see is heat waves obscuring the background scenery - you're gassifying. If it's a mix of a little steam and the same heat waves, you're _probably_ gassifying but burning less-than-ideal moisture content wood.
> 
> Did you happen to buy your unit used? Seems a little odd that someone would invest $11,500 for the unit plus installation costs and not fully understand the concept of gassifying. Either that or your dealer just didn't do a great job of explaining it to you? Curious.





thats a good explaination...i think the main thing here is unlike tradional owb's the cleaner you keep the gasser models the better off you'll be...


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## J1m (Dec 2, 2011)

jrider said:


> ...I have virtually no smoke literally within 10-15 seconds of the fan kicking in and yes it does sound like a blow torch...but your range of color and description of sound tells me everything is working perfectly.



Sounds like it's running perfectly to me, too. Glad to help.


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## chadjacobs (Dec 3, 2011)

I have a wood doctor. Every day i push the coals back and take a shovel or two of ash out. At the end of the season I Wire brush it a little and coat the fire box with used engine oil. About once every two months the cresode will burn off and it will look like a little torch burning at the chimmeny for a couple minutes.


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## GeoffB (Oct 14, 2015)

chadjacobs said:


> I have a wood doctor. Every day i push the coals back and take a shovel or two of ash out. At the end of the season I Wire brush it a little and coat the fire box with used engine oil. About once every two months the cresode will burn off and it will look like a little torch burning at the chimmeny for a couple minutes.


I have a wood doctor too and "wood" love to hear from you about what you do to extend the life of your boiler, cleaning the water, using anything to reduce the chances of rusting or any other wood doctor tips!
thanks!
Geoff


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## milkie62 (Oct 18, 2015)

1995 Classic CL40 and I clean it the first nice day around New Years and then at the end of the season.I burn about 9 cord per season.


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## Jon E (Oct 19, 2015)

I have a Central 5648 (2004 model) conventional OWB. I take about 30 gallons of ash out of the firebox PER YEAR, and I will usually clean it out three times a year - once in mid September, once on a relatively warm day in January, and once in May. I burn year-round for domestic hot water as well as heat. I find that I generate more ash in the summer, mostly due to the types of wood I burn, and cardboard or paper tends to generate a lot of ash.

What I have not found yet, is a good way to separate the charcoal or live coals from the ash. I hate pulling a shovelful of ash out of the firebox and getting a bunch of red coals with it. I suppose in the bigger picture I'm not losing much, but it still seems like a waste.


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## Kevin in Ohio (Oct 19, 2015)

Jon E said:


> I have a Central 5648 (2004 model) conventional OWB. I take about 30 gallons of ash out of the firebox PER YEAR, and I will usually clean it out three times a year - once in mid September, once on a relatively warm day in January, and once in May. I burn year-round for domestic hot water as well as heat. I find that I generate more ash in the summer, mostly due to the types of wood I burn, and cardboard or paper tends to generate a lot of ash.
> 
> What I have not found yet, is a good way to separate the charcoal or live coals from the ash. I hate pulling a shovelful of ash out of the firebox and getting a bunch of red coals with it. I suppose in the bigger picture I'm not losing much, but it still seems like a waste.



I run the same stove and was wondering how much wood you go through in a year? I've averaged 13 cord for the 11 years mine has been on line and I only run mine in the winter months. I get a lot more ashes than that, at least over 200 gallons worth and I sift the ashes for coals.


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## milkie62 (Oct 19, 2015)

I thought about burning it year round for domestic hot water but found out my electric bill goes down $25/month when the boiler heats the hot water tank.Not worth the bother to me for less than $1 day.


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## Dogsout (Oct 19, 2015)

Jon E said:


> I have a Central 5648 (2004 model) conventional OWB. I take about 30 gallons of ash out of the firebox PER YEAR, and I will usually clean it out three times a year - once in mid September, once on a relatively warm day in January, and once in May.



You have a very small house, or you don't burn full time if you are only taking 30 gallons of ash out of your OWB for a winters burn. I burn mostly Oak, Ash and Hickory with just a touch of Silver Maple thrown in for fall and spring and I take out between 8 to 10 30 gallon trash cans of ash a year.


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## Jon E (Oct 28, 2015)

I have 4300 square feet of finished space on three floors, which includes a full heated and finished basement. All of my heating is radiant floor tubing. I have a timber frame home and stress-skin panels with an R-33 wall and R-50 roof, the basement is all ICF's with 8" of concrete so it's at least an R-25 or R-30 as well. It's like living in a Coleman cooler. It stays hot when heated and stays cold when cooled. 

I burn year round, with the exception of maybe three to four weeks per year when I either run out of wood in the woodshed or it's just too hot. I didn't turn my thermostat up until last week. As far as annual burning, I go through 10-11 cords per year depending on the weather. This will increase slightly as I am building a new garage (24x36, 2 stories) that will be heated with the same OWB. I've considered getting rid of the CB classic and putting in a gasifier, which might cut my consumption by up to half, depending on efficiency. At this point I don't feel it will be cost-effective. 

The ash cleanout is no joke. I keep my firewood in a shed, as dry as possible, cut and split 20" lengths, and try not to burn any junk wood. I have two woodsheds which together hold almost 20 cords of wood. I have a couple of 10-gallon galvanized cans for ash, and I will fill one of them every 3-4 months. At worst, I might get 40 gallons of ash a year. I can't imagine filling up 8-10, 30-gallon cans every year unless I was taking all the coals too. Even then it would be a lot.


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## Kevin in Ohio (Oct 28, 2015)

Jon E said:


> I burn year round, with the exception of maybe three to four weeks per year when I either run out of wood in the woodshed or it's just too hot. I didn't turn my thermostat up until last week. As far as annual burning, I go through 10-11 cords per year depending on the weather.
> 
> I have a couple of 10-gallon galvanized cans for ash, and I will fill one of them every 3-4 months. At worst, I might get 40 gallons of ash a year. I can't imagine filling up 8-10, 30-gallon cans every year unless I was taking all the coals too. Even then it would be a lot.



10- 11 cord makes 30 gallon of ash? That's impressive.

Well, off to the store as my meters needle just swung so fast it broke it off.


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## cantoo (Oct 28, 2015)

I maintain that a large large portion of the ash goes up and out the chimney especially if you have a draft fan.


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