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Post by aoakley on Nov 10, 2013 18:55:47 GMT -8
I've finally had time to build my first RMH. I kinda cheated by purchasing a 4" castle kit from Dragon Heaters, but they still leave a lot for the home builder to figure out. I chose to use brick for the outer layer on the bell since I had lots of brick laying around, and the 16x16 flue liners are quite expensive and special order around here. I also chose to use a steel plate for the cap on the heat riser to allow some instant heat and a place to heat water. The bell cap is a chunk of soapstone I found at a local marble dealer. I know have to sit on my hands while the flue liner mortar sets for a couple of days, despite my desire to light 'er up! I haven't decided yet how or if I'll "skin" the exposed flue liners. We'll see how the heater performs before I make any decisions.   This picture shows context of my environment. I'm standing as far away from the RMH as I can; the space is only 250 square feet. ~Aaron |
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Post by satamax on Nov 10, 2013 23:28:00 GMT -8
Aaron, i would leave them like this. May be use some kind of oil to protect the clay, or may be wax. Carefull, it will evaporate somewhat, so, use something which doesn't smell.
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Post by Robert on Nov 12, 2013 15:18:36 GMT -8
nice job mate.
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Post by aoakley on Nov 16, 2013 13:10:09 GMT -8
Thank you satamax and Robert. Satamax, I agree on not skinning the rest of the heater. The rustic look certainly fits with everything else in my cabin!
Due to an insulation mix-up I wasn't able to have my first burn until last night. I burned for about 3 hrs, but let it burn to coals before stoking. There were a total of about 3.5 full loads of wood. Draft is strong, even before any heat was applied; I had a bit of trouble getting the fire started as the draft would blow out the matches and newspaper wad before it had a chance to really get going. I did finally get it lit, and observed the following (note all temps are surface temps obtained with an IR sensor since I do not have any internal probes):
Similar to Sandy's 4" castle, it took about an hour to see a temp increase on the surface of the bell. Highest bell temps occur at 4' level, where the gases are moving from heat riser to bell (top of bell is at 6'). Maxed out at about 120 deg F there. Steel plate on top of heat riser column maxed at about 400 deg F. Flue pipe maxed at about 105 deg F at the end of the burn. There was a lot of condensation (unfortunately I had a leak at my ash clean out panel). I had a bit of smoke coming into the room during the first load of fuel. There were also times when the fire would climb up to near the top of the feed tube. I think this may have been due to my force-feeding the dragon (shaking and moving down the fuel constantly, rather than just letting it burn and shake only if wood doesn't drop on its own).
This morning I burned two full loads of fuel, waiting for the first load to burn to coals before adding the second load. Patience in letting the fuel burn without my input helped a lot with the smoke-back and fire climbing up the fuel. Temps were generally higher everywhere. The steel plate came up to 500 deg F, the bell surface at 4' topped out at 135 deg F, and the flue maxed at 115 deg F. There seemed to be significantly less smoke in the room, and less condensation. I did find additional leaks around the flue transition cover, and have since closed them up. I have not burned yet since making that repair.
All-in-all, the heater seems to be working well. My wife and I were too hot last night, but I've been able to keep a much more comfortable temp throughout the day today. Hopefully I won't over-stoke the fire tonight!
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Post by 2tranceform on Nov 22, 2013 8:36:15 GMT -8
The Dragon Heater looks really good in your space. I bet the heat feels wonderful as well. By the way, I enjoyed the view through your window as well. Reminds me of my days in the Rockies.
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Post by aoakley on Nov 23, 2013 9:28:29 GMT -8
Thanks 2tranceform; yes the heat does feel great, much better than the portable electric baseboard heater we were using. I enjoy the view out that window too, but think the other window (opposite side) is better looking up at Mount Sopris and the Elk Range.
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Post by swampzr2 on Jan 9, 2014 19:40:04 GMT -8
Id like to see more pics of the cabin and the views! Do you live there or just go there to get away?
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Post by swampzr2 on Jan 11, 2014 19:32:34 GMT -8
Can you tell us how the exhaust is plumbed through that dragon castle??? I see the two towers and then the exhaust is coming out the bottom. Can you run the exhaust up and then back down like that and still get a draft?
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Post by Donkey on Jan 12, 2014 11:48:22 GMT -8
swampzr2,
Search this site for bells. It's a game changer!
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Post by swampzr2 on Jan 13, 2014 18:02:36 GMT -8
I found a good article on the dragon heater site that discusses the difference between flues and bells. Since they are using clay flue pipe and probably cutting a hole in the side for the gasses to enter the bell.... do you need a divider in the bell so the hot air isn't just sucked out the side flue pipe? I'm still trying to visualize how the bell works in this castle build.
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hpmer
Full Member
Posts: 240
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Post by hpmer on Jan 18, 2014 7:33:06 GMT -8
The heated gas enters the bell at a higher level than it exits. No divider is necessary.
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