question about wood stove

[farmermike]

I've got an old stove I use to heat my shop. Thinking about getting something different. Question is, how much less wood will I use with the newer more effeciant stove. Mine is basically a finished off barrel stove, holds a fair amount of wood. Seams to use an aweful lot of wood to heat about five hundred square feet. The building isn't insulated real well probably average, but I have to fire in every three to four hours to keep it sixty in there. Would like to buy used and don't really want a catalytic stove. Thanks for the help.

 

[wdchuck]

What about a woodburning furnace, the little blower on those would keep a garage plenty cozy, I'd put a Daka in the garage in a minute if I spent enough time out there to justify the extra wood needed. Daka is made in Minnesota too, you would only need a couple elbows to direct the hot air from it to where you are working. Only $700 out the door too, so not horribly expensive.

 

[Chavez7]

I've heard at least 30% greater efficiency generally when using EPA approved stoves. Not all EPAs are catalytic, but all have some sort of secondary burn/after burn that keeps more heat in the room than up the chimney. 500 sq ft isn't much and small stoves sold at Lowe's/Home Depot can be had for $500 + and even less at the end of the season

 

[Al Smith]

Those barrel stoves have been around since Lassie was a puppy.A double barrel job will crank out an easy quarter million btu's.Put a fan behind it,you could heat a barn.

I doubt seriously that spending a bunch of money on a fancy stove will do you any better than the good old barrel.Besides that,barrels are cheap,so is the kit.

 

[logbutcher]

For what you need the barrel stoves are great unless they're burned thru the steel. Then you get another barrel; no big deal. The shop is intermittently heated ? No insulation , then get a pre-EPA used steel stove to burn scarp or junk wood like softwoods.
I've used a Tempwood topload steel stove for years in a few shops. Easy to fill, big firebox, excellent air control. They come in 2 sizes and are usually on sale. Not pretty but do a fine job. We lent ours out to a friend contractor building a 3500 ft² McMansion last winter for heat and drying drywall instead of salamanders. The crew got plaster all over the Tempwood that's still stuck to it. Still heats, but ugly. And all I got back was a sixpack .
There were the steel and cast "step" "Bear" stoves from the 70's that are around also.

 

[Al Smith]

At a local pallet works they have huge stoves built exactly like the barrel kits but about 4 feet in diameter and 6 feet long.These are made of 10 gauge metal and have angle iron struts down the sides the help prevent warpage.

My friend who has a welding shop makes them for the pallet works.Obviously because of all the scrap wood,this small company has next to nothing in fuel costs to heat their buildings during winter.

As a side note,the pallet works has commercially made rubber tired pallet disassembly bandsaws used to salvage wooden pallets.

 

[laynes69]

I bet you would use 1/3 of the wood you burn now. I would go with a epa wood stove. Alot cleaner chimney, and alot less wood. I would dodge the lumber scraps through. They cause overfiring on epa stoves, and warp the hell out of them, causing warranty issues. Get a small epa stove from lowes, or home cheapo and I believe you will be alot happier. Just burn seasoned wood. One other thing is, if you dont want to spend the money on the new stove, put a flame baffle in the barrel and add sand, or firebrick to the bottom of it. This will keep more heat in the stove for a longer period. Its crazy because alot of people will burn 3 small splits in these new stoves, and they will crank out the heat for hours. I would consider an upgrade.