D. Smith

I have see examples of the offsetting of the barrel. Nifty idea, but in my build I plan on keeping it traditionally centered just for simplicity because it is going to be my first RMH. To create a buffer from the barrel I was thinking about creating a brick based open barrier to enclose the barrel and also serve as a small thermal battery (Personally I think the plain barrel could use some churching up) about 4 inches away from the walls to catch and hold onto some of that precious radiated heat, and not inhibit the flow of heat to the rest of the room.

Thank you for further clarification Al. This is all helping very much. I am sure there will be many more questions I have for people such as you with the hands on experience and the technical know how.

Now would the additional insulation be the Perlite/clay mixture held in place by formed sheet metal such as stainless steel, to have the ideal spacing for the heat exchange barrel to the exhaust? As an example for a 8" combustion chamber I would need to maintain the 2 inch clearance from the top of the heat riser to the barrel surface and the 1.5 inch side clearance from the insulation barrier to the walls of the barrel? As seen by example on page 23 of the RMH book you referenced in the prior post.

I do indeed have the book that you have referenced and it has helped out tremendously, but at this point in time I have not had a chance to really give building even a mock RMH a go. I would have not skipped on the additional Perlite/clay insulation and used the chimney ceramic just in place of the metal. But if it is going to impede the initial heat it looks like I will not be using ceramic now.

What is the best possible material to use in making the heat riser? I only ask out of pure curiosity, because when I build my own I want to make it out of the best recommended materials at the time of the build. Would a double walled flue for a traditional stove work? I see that there are so many ways that this can go, and I really want to make the most out of the efficiency.

I am kind of new at looking at all the plans online and possible materials that can be used for constructing an efficient and top end RMH, but am interested in the best possible construction when it is time for me to place a RMH in my workshop at home. Instead of using a metal based or brick based riser has anyone experimented with the ceramic chimney liners? The insulation and temperature resistant properties of that material seems to me like it would be a superior material for the feed tube, burn tunnel and the heat riser. The liners are durable and come in square and round applications in both 6" and 8" diameters. Just wondering if it has been tried yet, there have been way too many posts to wander aimlessly through to find an answer, I only have so much time to do my research. Any information would be greatly appreciated.