Hey all,
I hate to tease but I figure it's better than radio silence. I'll try to be clear this
project is fighting for time with my
job and family and a rich life playing in the mud as Uncle Mud, so I suspect everyone will be irritated at its pace including me. The concept is pretty straight forward. We need something that 1. works every time even if it isn't perfect and 2. can be assembled by anyone who can assemble an IKEA dresser. 3. Can be inexpensively sourced from off-the-shelf components. 4. Doesn't have to weigh 3 tons (although it can) and 4. Doesn't depend on
cob (although you can use it).
To that end we have developed a module that in its entirety (including some very effective mass) fits in a barrel
footprint but can be set up several different ways that use more or less mass an more or less radiant surface (see examples). You probably could (and others have) been able to figure out something that works just from my photos and if that's the route you want to go knock yourself out I'll even proudly display your photos and consider them "fan art", this is after all pretty open source material. I want to encourage that tradition while recognizing that the amount of love I can give
RMH is directly in proportion to how well it can help me support my family.
With the exception of five carved firebrick the whole thing is off-the-shelf hardware components so our offering will be kits and instructions that range in completeness from an entire
RMH assembled in two barrels that I ship to you and you plug it into a chimney and fill it with
pea gravel or
cob (under $1000), to a pre-assembled core and riser, down to a just bag of the five specially carved bricks with a three dimensional template and detailed instructions for stacking bricks and other off-the-shelf components around it. We're still working out sourcing and therefore pricing. Whatever you get from us, the product you purchase will include both detailed lists of what is in it and what you need to buy locally to finish it out. I hate surprises like that.
Eric your concern is at the core (ha ha) of what I'm trying to do. Right now we are focused on our Cottage Rocket Meetups (including Paul's
ATC) because they are helping us streamline the manufacturing/assembly process especially in respect to easy DIY assembly. It seems to me that it needs to be really really easy to walk
people through a build in person with all my tools at hand before I can expect success with a product I mail you. If you want to help beta test the instructions lets start cultivating a relationship:
info@unclemud.com. Yes you will be able to get one outside of going to a
workshop, just not yet because good instructions will take time. Yes we will figure out a way to get you one in Canada but I have no idea how soon or how much $.
Paul is mad at me because our test runs so far are more focused on how easy it was to put together and how it works and we never seem to get around to painting the darn thing. He's right. Pretty pictures will come soon, but first things first. I am not a sketchup person but Paul likes things that are pretty. I've included some pictures that aren't pretty, but they are of real Cottage Rockets we have built. Below is my focus and the order in which you will probably see any results.
1. Build one with me. As a a $200 add-on to the
ATC in Montana in July Paul's deal is the best and the product will be more refined then. Plus the ATC is going to be great fun. If you want to build one with me at my place in Ohio I'm doing it about monthly. The next one in Ohio is March 16-17. The workshop is $300. Parts (if you don't bring your own based on a parts list I provide you) are $300. You will take home a functional
rocket mass heater. A prototype heats my doublewide in Cleveland for less than $100 per year. Other Cottage Rockets have been installed in Montana, Denver,
Portland OR, Columbus OH and Cleveland OH (6 in Cleveland now). Email me at
info@unclemud.com if you want to come.
2. A ship-able
Rocket Mass Heater. These are actually easiest to produce because proper DIY instructions take time. These will come in Short or Tall (1 barrel or 2), and Full Mass (Cottage) or Hollow Quick Radiator (Workshop) configurations.
3. A ship-able core (burn chamber and heat riser), preassembled around a 3d burn-out template, ready for you to put in whatever enclosure you desire to build your custom RMH your way.
4. A DIY core kit consisting of the 5 special carved bricks, a 3d burn-out template, Ceramic Wool Riser Parts, and complete instructions to build your own Cottage Rocket from off-the-shelf hardware store components.
5. A ship-able IKEA type kit, preassembled and packed in a cut barrel, with instructions, ready for you to assemble and fill.
6. An 8" model, a Mobert-style
Water Heater, an
Oven, a batch-box-in-a-barrel, and all sorts of fun. These will take a while because see above.
Feel
free to throw out any questions. I will get to them as I can. You might find a lot of "I don't know yet" responses because its still early days on manufacturing as opposed to one-off production/development of this line which we've been doing since 2013.
--Mud (aka Chris McClellan)