Alternative Heating
written by: Muskoka TradeSource
Heating our homes is becoming increasingly expensive and as a result
many people are looking for alternative heating methods. The conventional
methods are electric, oil, natural gas, or propane, but these options
have some negative repercussions, including high prices, a limited
availability of resources, and they make use of non-renewable energy
sources. Oil, natural gas, propane and coal are fossil fuels, meaning
that their formation has taken millions of years. They are not renewable
fuels and their use is not sustainable because they will run out
some time in the future, says Natural Resources Canada brochure
Burn it Smart (http://www.burnitsmart.org/english/index.html).
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Two alternatives to the heating dilemma are wood and solar. Both are
sustainable sources of energy based on renewable resources, meaning
that as long as the sun shines and trees harvested for fuel are replaced,
these sources can supply our energy needs. This makes them much more
energy efficient and environmentally friendly than their fossil fuel
counterparts. Woodstoves are a common feature in most houses,
and while they can be very attractive and comforting, they may not
be as efficient as you think. Fireplaces situated on an outside
wall can prove to be somewhat wasteful since much of the heat is
lost to heat the exterior stone. Says Burn it Smart, while the efficiency
of wood stoves will vary, open fireplaces will actually draw heat
from your home. A wood stove or fireplace can produce more smoke
than heat, which wastes energy, builds up dangerous creosote, and
creates air pollution.¨
Woodstoves are rarely used as a primary source of heat; there is
almost always a backup system, be it electrical, gas or oil. The
reason for this is because the heat from a woodstove is limited
to heating the air in one room. While heating with wood is more
ecologically aware than the traditional methods, large masses of
wood must be burnt in order to warm up a room, thus proving to be
an inefficient use of both resources and energy.
One innovation in the home heating industry, and one which makes the
most of available energy, is the masonry water boiler. It´s
a masonry heater, but it goes one step beyond,¨ says Gilbert Ludlow,
in whose house one is currently being constructed. We think this is
the first one in North America, so it's a new concept for us, but
they¡¦ve been commonplace technology in Russia for years.¨
This new idea is essentially a woodstove made out of masonry, which
works on the principle of radiant heat. In a masonry heater, when
the firebox is hot, the heat travels to a secondary combustion chamber
where the gases are re-ignited through heat, creating even more
warmth. The gases then travel down a channel, heating up the masonry
which absorbs heat, and then any unused gases escape through the
chimney. It's the most efficient way of burning wood that we know
of, It's a really, really intense quick fire, with a temperature
around 1850 F in the firebox, and by the time the heat has gone
through the entire system, it has dissipated to around 400 F at
the chimney. The majority of the heat is left inside the house,
where it¡¦s needed, making it very efficient.
In contrast to regular fireplaces, since masonry heaters operate
on the principle of radiant heat, they are generally situated in
the middle of a house. Radiant heaters emit heat evenly in all directions,
so you¡¦re getting the full benefit of the fire. Heat
stays inside the house where it's needed, producing much less wasted
heat and smoke.
Ludlow's system takes this technology one step further. His design
includes hot water coils that act as a heat exchanger, transporting
hot water throughout the house in the form of radiant in-floor heating,
making it an integral aspect of a whole home system. Pipes within
the unit allow water to heat up as it flows through the system to
hot-water tanks. The water then moves throughout the concrete floors,
making the entire floor surface a uniform temperature, and finally
back to the heater.
The boiler is used to transmit the heat to the water, making it
an easier way to move heat to perimeter areas,¡¨ says
Ludlow. Once it¡¦s completed, we will have the ability
to move and store heat within the house.¡¨
Because the masonry can get extremely hot, storing & emitting
heat for long periods of time, the fire need only be lit twice a
day. If ignited once in the morning, the stones will heat up, and
when the fire dies, the stones still contain heat so even without
the fire itself, the water coils and your house are still being
heated. The process can be repeated at night to keep the house warm
24 hours a day. In this way, says Ludlow, ¡§the wood
is being burned extremely efficiently; you¡¦re getting
the most possible energy from the wood you¡¦re actually
burning, and you¡¦ll feel more heat for longer.¨
Both woodstoves and masonry water boilers burn wood, making them
more efficient than fossil fuels, but the advantages of the latter
are numerous. The appearance of the unit is very much the same as
that of a fireplace, but there is the added benefit of the ability
to heat peripheral rooms. Masonry boilers burn wood much more effectively,
and can be connected to your domestic hot water system, which can
also mean added storage for your hot water.
In addition, the masonry water boiler integrates wood heat with
the current system of in-floor radiant heating, and with a solar
hot water system, making it part of a whole home system devoted
to sustainable energy and renewable resources.
In Muskoka, we love our fireplaces; we have an abundance of wood,
find a contained fire relaxing and comforting, and the fireplace
itself can even be an attractive focal point in a room. All the
benefits of wood burning are enhanced in the masonry water boiler
system, making it one of the most efficient ways to heat your home.
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