I've got 2 steel rocket stoves on the go but still having a hard time trying to locate refractory cement complete the builds properly. It seems that the best option so far was to buy from the US from AP Green refractories. Shipping would kill though. The big stove will require at least 50 lbs worth. The little one fires up hot and roars nicely. The proper length of chimney will better determine the breathing as the greater length make the draw stronger than just a short stack so far. I'm sure there is a limit to this figure too and I will eventually factor it properly sometime. Still have other things to make such as legs to get it of the ground, and a decent venturi system to control the burn and find a decent permanent stack system.
I read an design article where they mixed straw, mud and sand to build such as that which is presented in the link above. The major flaw I find with that kind of rocket stove is that no insurance company would insure such a unit in your home. If your house burned down, they would deny the claim once they found this stove in place. Therefore I consider the use of any such non-approved stove as only an emergency system for the house and must be stored elsewhere for these insurance reasons. I was going to maybe use it in my shop instead as it is paid for and not insured anyways. That's sad as this design has it's own appeal and sitting on a warm bench on a cold winter's night should make such a thing a must for any home.
I found a neat little idea for backup heat in a pinch. You can buy one or make your own. The site has many models, and all Preppers have candles. Google and Ye shall find! You will find several different ideas and it is incredible on how much heat you can recover if you are already burning a candle.
For those of you making candles out of natural products, then this is especially beneficial to you.
http://www.heatstick.com/_KanHeet01.htm
PrepHer...your only the second one heating with one of these....how about it...plug it into a killowatt meter and let us know what it uses power wise ?
Give a man a gun, and he can rob a bank. Give a man a bank, and he can rob the world.
We heat with a wood stove, which tends to raise the eyebrows of the folks that I design oil or electric heating systems for. 😀
I figure that I will always be able to find something to burn. I tell my customers that if they don't have something that burns a stick of wood, when the economy collapses they are going to be cold. The stare blankly and then order an electric boiler or and oil furnace.
I have always been down on pellets stoves because they require electriciy to operate. Now, I don't know much about this product but it looks kind of neat and doesn't requite electricity. It is called a Wise Way pellet stove. http://www.wisewaypelletstoves.com/
"A prudent man foresees the difficulties ahead and prepares for them; the simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences." - Proverbs 22:3
"The man who has a garden and a library has everything." - Cicero
We heat with a wood stove, which tends to raise the eyebrows of the folks that I design oil or electric heating systems for. 😀
I figure that I will always be able to find something to burn. I tell my customers that if they don't have something that burns a stick of wood, when the economy collapses they are going to be cold. The stare blankly and then order an electric boiler or and oil furnace.I have always been down on pellets stoves because they require electriciy to operate. Now, I don't know much about this product but it looks kind of neat and doesn't requite electricity. It is called a Wise Way pellet stove. http://www.wisewaypelletstoves.com/
Too Cool, good find! Now I'll be redesigning a rocket stove again methinks! I even found this video now that better shows how the unit works for those who like playing with steel....this is an easy project and it looks like he is using 3" square tube for the build. To even have it on wheels is too cool also.
One that i posted before somewhere, as a backup system , meant for a well-insulated room :
Getting a used, working diesel truck mini/cab heater which uses an inline pump and coolant loop for heat distribution, and a battery to fire up.
Just have a supply of fuel (and feed tube), which is good for longer than gas, and is even more convenient if you drive a diesel .It can be outside for noise reasons, or in an airtight box in-house for convenient access,
I have 2 already, waiting to go into my cabin with land 🙂
Yes it was posted before, I remember, and I've not forgotten about it .
There are alot of videos on YOUTUBE about this unit and other units people are working on.
Cleaning out the ash from this Pellet Stove looks like a chore from video on YouTube , needs cleaning
every 24 - 36 hours as the effeciency reduces with ash build up. But one video shows how
the tubes / channels get clogged way up inside and you are only able to get what drops down into the drawers
There seems to be lots more interesting videos with many people trying to design
rocket stove pellet burners, with ash buildup also.
Just some to look for on youtube by " Rom1nb "
- Rocket Stove pellet burner Test #1
- Rocket Stove pellet burner #2
- Rocket Stove pellet burner #3
- Rocket Stove Pellet burner
And there is more rocket stove experiments also by this same " Rom1nb "
This person " lebammabel "
has an interesting videos for pellet rocket burner for cooking
- DIY gravity feed rocket stove - burning wood pellets (sawdust granules)
- DIY rocket stove - gravity feed (update)
- DIY rocket stove - gravity feed (update 2)
- DIY rocket stove - gravity feed (update 3)
- How I made gravity feed rocket stove
sorry I am on wrong computer to be able to post the direct http:// links like I usually do
I found this pack of files and videos on how to build rocket stoves. A good collection and inspiring to watch.. http://bitsnoop.com/high-efficiency-rocket-stove-mass-h-q45447959.html . But you'll need a torrent program such as UTorrent (google it, its free) to grab this.
PrepHer...your only the second one heating with one of these....how about it...plug it into a killowatt meter and let us know what it uses power wise ?
I don't have a KiloWatt meter but I recall that my pellet stove is about 300 watts when it's running. My electricity bill is not notably higher because of it (as it's also darker for longer at this time too).
Wood stove is my only heat since we are off grid and wood is plentiful (at least pine and fir). In fact we have a place nearby that lets us take the cut-offs from their lumber processing. Just got a nice load of hardwood, 8x8x8ish. Sometimes plentiful, sometimes pickings are lean but I never leave empty. Even if it happens to be fir, we didn't have to cut, buck and split it.
First thing when I bought the house was to put in a wood stove, EPA certified very efficient. I can also cook on it if necessary, happened only twice in 7 years. Didn't want a pellet stove because the whole point was to have something to heat when I don't have electricity.
I measured my pellet stove as 145 Watt Hours. That is miniscule and can be supplied with the computer APC power inverter conversion I did in another thread. I just made it so I could add extra 12 volt power from car batteries or such and go for weeks this way. I perused this aspect even though I have plenty of wood and wood stoves because it kept my house insurance lower and I no longer had all the work and mess that a wood stove requires as this is also my main heat supply. I can always throw a wood stove in place if need be and I have generators too.
Most folks with emergency wood stoves haven't considered the aspects of no circulation of heat which their houses conveniently have. This means that the stove will only heat the surrounding area unless they have fans to move the warm air throughout the house. I mention this because this aspect should be considered when initially determining the stoves location in the home. many place such for convenience or looks without a second thought.
The furthest rooms away become the coldest rooms... heat rises so the basement is your best option right off the starting line. Plumbing freezes so putting such upstairs without another downstairs is a sure way to have frozen pipes inside the home where you might have to dig thru basement ceilings to repair them later. Chimneys hold alot of heat too and so converting to insulated pipe early and keeping them short is another waste of heat as most of it then goes straight out your chimney. Adding a heat exchanger of some sort is the best way to double the efficiency of the stove. Even just piping in an oval circle above the damper is a big plus to saving some of that heat but will likely be frowned upon by insurance brokers.
The best way to figure out your heat losses though is by investing in a cheap $25.00 infrared pistol type thermometer to measure for heat loss at the chimney stack and anywhere else in your home.
I'll be
Hi Great Post!
Forever worried about fuel availability and cost.... Felt best going solar for us. Only my husband and myself. If we must we will hunker down in one room. Re-doing the whole house for solar $ too much. Solar panels on the roof could make us a target of some dangerous situation.
Found Hardened Power Systems on line. Great to work with and the MK2 Juice Box..... portable solar power is perfect for us.
http://www.portableuniversalpower.com/
also got two solar panels from Canadian Tire.
They were great in every way. They don't disappoint!
Got 400 watt heater at home depot:
Also an electric blanket 385 watts too.
We will be careful with this system... only to be used in one room / emergency. It will very likely get us through a very tough time.
I feel safe and confident.... if and when we could build it up if needed.
I couldn't say enough about Hardened Power System's ..... see them also on You Tube.
They will work with your for your needs. Safe, hidden ad silent heating!
Check them out!
Bazinga!
How did they ship the generator into Canada ?
How much was the duty / customs tax ?
I have been interested in one of these but reluctant because of the customs tax and
exchange rate.