5 replies to this topic

[GoodTimes]

Hi,

I have a caravan and another metal cabin next to it, both for living in. The cabin is used as a living room and the caravan for cooking, washing and sleeping.

I want to instal a log burner in the cabin as that is where I will be spending most of my time. To make the best use of the woodburner I want it to heat the water and a gravity fed radiator in the caravan. Alternatively instead of heating a radiator I though about blowing hot air from the fire into the existing blow air system in the caravan.

I cannot find anyone to give me good information or anyone who will fit it. I can find domestic fitters but they create all sorts of problems and not solutions.

Has anyone installed such a system or know where I can get good advice.

I have been advised to ask boat engineers as I will be installing the same system they have in barges but still cant get any good advice as boat engineers expect to work on boats in their boat yard.

I am in Bridgnorth in Shropshire.

[Groundhog]

I had an 8kw woodburner which fed 2 radiators and was pumped around the system,problem with mine was because i am of grid the pump used too much power and drained my battery bank,also in all honesty they didnt get very hot.Gravity systems are restricted by distance and also you leave yourself open to something else to freeze !!. I now have th 8kw in the living area and have placed a tiny one in the rear corridor that heats the back,it was difficult sourcing one small enough found a guy at Staverton near Kingsbridge think it was Champion stoves he sold on ebay.lovely little stove its like a farriers furnace,slate flagstones,heatboard on the walls and ceiling high temp durex to seal the flue,cut a hole in the roof and bobs your uncle.
Great dry heat unlike gas but still have big condensation problems have to use plenty of dairy wipes in the morning to wipe down glass

[surreydodger]

Although I haven't visited it in a while, there is a good forum at http://www.thegreenl...orum.net/forum/ (used to be the 'It Isn't Easy Being Green' forum) which has a Wood fuel section. There used to be a lot of helpful sorts there though I would warn there was a fair bunch of those who would let you know all about the rules in installing a woodburner (mostly those making their living by installing themselves). Get past them and there was much practicle advice.

[ronthewelder]

Just a thought... I don't know the distance between the caravan and the container, but a friend of mine sleeved his woodburner flu pipe (covered the flue with a bigger steel tube) and used a small 12v computer fan to ciculate the reservoir of air. You could experiment with size of surround and fan ( there is a fan called an 'ecofan' that works using current generated from the heat from burner and dissimilar metals, uses no electric but not powerful)
Hot air from a flue surround would be very hot and obviously rise, could use the sinking of cold air to draw it up.

might be worth a try

[bramblebasher]

Hi,

The problem you have with your hot air duct, is that by sucking air out of the fire place area and dumping it into the caravans existing heater matrix, you will be sucking the equivalent amount of cold air into your metal container. I think it might be a false economy, if you were to have a return duct from the caravan back to the container that would alleviate the issue, basically creating a shared atmosphere.

I would go with the radiator thing, unless the caravan is really well insulated which they generally are not, you will be losing a ton of heat and Id imagine as fast as you could pump hot air in it'd be lost through draughts and radiation. At least with a radiator you can lean against it/install it under your mattress (disclaimer!) to keep the heat localised.

I have just finished a CHP system at my place that uses the hot air blown out of the back of a diesel genset, that it located in a shipping container, the hot air currently heats our polytunnel but the duct can be tapped at any point and hot air drawn off. I'm thinking winter heating for turkeys' barn or something, need to be sure it's reliable first.

PM me for anything I can be of help with.

B.

[Romany]

Just the sort of thing I've been thinking of doing myself in my static as the single gas fire doesn't cut it when it comes to heating the bedrooms which are at the opposite end of the van from the fire!

I'd be interested in any info you manage to find out, GT, and will likewise post any I find myself.

Romany