wooden rocket stove bench a fire hazard?

Could the bench be wood or would it be a fire hazard? I could make a nice wooden bench!

Good question!

Will and Jodi : This is an easy one that I can answer! There are several ways to get a wood burning stove to burn efficiently, and they all revolve around creating a
good very high temperature Burn to achieve Maximum efficiency ! With a metal stove you are operating at temperatures that will cause it to fail ! The Heat energy
released by our very efficient burn means nothing if we allow that heat to go up the chimney ! The Thermal Mass is our secret weapon allowing us to store all that
heat energy in our Thermal mass just like charging a great big battery !

For the Good of the Craft ! Any further questions can be answered this week by Erica and Ernie Wisner, if addressed to them here at the Rocket stoves Forum !
Big AL !

But could it be insulated inside the wood bench to store the heat? I am really new to this and I just have so many questions!

And if I am building a cabin do I need to reinforce the floor for more support for the rocket stove?

Jodi Talbott : Usually we are talking about the same amount of Re-inforcemnt needed if you were going to have a water bed in the same location !
I expect that you know someone who knows some one who states that they can not sleep without a waterbed, it used to be a lot more common than
it is today but properly planed for it is no big deal !

Once people have their Thermal mass/built-in-furnature in place, they find that Padded blankets, quilts, throws and lightweight futon mattresses
serve them very well ! These allow the ability to quickly adjust the temperature by covering/un-covering sections of the bench, A Wooden bench
built over the top will probably add some little complication to this very simple system !

A few quick thoughts, built in closet that always keeps your outside coats toasty warm, a special built in place for raising bread,yogurt and a few other
'fermented foods', getting up in the morning and the clothes you are going to wear laid out, pre-warmed on your bench.

I will try to answer the easy ones. This week to friday, we have Erica and Ernie Wisner to answer questions that require technical expertise !

Come back often, your comments/questions are solicited and Welcome Big AL !

Thank you, Allen I am afraid I will drive you all crazy with questions. I just do not think I have the know how to make a cob bench. Maybe I need to sign up for a work shop!

Jodi Talbot : Location, location, location! 1st announce to everyone where you are, here on these pages and in your personal statistics, mine is very clear to anyone
from NY, without giving out my 911 Address! Join a local Permaculture group, does your Food co-op/pantry put out a newsletter ! Is there an active Outward Bound,
or collage Outing group ! Reach out to Erica and Ernie Wisner about their workshops !

O.K., I got a little carried away but 90% of that can be done without spending a Dime! If you really want to learn more Now consider going to cobcottage.com for your
'Personalized' PDF Copy $15.ooU.S.D. of Evans' and jackson's Great Book 'Rocket Mass Heaters', there is STILL no other book, in any Language that
contains more 'Rocket Stove / Rocket Mass Heater Family information ! ( and I don't make a Nickel !)

For the Good of the Craft ! As always, comments and questions are solicited And Welcome ! Big AL!

Thank you!

Hi Jodi,
Thanks for bringing up the idea of wood benches. Yes, you can use a wooden box to surround and control the masonry thermal mass 'infill', as long as you use good clearances to the hotter parts of the system (the firebox, upper barrel, and first few feet of exhaust). Our bench at home has wood trim on the bench and bench top, and you can see we are very comfortable with cushions and even books right in contact with the bench mass. But I chickened out and used a similar-colored Saltillo tile for the mantle behind the barrel.



Paul Wheaton's 'Portable' Rocket Mass Heater also used a wooden box, and we've advised another client on a proiect that involved a much larger wood-and-infill design that's working well.

Monitor the temperatures for the inside surfaces of the wood -you want to be sure it stays below about 150 F / 65 C to prevent long-term baking and flammability hazards. Ours runs maybe 90 F surface temps for the hottest parts of the bench, most nights. But around the firebox it gets up closer to 150.
When we did a variation on the portable heater for last year's Missoula workshop (the one on Paul's DVD set that's coming out soon), we added extra insulation around this area and heat shielding behind the barrel.


Yours,
Erica

Thank you for the info!

And I love yours!