Wood boiler backup

[John Haeberle]

Considering a wood boiler for heat of a home/cabin + workshop.

Question is: do most people also run a backup propane boiler? I can see many reasons for a backup.

 

[nybirdman]

Back-ups are good for sure;first thing I would add would be a generator.
My son has an out-side wood boiler and inside fuel oil boiler.I would lean towards propane if installing new.
I have a Vermont Castings propane stove for
additional heat and back-up(no power required)and a PTO generator.
There are many small propane wall hung units that aren't very expensive.

 

[LouNY]

Two of my brothers went with outside boilers they both had oil fired boilers for backup. One was in the basement the other installed both of his boilers in his "wood shed" that system worked out very well and when he switched to a wood gasification boiler with an inside the basement water reservoir for heat storage it really works quite well. The oil boiler is always in a standby mode if the circulating water temp gets to low it will fire up.

 

[John Haeberle]

Just wondering about heating if not able to at home (trips away, road conditions, etc.)

 

[civilian]

I have a Central Boiler outside wood boiler. Inside the house I have a propane boiler as back up for times we are gone, or in the earlier/late heating seasons when the wood boiler is too hard to regulate for the heat required. As stated aboe, we also have a propane generator for backup electric. We are on the end of the power feed. Jon

 

[stumblinhorse]

Just wondering about heating if not able to at home (trips away, road conditions, etc.)

This is a very important consideration for installation.

I have a central boiler gasser. I have a propane boiler inside. In the summer my indoor heats my hot water. When fired up the OWB does all.

Many installers will say to use the indoor boiler to keep the water from freezing in the outdoor when on vacation. This does not work for me. If my OWB is not fired up and I am running the pump to keep it from freezing, my propane boiler runs non stop until it overheats. My indoor boiler is 175,000 BTUs, so it is not a small unit and can heat my house easily on its own.

So in the winter I cannot leave my house for more than 48 hours without having someone throw wood in the OWB.

It does not say where you live. But if it is cold enough where freezing the OWB pipes could be an issue and you don’t want to be a prisoner to your heat, you need a way to keep the water from freezing in the OWB that doesn’t use the heat used to heat your house.

 

[John Haeberle]

Thanks for the replies.

This is an important consideration. I’m surprised this is not a bigger issue for others.

 

[civilian]

This is a very important consideration for installation.

I have a central boiler gasser. I have a propane boiler inside. In the summer my indoor heats my hot water. When fired up the OWB does all.

Many installers will say to use the indoor boiler to keep the water from freezing in the outdoor when on vacation. This does not work for me. If my OWB is not fired up and I am running the pump to keep it from freezing, my propane boiler runs non stop until it overheats. My indoor boiler is 175,000 BTUs, so it is not a small unit and can heat my house easily on its own.

So in the winter I cannot leave my house for more than 48 hours without having someone throw wood in the OWB.

It does not say where you live. But if it is cold enough where freezing the OWB pipes could be an issue and you don’t want to be a prisoner to your heat, you need a way to keep the water from freezing in the OWB that doesn’t use the heat used to heat your house.

A little late, but to prevent water from freezing when we leave in the winter, we have antifreeze in our outdoor boiler system. We can let the fire go out when travelling and shut the pumps off and have the indoor propane boiler heat the house, and not waste propane on keeping the outside water from freezing. Jon

 

[stumblinhorse]

A little late, but to prevent water from freezing when we leave in the winter, we have antifreeze in our outdoor boiler system. We can let the fire go out when travelling and shut the pumps off and have the indoor propane boiler heat the house, and not waste propane on keeping the outside water from freezing. Jon

Yes, that is one way to do that. My boiler holds 340 gallons. That is cost prohibitive to me to use anti-freeze. There is a specific requirement on what propylene glycol can be used in a central boiler model for corrosion etc. The cost is about $2k for a 55 gallon drum. At a 50/50 mix which would be required for my area, that is $6k…

 

[MossRoad]

Just wondering about heating if not able to at home (trips away, road conditions, etc.)

Then you'd want some other heat source beside wood.

We've been heating primarily with a wood stove for about 10-15 years now. We have a gas furnace. That works great for vacations, long weekends, etc. when we're not around to stoke the fire.