Need Help Picking Out a Stove? Hitzer ?

 
woody30
Member
Posts: 37
Joined: Mon. Mar. 26, 2007 1:28 pm
Location: upstate N.Y.

Post by woody30 » Mon. Mar. 26, 2007 1:47 pm

Hello, I'm new here and I want to heat with coal. I have a 1800 sq. ft ranch, and the stove will be on the main floor. Its going to be located also almost dead center of the house across from the hall that goes to the bedrooms. I have looked at the Hitzer 254, 354, 30-95, & 53-93. I like the idea of the hopper, but I'm open to suggestions. There is a like new 30-95 for sale not far from me, but I hesitate because they say it will heat around 1400 sq. ft. Its a nice little stove but really don't want it if it wouldn't heat during the cold months. By the way I live just south of Syracuse, N.Y. so it gets cold and snowy here. My house is well built and about 18 years old. Maybe a different make stove, self feed, hopper, etc. ? Any help would be appreciated.


 
User avatar
coaledsweat
Site Moderator
Posts: 13761
Joined: Fri. Oct. 27, 2006 2:05 pm
Location: Guilford, Connecticut
Stoker Coal Boiler: Axeman Anderson 260M
Coal Size/Type: Pea

Post by coaledsweat » Mon. Mar. 26, 2007 2:01 pm

Their website says UP TO 1800' for model 30-95. If the house is very well insulated/windows it will most likely be fine, if not, I would look for something just a lttle bigger. Better to oversize than under with coal.

 
woody30
Member
Posts: 37
Joined: Mon. Mar. 26, 2007 1:28 pm
Location: upstate N.Y.

Post by woody30 » Mon. Mar. 26, 2007 2:39 pm

Hi Coaledsweat, you are correct. I don't know where I saw 1400'. I will have to give this stove serious thought as I think I can get it at a good price. If anyone has this stove I would also appreciate any feedback. Thanks

 
User avatar
coaledsweat
Site Moderator
Posts: 13761
Joined: Fri. Oct. 27, 2006 2:05 pm
Location: Guilford, Connecticut
Stoker Coal Boiler: Axeman Anderson 260M
Coal Size/Type: Pea

Post by coaledsweat » Mon. Mar. 26, 2007 4:59 pm

Well as long as your still looking you may want to think about going with a boiler/furnace tied into your existing central heat. There is plenty of good used stuff out there and can be quite reasonable. I paid $500 for my boiler and maybe $150 to install it. That was 14 years ago and I'm glad I did. Your coal is right there/ash can too, no mess through the house. Just set the desired temp, nice even heat throughout the house/no hot or cold spots. You can run the boiler/furnace into much warmer weather/without sweating to death. And you can pickup your domestic water from it and save a lot more money. :) Stokers make your life even easier. 8)

 
woody30
Member
Posts: 37
Joined: Mon. Mar. 26, 2007 1:28 pm
Location: upstate N.Y.

Post by woody30 » Mon. Mar. 26, 2007 5:16 pm

Well, I just might give that some thought. I have in the floor heating which I use propane boiler to heat the water that runs through the piping in the floor. What is a good name brand for a coal boiler? Thanks

 
User avatar
coaledsweat
Site Moderator
Posts: 13761
Joined: Fri. Oct. 27, 2006 2:05 pm
Location: Guilford, Connecticut
Stoker Coal Boiler: Axeman Anderson 260M
Coal Size/Type: Pea

Post by coaledsweat » Mon. Mar. 26, 2007 8:39 pm

In the floor hot water is the best thing going, I would never give that up. You have plenty of time to shop for used, almost anything made to burn anthracite is usually pretty good, it has to be to survive. If you plan on being away a day or two often, you want a stoker, if not a hand fired will do the trick. Start shopping and if you find something, bounce it off the guys here. This crew has seen everything and can give you the feedback on it.

 
woody30
Member
Posts: 37
Joined: Mon. Mar. 26, 2007 1:28 pm
Location: upstate N.Y.

Post by woody30 » Tue. Mar. 27, 2007 9:07 am

OK I went down in the basement to check out where to put the coal boiler. It looks like I would have to do some work to put a coal burner in the boiler room. First I would have to put up a chimney as I have B vent now, or use direct vent. And I'm not sure there is room to put in a coal boiler. I would have to see just how big the thing is, I want to leave my propane boiler there for a backup in case we go away. So I'm thinking I will check into this coal boiler but I still have the Hitzer in the back of my mind and use my propane boiler for a backup. Any thoughts?


 
User avatar
coaledsweat
Site Moderator
Posts: 13761
Joined: Fri. Oct. 27, 2006 2:05 pm
Location: Guilford, Connecticut
Stoker Coal Boiler: Axeman Anderson 260M
Coal Size/Type: Pea

Post by coaledsweat » Tue. Mar. 27, 2007 9:19 am

It doesn't need to be close to the other boiler, you could put it anywhere and just plumb it in. The first coal boiler I ever saw was on the opposite side of the house from the oil boiler and worked great.
The stove is fine if that's the way you want to go, the boiler will only make life sweeter. :wink: You WILL miss the radiant floor heat!

 
User avatar
Richard S.
Mayor
Posts: 15123
Joined: Fri. Oct. 01, 2004 8:35 pm
Location: NEPA
Stoker Coal Boiler: Van Wert VA1200
Coal Size/Type: Buckwheat/Anthracite

Post by Richard S. » Tue. Mar. 27, 2007 9:22 am

I don't know if they make one small enough for your needs and is quite a bit more expensive but Keystoker makes a coal/oil combo unit. It's supposedly not very efficient with oil but a nice feature for exteneded vacations.

 
woody30
Member
Posts: 37
Joined: Mon. Mar. 26, 2007 1:28 pm
Location: upstate N.Y.

Post by woody30 » Tue. Mar. 27, 2007 9:24 am

You are right about missing the floor heat that is the greatest thing since sliced bread. Is there any name brand coal boiler I should look for? I have time to look around being its close to spring here. And how much coal would I go through compared to a stove like Hitzer. ? I'm thinking that the boiler will eat more than a stove? Thanks

 
User avatar
Yanche
Member
Posts: 3026
Joined: Fri. Dec. 23, 2005 12:45 pm
Location: Sykesville, Maryland
Stoker Coal Boiler: Alternate Heating Systems S-130
Coal Size/Type: Anthracite Pea

Post by Yanche » Tue. Mar. 27, 2007 10:04 am

While it's an expensive solution the Alternate Heating Systems S-130 will do the job nicely. See: http://www.alternateheatingsystems.com/. It's physically a small boiler, throttles back easily and can be made to operate as a direct vent. It would also supply endless domestic hot water. Adapting the S-130 to direct vent is strictly a owner modification. The internal combustion blower is operated slowly with a frequency varying speed controller to supply the needed idle draft. With attention to installation detail it can be a safe alternate to building a class A chimney.

Yanche

 
User avatar
coaledsweat
Site Moderator
Posts: 13761
Joined: Fri. Oct. 27, 2006 2:05 pm
Location: Guilford, Connecticut
Stoker Coal Boiler: Axeman Anderson 260M
Coal Size/Type: Pea

Post by coaledsweat » Tue. Mar. 27, 2007 11:26 am

woody30 wrote:And how much coal would I go through compared to a stove like Hitzer. ? I'm thinking that the boiler will eat more than a stove? Thanks
You may use less, stoves just sit and radiat heat, most of it will hang right around the stove. A boiler puts it where you need it. I would always prefer to operate a boiler even if my home had forced air.
A stoker will use more than a hand fired as there is a little fuel wasted that goes out unburned with the ash (60-100# in a ton typically). That amounts to !NOTHING! when you look at the convienience and the big savings you already get just switching to coal.
The big plus is the propane would never have to fire ($$$$$) even on the coldest days and the domestic water is a big savings too.

 
User avatar
oliver power
Member
Posts: 2970
Joined: Sun. Apr. 16, 2006 9:28 am
Location: Near Dansville, NY
Stoker Coal Boiler: KEYSTOKER Kaa-2
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Hitzer 50-93 & 30-95, Vigilant (pre-2310), D.S. 1600 Circulator, Hitzer 254

Post by oliver power » Tue. Mar. 27, 2007 6:08 pm

Hi Woody 30 , you asked if anyone has any experience with the HITZER coal stoves. Well , your in luck. I have both , the HITZER 50-93 , and the HITZER 30-95. Great coal stoves. Very well engineered. I heat 3400 square feet of house/basement with the 50-93 in basement., and 800 square feet of poorly insulated shop (dirt floor w/some holes to outside around edges) with the HITZER 30-95. Either stove will heat your house. Both stoves use 1- five gallon bucket of nut coal in 12 hours of heating in cold weather. You're going to use the same amount of coal reguardless. If your house is well insulated , the 50-93 will coast to heat it , and will put little heat up the chimney. The 30-95 would be running at its rated settings , which would let more heat up the chimney , giving you better draft. I'd have to say , the 30-95 is a little less efficient than the 50-93. Like I said , you will go through the same amount of coal in each stove. So , in your case , with your square footage , if your chimney has poor draw , I'd use the HITZER model 30-95 running at rated settings. If your chimney has good draw , I'd use the 50-93 , and run it at lower settings. One more thing; The single bigger squirrell cage fan on the 30-95 is a little noisyer than the smaller double squirrell cage fan on the 50-93. Both are super great coal stoves. All this being said , I'm installing a hot water coal boiler before next winter. With the boiler , I can put the heat where I want it , and not have to heat the basement , in order to heat the up stairs. Thinking my coal consumption would be cut in half , or close to it. Any questions , feel free to ask. Scott

 
woody30
Member
Posts: 37
Joined: Mon. Mar. 26, 2007 1:28 pm
Location: upstate N.Y.

Post by woody30 » Tue. Mar. 27, 2007 7:11 pm

Mannnnnn, Everyone here has really given me something to thing about . I will really give this boiler some serious thought. Scott what boiler are you thinking about going with? And if I do go with a stove I think I will go with the 50-93. Thanks to Yanche,Coaledsweat, Scott etc. Oh by the way I would have to put up a metal chimney for the Hitzer and would probably go with a direct vent if I went with a boiler.

 
User avatar
LsFarm
Member
Posts: 7383
Joined: Sun. Nov. 20, 2005 8:02 pm
Location: Michigan
Stoker Coal Boiler: Axeman Anderson 260
Hand Fed Coal Boiler: Self-built 'Big Bertha' SS Boiler
Baseburners & Antiques: Keystone 11, Art Garland

Post by LsFarm » Tue. Mar. 27, 2007 7:55 pm

Hello Woody, if that Hitzer near you is available at a good price, it certainly wouldn't hurt to give it a try.

Having a warm, radiant heater in your main living space can be very nice. The circulation fan may make a little background noise, but that is about it.

As for your hot water floors, you have the very best heating system available, and the advice you have been given so far is very good.

While a stoker boiler would be the very best way to go, you could also go with a hand fed boiler, as long as you are home about every 12 hours or so. If you have really variable hours, then a stoker is the way to go.

You can put the boiler almost anywhere. Do you have an attached garage? or even a detached garage close to the house?? You can put a boiler in the garage, pipe the hot water inside to your existing hot water system, and keep the coal, ashes etc out in the garage. Not that the coal toting and ash toting is all that big a deal, but it would be easier to deal with in a garage.

And adding a chimney to a garage is very easy. This would save on the expense of a direct or power venting system.

I heat both my home and shop from a coal burning boiler in an outbuilding about 140 feet from both buildings. Works great.

Hope this helps. Greg L


Post Reply

Return to “Coal News & General Coal Discussions”