Heating (Fairbanks, Kenai, Wasilla: home, to buy, to live)

[Alaska Deb]

Hi all,

Our place (be there in JUNE!!!!!) has a monitor in one cabin and a toyo in the other. With the price of diesel, I'm not thinking we are going to stay with those for long. Also, at least one of them requires electricity to do its thing.

I'll be outside Wasilla; natural gas is not there, although there are rumors it may be coming.

I know several people who have these outdoor furnaces; the startup is expensive, but you can heat your water, and multiple buildings with one. Does anyone have any thoughts on these babies?


Also, I just became aware of coal. Not sure how I feel about that yet, but...these stoves appear to put out some major heat and seem to be cheaper than oil/diesel.

Could you tell me what works? What doesn't?

I do know I am not going to live anywhere where my heat depends on electricity.

Just trying to get my ducks in a row :-)

Thank you as always,
Deb

[Rance]

The only coal I ever burned was picked from the Keani Peninsula beaches...and we burned it in our woodstove. It did not smell the best...but man it put out the heat.

[Nephler]

Those outdoor furnaces require a lot of wood to heat your home. There are lots of them around my home now. Unless you have the land and trees (hardwood) to cut your own, it may be quite expensive. We've looked a the cost of wood by the cord up there and were amazed by the price, $200 a cord. Correct me if I'm wrong please.

We are looking into pellet stoves (indoor) that burn just about any palletized item (corn, wood, cherry pits). Anyone know the price of a Ton of wood pellets? We've looked but couldn't find any prices.

p.s.
don't mean to hijack your post Deb

[warptman]

I didn't think that Monitors or Toyostoves burned that much fuel. The nice thing about them is that they're totally programmable. You can "set back" the temp when you're out at work and have it come back on before you get home so it'll be nice and toasty in the house.

[Marty Van Diest]

Monitor and Toyo stoves are extremely efficient. The cost of heating your home with these units rivals natural gas. Fuel oil prices have increased, but so have natural gas prices. I think our natural gas prices went up 30% in the last few years.

You will need electricity to run those outside furnaces. You have to pump the hot water into your home.

As far as I know there are really only three options to heating without electricity if you don't have natural gas. A wood stove, a drip type oil stove, a propane heater.

Of these, the wood stove is the least expensive to buy and to feed.

Yes, wood costs about $200 per cord. I don't know where you can find wood pellets but I'm sure they would cost more than a cord of wood for the same amount of BTU's. I don't believe they are made in Alaska so you would be purchasing wood pellets shipped from outside.

Oh yeah...coal. I forgot about that. It would likely be less expensive than wood if you can find it delivered by the truck load. If you are on the Kenai you can gather it off the beaches by Anchor Point. I use to burn coal in Fairbanks. It puts out a lot of heat, but it's stinky.

[Arcticthaw]

The Monitor / Toyo stoves are probably by far the most efficient form of oil heat you can have. Depending on size they burn Way less than a gallon an hour.

If you don't wish to depend on electricity I would still keep the stoves, and have a wood stove as backup or primary heat source. These give you all the heat they make.

An outside wood boiler still requires electricity to pump the heat to the house. Most are not efficient enough for the ammount of wood burned. Locally wood is $200 a cord. You do not get the benefit of radiant heat from the outside boiler like you wood with a wood stove.

For the price of the conversion you could get a nice generator like a 2000 watt honda that is quiet and will runn your Toyo, and still have lots of $ left for fuels.

I work with a guy that has an outside wood boiler and oilfired backup. He burns about 35 cords a year for his 4000 sq foot log home.

Oil fired boilers are about 83% efficient on the best day. A Toyo / Monitor is closer to 95% efficient. Gas doesn't get much better than that.

[warptman]

Then again its June, It'll be hot by then...lol

[Alaska Deb]

Originally Posted by Nephler

Those outdoor furnaces require a lot of wood to heat your home. There are lots of them around my home now. Unless you have the land and trees (hardwood) to cut your own, it may be quite expensive. We've looked a the cost of wood by the cord up there and were amazed by the price, $200 a cord. Correct me if I'm wrong please.

We are looking into pellet stoves (indoor) that burn just about any palletized item (corn, wood, cherry pits). Anyone know the price of a Ton of wood pellets? We've looked but couldn't find any prices.

p.s.
don't mean to hijack your post Deb

Heck no...now I know about a new type of stove; pellets? Do you have a link or a name for the stove? Thanks

[Alaska Deb]

Originally Posted by Arcticthaw

The Monitor / Toyo stoves are probably by far the most efficient form of oil heat you can have. Depending on size they burn Way less than a gallon an hour.

If you don't wish to depend on electricity I would still keep the stoves, and have a wood stove as backup or primary heat source. These give you all the heat they make.

An outside wood boiler still requires electricity to pump the heat to the house. Most are not efficient enough for the ammount of wood burned. Locally wood is $200 a cord. You do not get the benefit of radiant heat from the outside boiler like you wood with a wood stove.

For the price of the conversion you could get a nice generator like a 2000 watt honda that is quiet and will runn your Toyo, and still have lots of $ left for fuels.

I work with a guy that has an outside wood boiler and oilfired backup. He burns about 35 cords a year for his 4000 sq foot log home.

Oil fired boilers are about 83% efficient on the best day. A Toyo / Monitor is closer to 95% efficient. Gas doesn't get much better than that.

Thank you, thank you!

We are going to have electricity to both cabins, but when the power goes off; I'm thinking it get pretty darn chilly PDQ. I just hate to have to depend on it.

We wanted the outdoor furnace because it could heat multiple buildings...cabins...community laundry :-) even maybe another outbuilding...not to mention the chickens. You have given me great info; thank you.

Maybe an indoor wood stove with monitor backup.

Thanks,
Deb

[Arcticthaw]

The pellet stove I saw this weekend required electricity to run the auger and fan. It also had several controls to deal with combustion, ignition and tempature output.