I finally caved and lit the OWB today!

[dave_dj1]

Short story long, I had two mini split heat pumps installed this summer, mostly for the AC but I started using the heat portion when the temps dropped some, so far they have kept up great although I don't have warm floors and free hot H2O
I have been putting off lighting it partly as an experiment with the heat pumps and also the fact that the ambient air temps have been strangely warm.
It got down to 18* last night, I had turned the circulator for the OWB on yesterday afternoon, I have a HX in the plenum of the hot air heat system.
Lit her up this morning, now I have warm floors and free hot water

 

[husky455rancher]

First fire is bittersweet. It’s nice when it’s going but it can get old at times after a long winter.

 

[blakey]

I lit mine in late Sept as we have no other heat source and I have lots of wood. The owb really works well in the fall and spring as you can still burn wood but not get cooked out of the house. I do need to get a backup heat source, it's only been 21yrs haha.

 

[artbaldoni]

Mine is up and running for about a week now. Burning splitter turds and some bituminous coal that I got for next to nothing. I've burned anthracite coal in the past, but at $400 a ton I went back to wood for this year. The bit coal is an experiment.

 

[rancher2]

I burn my Garn year around for domestic hot water. We have had some record breaking cold here so the Garn has been heating the house and the shop early this year. Its in the teens this morning with wind chill right around zero. Normally we would be in the thirty's at night and the fifty's in day this time of the year. My back up is propane have had to use it twice since 2009 when I had to repair leaks on the Garn. As I am getting older I am thinking maybe its time to shut the Garn down in the none heating months and just burn propane to heat the domestic water then.

 

[woodfarmer]

Ya my Garn rotted out after 5 years. MFkers won’t stand behind their product. I’ve lit it several times over the last several weeks but the temp just kept seesawing. However I think the cold is here to stay now.

 

[rancher2]

Ya my Garn rotted out after 5 years. MFkers won’t stand behind their product. I’ve lit it several times over the last several weeks but the temp just kept seesawing. However I think the cold is here to stay now.

My first leak was in year 8-9. Weld failed on top of the air collar, door frame. Water running out the air intake outside. Second leak a weld failed on the blower housing. Water running out on the floor. Of course both times were in the coldest part of winter so I had to shut it down and go back to propane and lose thousand dollars worth of chemical treated water. They wouldn't even give me a discount on parts like gaskets to get it back up and running. Very poor workmen ship and customer service. Wish I wouldn't ever bought the unit.

 

[husqvarna257]

I've had my Central boiler going for a month now. I replaced the boiler's circulator with an energy efficient one and I had to switch to CB's new water treatment, just added it to the old stuff. This is the 1st week I'm burning wood from the shed, I had been burning some old stuff I tossed aside when the shed was full.

 

[dave_dj1]

I need/want a shed!
Does your circulator run all the time or just when the house calls for heat?
I have a Heatmor (3 years) and I have my circulator set to run all the time but lately I'm thinking about hooking it up so it comes on when the house calls for heat. I have a HX in the plenum of my hot air furnace.

I've had my Central boiler going for a month now. I replaced the boiler's circulator with an energy efficient one and I had to switch to CB's new water treatment, just added it to the old stuff. This is the 1st week I'm burning wood from the shed, I had been burning some old stuff I tossed aside when the shed was full

 

[husqvarna257]

I run the OWB boiler circulator 24/7 and that goes in the basement to a heat exchanger just before the propane house boiler. Constantly running the OWB circulator makes for a nice warm basement and that heats the floor above it. I hated when I first had the OWB going to wood piles on skids with a tarp on it. My feet would break the skids and make tripping hazard, not to mention the tarps covered in snow and ice. Wood shed is a game changer