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Rocket stove with central heating

 
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Hi Folks,

I'm currently using a Oil Agas with central heating in my house (200 years old stone house, 2 floors in Ireland, ~100sqm).
I've already have a standard wood stove in one room, it's just good enough to heat the room.

I'd like to replace this wood stove with a rocket stove + mass heater and "plug" it to my central heating.

I know fire + water is dangerous, I also know you can have a wood stove + back boiler for central heating, it seems to work even if it doesn't seem to heat up as good as oil ...

So I am wondering, did anyone did what I am trying to do? Is it efficient?

Thanks a mill,
Julien
 
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Location: Upstate NY, zone 5
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Does your central heating use circulating water? How close is the stove location to the current central heater?

The standard method for heating water with a rocket mass heater is to heat an open (freely vented) container of water, with coils of pressurized circulating water inside it. Since pressurized water has a slightly higher boiling point than atmospheric water, even if the tank boils, the piping will not. You would have a float valve makeup arrangement to ensure that the open tank does not run dry.
 
Julien Vailles
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Thanks Glenn for jumping in!

I'm not 100% sure but I would say it does because if I use my Agas oil, it also heat up the hot water in the rest of the house and there is a pump near the Agas downstair that send the water up stair. I'll take a closer look at how exactly the Agas is setup. I'll confirm later.

The stove is opposite the Agas behind a large thick stone wall, I think I should be able to access the pipes.

If my understanding is correct, I have to extend the pipe heating up by the Agas to a coil that will go through a vented container of water.
I understand pressurized water doesn't have the same boiling point. Sill, is there any risk of having the water's pipe boiling or it is physically impossible?

Cheers,
Julien
 
Glenn Herbert
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The risk of a properly set up coil boiling is very small, but it should have a pressure relief valve close by just in case. For instance, a malfunctioning float valve could let the tank run dry, and have several hundred degree (F) (100++ C) metal walls radiating at the coil, which if not circulating could easily boil.
 
Julien Vailles
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Thanks Glenn!

OK the pressure valve makes sense, I'll look into this.
I get it, I can't let the container of water going dry.

Overall it's the same than the one in the links below for shower, same concept. It does not seem to be made for the house's inside vs a traditional rocket stove with mass heater. So I should probably should have one rocket stove dedicated to heat up the water outdoor and one inside.

Here are the links
https://www.permaculturenews.org/2013/05/20/how-to-build-a-rocket-stove-mass-water-heater/
https://www.permaculturenews.org/2012/11/23/rocket-stove-hot-water/

Thanks,
Julien
 
Can't .... do .... plaid .... So I did this tiny ad instead:
Heat your home with the twigs that naturally fall of the trees in your yard
http://woodheat.net
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