Anyone have a boiler or furnace NOT using forced air?

I use an over-the-fire air supply to cut down on smoking when the damper is shut. It's merely a plate that is spaced away from the front of the boiler.

CapeCoaler wrote:Welcome to the House of Anthracite.
You have now seen the light and will be rewarded with bounteous heat and hot water.
You will smile when it is cold out knowing the house is warm and your pocket has not been drained.
You keep your dollars in the US, help lower the unemployment rate, help balance the trade deficit, and keep your house warmer.
All this while paying less and not using some government run agency that will increase you tax bill at the end of the year.
AMEN!

stoker-man wrote:I use an over-the-fire air supply to cut down on smoking when the damper is shut. It's merely a plate that is spaced away from the front of the boiler.

Duh, I don't understand what you mean?? I never see any smoke out of my chimney though-even when idling for hours. What was smoking? I quit smoking when the Red Sox won the world series.

With a pirate accent this must be read.

Me thinks they burn a bit 'o wood hence the 'purdy wisps 'o smoke they 'b mentioned in the prior post you scurvy dogg.

Uh, Me thinks you are nutty as a Loon.

Stoker man has a wood-burning EFM boiler Hence he has smoking when the damper is shut and the wood is smoldering... Funny thing is, he lives in Anthracite country... ?? [Just teasing ya !].


Greg L

I see. Now would that EFM be installed in his mobile home that is shown in his avitar? No wonder he needs to make it smolder. That place must heat up in no time.

Aye laddie,
Spent me day doin' battle with an HP color LaserJet CM1312nfi MFP on the wattars edge starin at the 'gulls circlin 'bout.
/end pirate accent
HP bad out of the box.
Had to set it all up before it proved bad.
Phone calls to HP and return to vendor.
Sent someone off cape to pickup a replacement, as that was the closest one.
Set that one all up.
The new one had a bad drum, it made pretty pink paper.
Had a replacement drum luckily.
Software bitched about the network connection.
8 hours later....I still have to return because we did not have time to test properly.
One of the computers on the network will not reliably print to the HP.

That is why I love the simplicity of the Mark II.
I keep it full - it keeps me warm.

The main difference is that my boiler thermostat moves the flapper either full open or full shut-nothing in between. Anyone have any thoughts on this? It seems like most people have forced induction even in there hand fed units. Anyone NOT using forced induction in a boiler or furnace???This was my original post and pics of the boiler.

This is what you asked and that is how I handle it. We have the same type of boiler.

I might live in anthracite country, but I'm also a PA Dutchman and coal is too expensive for me when wood is free.

"use an over-the-fire air supply to cut down on smoking when the damper is shut. It's merely a plate that is spaced away from the front of the boiler."

I can't picture where the plate is located. Is it something that you move or adjust? Sorry, I just can't visualize what it is like. Is it inside or outside the unit? I assume it does not use forced air, right? Hey, free wood makes all the difference in the world. Mine was free for years, that's 1 reason I never thought about burning anything else until now. What I can get for free is very limited. In fact I spent most of today cutting down small maple trees that have spread too much in my yard. I just put up a temporary garage and also plan on doing a stone patio and installing a picket fence to protect my dogs. So it seems I have been into the wood cutting mode lately.

The efm model has a hole in the front of the boiler above the fire bed, covered by a round cover. I just space out the cover about 1/8" and I have a constant supply of over-the-fire-air.

Here is the link:

The Re-introduction of the efm WCB-24

It's the round cover above the ash pit door.

Ok, I got now. Very nice unit and as you said very similar to mine that was made in the same time period. Mine served me well and it is amazing how quickly and efficiently it can heat up the water. I think mine holds only 2 1/2 gallons around the fire chamber and I run it in parrallel to keep the oil burner jacket hot-which in turn heats the tankless coil. I used to use a water heater as a storage tank complete with a circulator pump and thermostats to keep a large quantity of hot water on hand. You know what? It works better without the tank. I NEVER run out of hot,hot water when that boiler is burning. The tank was a complete waste of electrical energy and space. I think the small water jacket makes it so much more efficient. I am guessing that the EFM unit does not have a large volume of water either? BTW my overfire seems to be controlled by the two 1/4" holes in the loading door. To be honest, I never really paid too much attention to the smoke issue although I never thought it smoked much unless I was just starting a fire. Good luck with the continued development of these boilers.

Our boiler contains 17 gallons of water. From room temp to 140 is about 10-15 minutes using pallet wood.

Wow, that's quick considering the volume of water. Must be a pretty efficient design. BTW, I checked out the EFM history and all the other stuff. Very interesting. Funny, I never came across that name up here in Southeastern Ma. I did a lot of carpentry renovations in this area for nearly 30 years-many in old historic homes dating as far back as the 1700's and many large homes dating to either the Whaling History or later, the Textile industry in the New Bedford area. I probably didn't pay close enough attention to the boilers at that time since my work was carpentry related- not plumbing.