Welcome to TheOhioOutdoors
Wanting to join the rest of our members? Login or sign up today!
Login / Join

Outdoor wood boiler install

hickslawns

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
39,721
248
Ohio
I know these have been brought up before. Lots of guys on here burn wood. I am selling our old one (2.5yrs of use) and upgrading to a larger one. Figured I would take you guys along for the ride in case you had ever considered installing one of these.

Underground pipe- Don't skimp on this. Heat loss varies greatly from one to the next. I may have bought an undersized boiler (for our needs) the first time, but I did it right on the pipe. We have two runs, each 100-110'. These run from the boiler to the structure it is heating. Since mine are buried already, I will only be able to take pics of the stubbed lines coming up thru the ground. You will also need a power source. When burying my line from house to boiler, I ran a 1" pex line with electric line inside it along the same trench.

Once pipe is in place, cement is poured to form a slab under the boiler. On our first unit I was able to come up with a large slab of previously used concrete to set it on. This saved me the pour. Now that we are going larger, I am glad it only took forks on the skid loader to remove it and prep for the new slab. New unit will heat 10,000 sq ft so I don't foresee me needing to do this again.

After slab is poured and cured, the boiler is placed on top of the concrete. At this point you plumb the lines to the pump, wire it, and you are onto the next step. Clearly, filling it with water is required as well but I figured this goes without saying. I plan to have city water brought out for mine. I have some tanks and will haul it myself and gravity feed to fill it with the water.

Inside the house, you use a water to air exchanger inside the plenum of your furnace if you use forced air heat. They also offer water to water heat exchangers for some applications. I have been told and read online to get the largest surface area exchanger you can fit into your plenum. If there is not a demand for heat you are not out a lot more.

I will snap some pics later and upload if you have any questions. I am far from an expert here, but since this is my second rodeo and I have run one a few years, I don't consider myself a rookie anymore.
 

Gern186

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
10,172
201
NW Ohio Tundra
Ive had one for 8 winters now. No doubt it saved me money over the years and I highly recommend one....although if you have a bad back it might not be for you.
 

MK111

"Happy Hunting Grounds in the Sky"
Supporting Member
6,551
66
SW Ohio
Good luck getting it on line. I was going to get one 14 yrs ago but my son said I had no business messing around with a chainsaw with my health problems. Only time I ever listened to him. So I went with my corn stove and glad I did as it has saved me 10,000's in propane expense.
 

hickslawns

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
39,721
248
Ohio
I have not yet JPN.

Sorry I have not posted any pics. Been a bit busy working or hunting. I did pick up the new boiler today and get it set on the pad I poured.