Outside Wood Burners

Outdoor Wood Heater: Outdoor Wood Burner

So, you’ve bought yourself that new house you’ve been dreaming of all your life. You finally have that white picket fence, a lawn (where you’ll be planting roses in the spring) and picture windows looking out onto a spectacular view. Everything’s just as perfect as a piece of succulent cake, right?

Wrong. Most new homeowners will find that buying a house isn’t as easy as it is played up to be. It takes a lot of effort, money and work to make a house a home, after all.

Are you looking for a central heating system for your home? Picking out a furnace is one of the most challenging things to do when you’re creating a home for yourself and your family. After all, you don’t want to be wearing scarves, socks and mittens indoors during the winter season.

Have you considered purchasing an outdoor wood burner? Before you go on to the nearest store to buy one, here are some things you should know.

Before You Buy: Checklist

1. Chimney Matters

Before you buy an outdoor wood burner, check your chimney first. The length, location and caps of your chimney will determine what kind of wood burner you should buy.

If you have a long chimney, then a furnace with an electric or manual damper would do fine. If you have a short chimney, however, you’ll have trouble drawing air over the fire to keep it burning. So, it would be best to stick with a furnace with a forced air draft.

Secondly, make sure you buy chimney caps. Caps keep out rain which causes rust and prevent sparks from exiting. However, be careful in choosing a cap: make sure it doesn’t prevent downdraft as this will create a slower fire and lots of soot.

2. Door Matters

Furnace Door Insulation and Size

This is of extreme importance. Good insulation will give you the heat that you need and will be more efficient in heating up your home fast and without need for much fuel. Choose a furnace with a door at least 6” thick.

Also, pick burner with a door that is fairly large and high off the ground. This will make it easy for you to lift heavy logs into it.

Anti-Blowback Catch

Never buy a wood burner without this feature. An anti-blowback catch will keep you safe from flash burns by releasing the furnace door very slowly when you open it. Again, make sure you look for this feature.

3. Rust Control

Rust is something you don’t want on your furnace, so it would be wise to buy a stainless steel furnace. Water jackets would also do the trick. Also, because ash contributes to rusting, buy a high heat furnace that reduces the production of ashes.

4. Safety Features

Look for safety features like safety latches, lockable doors, anti-blowback catch, low pressure system, high-limit switch, low water indicator and insulated handles.

5. Over-all Efficiency

Finally, check the overall efficiency. Does it burn wood efficiently? What’s the wood consumption rate? Do your research.

All these things will help you get a good quality outdoor wood burner to make your new home into a warm hearth. Good luck!