Wood stove in your garage

[The Architect]

Can you tell me more about this setup you have? How'd you set it up? Is it circulated through the house? Is it forced?



I think I want to try this 

I replaced my boiler fed hot water storage tank with an instant hot water system.  Which left me with a used 40 gallon storage tank, pump, relief valves and a lot of valves and other fittings.  I picked up some 1/2" copper piping, 1/2" elbows and 1/2" street elbows.  I created continuous loop withe the 1/2" copper and placed on the stove.  (I tried several different configurations and the continuous loop resulted in the highest water temperature, 150 degrees.)  The cold water that feed to the loop comes from an elevation below the loop.  I added unions to the supply and return from the loop in case things go sour and I have to remove the loop from the stove quickly.  Valves before and after the unions keep water from running all over the place.  The water that exits the loop goes in the up direction from the loop.  This allows the hot water to rise and create a convection flow.  From there the hot water flows to an air separator with an expansion tank.  The water then flows to a pump which is fed to the storage tank.  The tank has a coil in it that heats the water in the tank.  The heated water is then fed to the instant hot water.  I also installed a regulator to feed the loop with water and to maintain a ccertain pressure in the loop.  I added an additional valve in the kine to regulate the flow when the pump is running.

I purchased and intend to install a temperature sensor on the coil that will actuate the pump.  I didn't install the sensor and the convection flow made the system work without the pump.  It helps if the storage tank is elevated above the stove. 

I intend to use the heat to heat my garage once I've insulated the garage.  Two bedrooms are located above the cold garage.  For now I use it to preheat the domestic hot water.

Without an expansion tank and proper pressure relief valves you can create an explosion/rocket from the pressure in the pipes. 

Caution must be used with how much heat you take from the stove.  If you draw too much you may start to effect how the stove burns and how it vents through the chimney.

[The Architect]

If you're daring enough to drill into your stove you can then try this,

http://www.therma-coil.com/ 

[Ddan]

Can you tell me more about this setup you have? How'd you set it up? Is it circulated through the house? Is it forced?



I think I want to try this 

I saw a product that was basically the same idea but used fin tube from hot water baseboard heat and was bolted to the side or back of the stove. There was a shroud around the whole set-up so you couldn't see the plumbing, and I imagine to make it heat more efficiently.  I can't find it now but it looked pretty good.

[z0mb1e_DUC]

I've been heating with pellets for about 7yrs.  My dad installed his first pellet stove in 1993.  Besides me, my mother-in-law, my sister-in-law & my one of my brother-in-laws have all converted to pellet stoves.  I usually go thru about 5tons a year.  I usually buy in May, this year I got it for $230 a ton.  This is my primary source of heat.  I've got a Harmon, it'll put out 65k BTU if I want.   Like DP said, you only need 3ft of vertical rise on the vent side.  You also don't need an external source of fresh air, unless you in install in a mobile home.  You can also put it within 6in of combustible surfaces, unlike a regular wood stove.  You can't beat these things...