Van Wert Burn Pot Converstion Question

 
Jfreethy
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Post by Jfreethy » Wed. Jan. 15, 2014 8:15 am

Hello all, thus is my first real post so please bear with. Im looking at a used Van Wert 800 but I fear its too big for my home. The house is only 1700 sq.ft.

Now on to my question, I can get a burnpot and srtoker from a 600burn for a good price. Would it be possible to put the pot and stoker from the 600 in the 800? And would I really gain anything doing this? If not then I could alway change the gearing to slow down the feed.
Last edited by Jfreethy on Wed. Jan. 15, 2014 10:05 am, edited 1 time in total.


 
Pacowy
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Post by Pacowy » Wed. Jan. 15, 2014 9:04 am

I don't think you should worry too much about this because the unit is going to run primarily to satisfy calls for heat, and will idle almost all of the rest of the time, so it won't run you out of the house. Some on the forum will point to inefficiencies from such things as stand-by losses and unnecessary coal consumption when the timer runs. Others, including me, place a value on overkill that provides a good margin of safety for the many things that can keep a coal appliance from delivering its rated performance at any given time. Not to mention the ability to produce abundant DHW in real time without detracting from heating, and the efficiency improvement that may result from the greater heat exchange surface of the larger unit.

So I'll say if you can fit it in the house it may not be too big. :D You can weigh the pluses and minuses; if you decide you want something smaller there normally are several good used units available for sale.

Mike

 
Jfreethy
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Hot Air Coal Stoker Furnace: Keystone Koker Lite
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Other Heating: propane, and electric

Post by Jfreethy » Wed. Jan. 15, 2014 10:08 am

Thank you for the response. I am also toying with the idea of a new keystoker lite

 
Pacowy
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Location: Dalton, MA
Stoker Coal Boiler: H.B. Smith 350 Mills boiler/EFM 85R stoker
Coal Size/Type: Buckwheat/anthracite

Post by Pacowy » Wed. Jan. 15, 2014 11:02 am

You're welcome. Please check your private messages (envelope icon at top of page).

Thanks.

Mike

 
Jfreethy
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Location: Tunkhannock, pa
Hot Air Coal Stoker Furnace: Keystone Koker Lite
Coal Size/Type: Oiled Rice
Other Heating: propane, and electric

Post by Jfreethy » Wed. Jan. 15, 2014 12:09 pm

Pm sent

 
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Rob R.
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Post by Rob R. » Wed. Jan. 15, 2014 3:49 pm

Jfreethy wrote:Thank you for the response. I am also toying with the idea of a new keystoker lite
Quite a difference between the two units you mentioned. One is basically a central heating plant and the other appears to be a cross between a stove and a furnace. I don't think there is enough difference between the VA600 and VA800 to bother with a swap, but you can call Arnie and ask for his input. http://vanwertboilers.com/

What do you consider a good price on the VA800?

 
Jfreethy
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Location: Tunkhannock, pa
Hot Air Coal Stoker Furnace: Keystone Koker Lite
Coal Size/Type: Oiled Rice
Other Heating: propane, and electric

Post by Jfreethy » Wed. Jan. 15, 2014 5:27 pm

Well the guy was asking $3800 which isnt the cheapest or highest ive seen.


 
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Scottscoaled
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Post by Scottscoaled » Wed. Jan. 15, 2014 7:00 pm

In reply to your original question, you don't need to put a 600 pot in an 800 Van Wert. Why? There is all ready one in there! They are basically the same stoker. The difference being that the 800 has one more ring in the burn ring stack. The rest of the unit is pretty much all the same parts. The feed rate is increased by putting different sized pulley's on the chain drive. As far as using a 800? I would lean toward using a 600 instead just for the ease of installation. The 800 weighs quite a bit more than a 600. They are a handful.

 
Jfreethy
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Post by Jfreethy » Wed. Jan. 15, 2014 8:22 pm

Thank you all for the replies and PM's. I am in contact with several people from the board and locally now. I hope to make the switch for next heating season. I need to enjoy coal heat once again!

 
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Rob R.
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Post by Rob R. » Thu. Jan. 16, 2014 5:27 am

How do you plan on heating the house? electric baseboards and a boiler don't mix very well. ;)

 
Jfreethy
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Hot Air Coal Stoker Furnace: Keystone Koker Lite
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Other Heating: propane, and electric

Post by Jfreethy » Thu. Jan. 16, 2014 5:53 am

Rob R. wrote:How do you plan on heating the house? electric baseboards and a boiler don't mix very well. ;)
Thats kinda a no brainer. I would have to rip out all of the electric baseboard and replace with fin tube. Of couse after properly sizing it for heat loss and what not.

 
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Sting
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Post by Sting » Thu. Jan. 16, 2014 7:51 am

There is nothing wrong with leaving the resistance heating alongside of the wet work.. IN FACT its a great idea as often [in the shoulder seasons] you will have a cool evening when just a short burst of resistance heating can take the house chill away and be far more economical that firing the big boiler engine. Plus if you undersize your wet system slightly - it will perform better most of the time and you can add the resistance heating on those "occasional" night(s) of hi demand - again this is a more economical system to run but most will not opt to install the second infrastructure - but you already have it in place so -- think about it!!!! :idea:

 
Jfreethy
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Location: Tunkhannock, pa
Hot Air Coal Stoker Furnace: Keystone Koker Lite
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Other Heating: propane, and electric

Post by Jfreethy » Thu. Jan. 16, 2014 11:33 am

Guys I don't care if you hijack my thread but atleast talk about drink beer or something :)

 
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Rob R.
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Post by Rob R. » Thu. Jan. 16, 2014 11:38 am

How would you move the heat from the Koker Lite?

 
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Sting
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Post by Sting » Thu. Jan. 16, 2014 11:40 am

didn't mean to hijack your question - just attempted to point out that tearing out your existing resistance heat system [in my world] was not the best choice or even necessary - if you want help with that - there are still folks here for you

But others don't always approve of my choices - OK Beer it is


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