Steve Day wrote:Is there any reason not to run single wall pipe up through a 30 or 55 gallon drum with no insulation to use as a heat exchanger and take heated air radiated off single wall and blow into rooms via ducts? Situation is alcove on outside wall up to the second floor. Have existing stove on first floor with tripple wall insulated pipe directly on stove to the roof. Not pleased with stove or setup. House is not built to put stove in center of house. Not interested in a rocket stove horizontal but may consider vertical if possible. Thinking of going to a barrel stove running the pipe straight up inside the barrel like people do with a brick chimney. Maybe adding a second stove on second floor. Not concerned about insurance as I can't get it anyway for the time being if ever. Codes are not a issue. But willing to abide as much as can.
If you have a triple wall pipe installed, you will want to keep it, especially on an outside wall. To replace it with single wall pipe (not even taking into the consideration of the 55 gallon drum idea) would mean the single wall pipe would lose a lot of heat as it
rose. The cooled pipe would then dramatically reduce draft causing backdrafting, smoke in the house, and just plain poor performance of the stove. It would also cause severe creosote build up because the smoke is not being heated high
enough to safely burn it off. This could lead to chimney fires if constant chimney cleaning was not employed.
Now I am frugal, I have put many stoves in with single wall pipe, last year being one such year. But everything I just wrote I experienced. I was able to keep my home heated, but I also had to brush my chimney every other week too. The key is, I did not want to spend a ton of money on triple wall stove pipe. But for all the reasons cited, I think it would be absolutely crazy to go from triple wall pipe to single wall pipe as you are going to introduce yourself to a whole host of proplems you have never had before.
Now I am not one to say something
should not be done and not point out a better way.
Though maybe unsightly, I would think placing a sheet metal hood over the stove by the ceiling, then choking it down to a duct, and using a duct fan, you could deliver heat rising off the effeciently burning stove, and send it to the areas you want heat much more effeciently then sucking the heat out of the stovepipe that would reduce draft. Supply Center has powered duct fans for insanely cheap prices.
