So you want to build an OWB you say...

[H-Ranch]

nice job!!!! i built one also but not even close to like that and its a wood hog and very inefficent....but heats my house just fine and 1800sqft .....im working on chainging the design i dont weld so mine was all threaded pipe and pex...im a master plumber so that part was easy for me...

and yea get rid of them hose clamps on the pex your killin me...i know there aint much pressure youll be fine!

basiclly a old fuel oil tank with a black pipe loop above the fire right inside the fire box...then the water gets pumped to a old 50 gallon water heater that sits next to the burner....

then gets pumped under ground into the house into another old 50 gallon water heater then into the furnace were i reworked a old A-coil to accept 3/4 CTS pipe....and the needed pump gauges/expansion tank/ t&p.....i built a steel stud frame arond it and wraped it with pole barn siding...and i also used fiberglass insulation like you did.....


Once again great job!!!!

Cohocta - you're just up the road from my buddy who built his and got me started! He's actually in the towship directly south of you where OWB's have now been outlawed.

If yours works for you situation then I say great job! Of course they are never "done" because we can always think of something else to tinker with to make it better.

The hose clamps are actually designed for PEX and they work awesome. I would recommend them to anyone for about $1.50 each. Standard hose clamps just don't work right like you said.

 

[wooddog 066]

Congrats on a job WELLDONE!!!!!

 

[rex]

there trying to outlaw them here but were im located youd never be able to see mine let alone my house...only way to see my property is from a helicopter...so screw em!

never head of hose clamps for pex any ways who cares! as long as it dont leak! stay warm!

 

[Kingsley]

Really like what you did. Thanks for all the info and pictures. I never thought of using propane tanks.

Could you itemize what you spent. Aprox. would be cool.

Marty

 

[H-Ranch]

Really like what you did. Thanks for all the info and pictures. I never thought of using propane tanks.

Could you itemize what you spent. Aprox. would be cool.

Marty

I was hoping that it would help others to see what I did if they were on the fence about building one. Really wasn't that difficult as I'm not a professional welder/fabricator by any means. But I'm a mean painter and that's all you'll see on the shed. :biggrinbounce2:

I have been looking for my file with detailed costs on every item. Somehow I think it may have gotten deleted from the computer. Here's the major items from memory:

insulated PEX - $800
propane tanks (scrapyard) - $260
heat exchanger - $200
miscellaneous plumbing fittings/valves/PEX/y-strainer - $200
circulation pump (and spare) - $140
shed material (scrapyard) - $100
12/2 wire - $100
blower fan/damper - $100
aquastat - $100
miscellaneous metal for end tank/door/legs (scrapyard/free) - $100
trencher rental - $75
concrete boring through foundation - $75
insulation - $50
miscellaneous hardware for hinges/screws- $50
welding rod - $40
thermostat - $30
6" x 7' x 1/4" wall stack - free (found on roadside years ago)
TOTAL - $2420

There are a few other things I'm forgetting, but that's pretty close. I may have rounded up/down on some items. Most came from scrapyard/used when possible. Trencher rental and concrete boring were discount rates from a guy I know. Oh, I wore out a pair of welding gloves that I think I counted too.

 

[AIM]

I built mine from propane tanks as well. I wish now that I had built it differently but it still works good. Laying the water tank down versus standing it up allows for a longer/ larger fire box and more contact area.
The water jacket is what they call a "short fat 5" It's a 500 gallon tank but shorter and bigger around than what you normally see at peoples houses. I cut 18" out of it and re welded the end on. The fire box was another propane tank 24" diam and 42" or 48" long. (I don't know the gallons of it). The door is a two piece water jacket with a rear leaf from an F150 truck to squeeze it shut.
I burned a bunch of rod building mine. I used to weld for a living so it didn't bother me. If I ever build another I will definitely use a wire welder

It was pretty ugly at this stage but after finishing up a few things and then spray foam it was heating my house well.

 

[AIM]

After using mine for 2 years I moved it in to a lean too that I built. It screws with my insurance but it is WAYYYY nicer not having to go outside to feed the beast.

 

[H-Ranch]

I built mine from propane tanks as well. I wish now that I had built it differently but it still works good. Laying the water tank down versus standing it up allows for a longer/ larger fire box and more contact area.
The water jacket is what they call a "short fat 5" It's a 500 gallon tank but shorter and bigger around than what you normally see at peoples houses. I cut 18" out of it and re welded the end on. The fire box was another propane tank 24" diam and 42" or 48" long. (I don't know the gallons of it). The door is a two piece water jacket with a rear leaf from an F150 truck to squeeze it shut.
I burned a bunch of rod building mine. I used to weld for a living so it didn't bother me. If I ever build another I will definitely use a wire welder

It was pretty ugly at this stage but after finishing up a few things and then spray foam it was heating my house well.

Great job! The vertical tank works well for taking up less footprint in your lean to. There were a few days that I wished mine was inside too. The leaf spring is brilliant - that's why I like seeing other people's ideas. I'm not too proud to steal a good one.

MIG is definitely the way to go, but all I have is an arc welder. Posted in a friend's garage: "When the only tool you have is a hammer, everything else is a nail."

 

[oneoldgeezer]

Great job! The vertical tank works well for taking up less footprint in your lean to. There were a few days that I wished mine was inside too. The leaf spring is brilliant - that's why I like seeing other people's ideas. I'm not too proud to steal a good one.

MIG is definitely the way to go, but all I have is an arc welder. Posted in a friend's garage: "When the only tool you have is a hammer, everything else is a nail."

That sounds like you! Your favorite Toll is a Hammer. http://www.arboristsite.com/images/smilies/laughing.gif

 

[oneoldgeezer]

Welding stack

Internal baffle for smoke - there is a vertical fin on top (not pictured) which forces smoke up, around the fin, and back to the stack. Captures more heat and REALLY keeps the sparks down

Simple hinged door and latch with adjustment

Gasket for door seal

Slight taper for swing of door

Nice pics. Some day you will have to teach me how to do it!

 

[dave_dj1]

HRanch, how has your boiler been working after a couple of years? Inquiring minds want to know! LOL :hmm3grin2orange:

 

[H-Ranch]

Nice pics. Some day you will have to teach me how to do it!

That sounds like you! Your favorite Toll is a Hammer. http://www.arboristsite.com/images/smilies/laughing.gif

A hammer is one of my favorite tools - only 10 feet away from me in that picture. (Actually that might be a chipping hammer by my knee, too.) Probably evidence of a mis-spent youth. :hammer:

 

[H-Ranch]

HRanch, how has your boiler been working after a couple of years? Inquiring minds want to know! LOL :hmm3grin2orange:

Still working to keep the propane man away! I had to replace the fan last season and I put a thicker rope gasket on the door this year (the original was too small in the first place, but it's what was available at the time.) I have repaired the upper baffle three times now - partially due to my overhead welding skills and partially due to design. It's now welded on one side and "floats" on the other on a small shelf. The expansion doesn't seem to be as much of an issue with that. Still, the next iteration will probably be something a little bit different.

It's been a moderate winter so the wood consumption is going to be down by about 1/3 I would expect by spring. Some maintenance and finish work is due this summer and should only add to efficiency. The OWB is not for everyone, but for my situation it's an excellent alternative and I'm still very pleased with it.

 

[dave_dj1]

I'm glad to hear that it is working good for you! Keep up the good work

 

[Redrider]

Do you get alot of smoke when you open door with
Stack hanging down that low?

 

[H-Ranch]

Do you get alot of smoke when you open door with
Stack hanging down that low?

I don't have anything to compare to since this is the first OWB I've owned. My guess is that it's about equivalent to a conventional stack - when you open the door any smoke may want to take the easiest path out. Many times there is no smoke to contend with anyway if it's burning hot or there is only a pile of red coals. If I've done a good job of estimating how much to load it before I return then it makes refilling it that much more pleasant. :msp_wink:

 

[clydeowens85]

How is your boiler working. I'm thinking about building 1 myself since my power bill get around 600 through the winter. How much wood do you burn through the winter. And how did you weld the pipe to the firebox.

 

[Preston]

Now all you folks in the yankee area know what an OWB is, but I don't. What is it. A heater of sorts?

Looking at the welds, did you use a 7018 rod or a 6013. Looks like a 6013 on dirty metal. How much grass did you burn up with the welding? Nice job whatever it is. I like your little shed over it. Really nice work.

 

[1375619cm3]

Now all you folks in the yankee area know what an OWB is, but I don't. What is it. A heater of sorts?




OWB = Outdoor Wood Burner, used to heat ones house like a furnace but the heat is piped in from outside by heated water in pipes then it goes through a coil in a furnace and air is forced over/through it to provide heat. Google outdoor wood furnace and there is a ton of info out there on how they work n such.

 

[Preston]

Thanks. That is so neat. You build you house so why not the forced air heating system too. Really neat.