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solid fuel heaters

26K views 24 replies 15 participants last post by  Valiente 
#1 ·
I''m considering installing a solid fuel heater on my boat. What are some of the makers? And what are the benefits and drawbacks as opposed to diesel. Thanks.
 
#2 ·
The ''makers'' are few because solid fuel heating stoves are so antiquated that almost no one considers placing them on their boats these days. Cole used to make a variety of these things; you might Google them.

On a per-BTU basis, solid fuels take w-a-y more space than e.g. kerosene. They are also far dirtier and require periodic clean-up and disposal of ash. Also, the heaters I saw tended to have a large flue, which means a good updraft is difficult to obtain without a lot of heat being generated...but which was probably there due to the potential for a large fire that needed to be accommodated. Getting a fire to draw initially may therefore be an issue, especially with a wind across the deck that might generate a downdraft without the right kind of charlie noble.

You might sniff around the BB''s at http://www.nwboating.net and see if their ''heating aboard'' threads offer you some possible mfgrs./vendors.

Jack
 
#6 ·
Having just finished reading "At The Mercy Of The Sea" about the first female non-stop circumnavigation aboard the Spirit of Birmingham.... I am left feeling iffy about the 1995 era vintage of forced air deisel heaters. (read the book). Otherwise, I have no experience of them. I live in Australia, it never gets cold here. Not ever.

:)
 
#7 ·
We live and sail in Alaska where some might say it never gets warm. Not ever:) Over the years we''ve had a variety of heaters. The latest generation Espars are great. They are far more reliable than older ones. We have an Airtronic 4. It heats a well insulated 41'' boat easily at temperatures below freezing. It only draws .6 amps on low and 1.1 on medium. We have it setup to bring in 100% outside air (no recirc) and have woken up at below 0C temp''s to find no condendsation in the boat anywhere.

Downsides are initial expense, and they can be a maintenance issue. We''ve learned that European heaters like Espar despise American diesel fuel. They run on it but it is not as refined as European diesel so the soot and sulfer plug them up. We have two fuel tanks with the Espar drawing off the forward one. We put kerosene in that one except when fueling for a long trip. Costs more but it only burns .25 l/hour on medium so no big deal. Like most gear, good installation is key. Get proper fuel line routing, pump placement, low backpressure on the ducting etc. and you''ll like it.
 
#8 ·
Seagypsywoman, over the years, looking at older boats, I came across many that had wood burning or coal burning stoves. While it is not common today it sure was in the past, that is all they had to heat and cook with. I''ve been aboard several modern boats in the past two years that had woodburning heating stoves and even a boat that had a woodburning cook stove. This sailboat was only 32''. Yes, the stove took up a goodly amount of space but it was what the sailors wanted. There is sailboat in the marina where my boat is slipped and they have a woodburning heating stove. It is lovely on a cold winter day to smell the wood burning. I have heated my homes exclusively with wood in the past, something that most home owners would not do. I loved the cuting, stacking, chopping kindling and the smell of the fire. I am refitting our 34'' sailboat as we speak and plan to install a woodburning stove for heat. I bought mine on ebay. I also bought the charley noble, and the adapter where the flu pipe exits the cabin top. You can find any number of small used woodburning stoves for sale that you could adapt to any vessel. You must install a charley noble but that is not a problem. You also need an adapter where your flu pipe exits the cabin top and you must take care to keep your stove and flu pipe a safe distance from your bulkhead and use a good fireproofing system to ensure your safety. As you continue to explore possiblilites you will find many others who are likeminded and don''t pay a lot of attention to the naysayers. If I can help more than this little piece of encourgement let me know. Peter
 
#10 ·
We don''t directly put heat into the bilge but have not seen a condensation problem. We have a waterstop in our keel stepped mast and the bilges are dusty. Which is a good thing as our shallow bodied boat has minimal bilges under the floorboards. We have ducts delivering heat to key places like the head and wet locker. One duct runs to the forecabin under the settee. A locker or area where a duct runs through stays warm and dry. You can poke a small hole in a duct to dribble a little more heat in that area if needed. If you run a duct forward in the bilge it will throw off enough spill heat to keep things dry.

We drain our tanks, hot water heater and lines each fall as we don''t trust everything to stay warm when off the boat. We haul water in a jug that has a spigot and basically treat it like camping. We''ll heat dishwater on the stove. The harbor drains the water system but keep one line running continuously up at the ramp. Some liveaboards will move their boat by the ramp and run a hose to their tanks in good weather.

A comment on solid fuel or wick type diesel heaters. They have their charms but we got tired of cleaning tiny soot marks off the deck. We also got fumigated periodically when a gust would backdraft and fill the boat with smoke. We tried several different charlie nobles. A 3'' extension helps but the best strategy was put it out when it starts blowing hard.
 
#12 ·
The recommendations on the espar site are crude at best. They give a length range but don''t even discriminate bewteen sail and power. We have a 41'' finnish built sailboat of moderate beam and freeboard, and thoroughly insulated from the factory. They even put a little coring in the cabin top sides, not just the horizontal surfaces, for condensation control. I expect we need no more heat, probably less, than a typical 30'' powerboat with tall freeboard and big windows. The airtronic four usually cycles between the low and medium settings (3400 and 6800 BTUH) when it is running in the 30''s F. When it gets down into single digits F (say -14 C) it cycles between medium and high (10,200 BTUH). At that point we often supplement with a 1500 watt electric heater. Running on low (750 watts) it kicks off 2350 BTUH (1 watt yields 3.14 BTU) and that keeps the espar on medium. On rare occasional we''ll put the electric on high, but that''s usally just to warm a cold boat after being gone for a while. We have woken up anchored out to find snow on the decks in the fall but spend the winter in a slip with shorepower.

Manufacturers play it safe. An oversized heater means no complaints that their equipment doesn''t put out enough heat. The downside to the user is higher first cost, a LOT more electrical consumption (the D4 uses 1.1 amps to put out 6800 BTUH on medium, the next size up D-5 uses 6.7 amps to put out the ame 6800 BTUH) and more maintenance. The maintenance comes from sooting. We have found heaters that run on low all the time carbon up more.

We sized the Airtronic based on experience with two previous espars and have found it just right. As for what else to keep warm - I highly recommend a bunk companion.
 
#13 ·
Solid fuel boat heaters

Seagypsywoman said:
I''m considering installing a solid fuel heater on my boat. What are some of the makers? And what are the benefits and drawbacks as opposed to diesel. Thanks.
I have just got back from a sailing weekend on a friends 28 foot yacht, he has a solid fuel boat heater made of stainless steel. It has a heat exchanger on both sides of it and ducts hot air to the rest of the boat by a small computor size fan. There is also a small oven on the top which takes a pie or a few jacket potatoes. A small kettle stood on the top all weekend, so we had constant hot water for coffee. All weekend it kept alight with a constant cabin temp of between 21 and 24 degrees. It burned coal brickets and over the whole weekend we probably spent £2-3 in coal. Oh and we got soaked one day and dried out all our gear in a few hours.

His previous yacht had a smaller version which just warmed the main cabin.

I also knew of another 23 foot sailing yacht with a brilliant little solid fuel heater made from a CO2 bottle, which is the carbon dioxide gas dispencer for pubs.

Quite honestly I can't see any negatives except it is not instant heat, it takes about half an hour to get going. There is ash to dispose of which creates dust, but he has a small vaccume cleaner which easily clears the dust. You also need somewhere to keep the solid fuel and a stout leather glove.

The positives on a yacht are no battery drain and constant heat so all round winter sailing. They will also not fit in all boats.

The smell inside the boat is far better than diesel.

Kiffer
 
#14 ·
Solid fuel heat

I've got a Newport 30 II that I live on and a Cole solid fuel heater that works fine. It takes a little while to heat things up but I've not had any problems with it. I always make sure there's no fire and the ash is empty before leaving the boat and I never leave the fire burning during the night when I sleep.

It has a small metal door that slides up and fire screen so the fire is visible that makes for a very cozy cabin.

During the winter there's nothing like sharing with friends a hot chocolate and kahlua during the evening with the fire burning or a cup of coffee in the morning while there's frost on the docks.

Alan
 
#15 · (Edited)
woodburners are great - at times

seagypsiewoman, you've got to check out marinestove.com web site, these foks make some of the coolest solid fuel stoves around! We have an Espar diesel hydronic heater, and a Dickinson Antarctic diesel heater aboard our 41' Out Island (we live in Port Townsned, WA). We gave serious thought to a "wood stove", having lived with one for 14 years in Montana as our only source of heat. If you are planning on living aboard full time in cold climes, a solid fuel stove has some major drawbacks (firewood brings in dirt and bugs, running out of wood occurs during the worst part of the storm - unless you have a lot of wood storage aboard, the stove must be tended constantly or it goes out and the cold comes in, etc...). If however you're looking for a source of occasional dry heat for chilly evenings, a small wood stove is the ultimate traditional heater (get one with a glass front, it's very romantic!).
As for us, we love our Dickinson diesel stove. We use a 2 gallon gravity tank to feed it so it uses no electric power and produces no odor inside while it's running. Our more expensive and complicated Espar will be removed this spring, and we will be installing a small woodstove in our aft cabin (probably a Dickinson). Enjoy!
 
#16 · (Edited)
#17 ·
One thing I'd point out though is that liquid fuels are easier to deal with and often far more cost-effective. Diesel and propane are both going to have far more BTUs for the buck than wood or charcoal. The fuel is also far more compact and easier to store.
 
#18 ·
What a very odd notion. Putting a solid fuel heater on a boat is analogous to installing a wood or coal-fired furnace in the basement of your home - archaic to say the least.

Perhaps we take for granted the practicality, convenience and effciency of our Espar - forced warm air, diesel system. But, when the temperature reaches uncomfortably cool levels on our boat, that bulkhead mounted thermostat, is a wonderful thing.
 
#19 ·
Couple questions for you wood burners out there....I love the idea....however, while sailing how do you keep burning wood from shifting in the heater/stove....also...the amount of wood you need must take up quite a bit of space...how does the heat output per space taken up compare to kerosene?? Personally I use an electric heater. I'm happy with it, however, I have to run the engine or use shore power as it drains quite a bit.
 
#20 ·
sellkiffer said:
I have just got back from a sailing weekend on a friends 28 foot yacht, he has a solid fuel boat heater made of stainless steel. It has a heat exchanger on both sides of it and ducts hot air to the rest of the boat by a small computor size fan. There is also a small oven on the top which takes a pie or a few jacket potatoes. A small kettle stood on the top all weekend, so we had constant hot water for coffee. All weekend it kept alight with a constant cabin temp of between 21 and 24 degrees. It burned coal brickets and over the whole weekend we probably spent £2-3 in coal. Oh and we got soaked one day and dried out all our gear in a few hours.

His previous yacht had a smaller version which just warmed the main cabin.

I also knew of another 23 foot sailing yacht with a brilliant little solid fuel heater made from a CO2 bottle, which is the carbon dioxide gas dispencer for pubs.

Quite honestly I can't see any negatives except it is not instant heat, it takes about half an hour to get going. There is ash to dispose of which creates dust, but he has a small vaccume cleaner which easily clears the dust. You also need somewhere to keep the solid fuel and a stout leather glove.

The positives on a yacht are no battery drain and constant heat so all round winter sailing. They will also not fit in all boats.

The smell inside the boat is far better than diesel.

Kiffer
Kiffer...

I don't see how it can be no-battery drain if it uses a small computer fan to blow air into air ducts... doesn't the fan require electricity, or do you have some new technology that makes fans run without needing electricity???

Solid fuels are lower energy density and higher cost per BTU than liquid fuels. They also can be a storage hazard, and the dust can be an explosion hazard.
 
#21 ·
With all due respect, burning wood or coal aboard ship has been done for hundreds of years. Wood and charcoal stoves are available from reputable makers for even small vessels.

Solid fuel marine stoves and heaters that are designed to burn when the vessel is in motion have an enclosed firebox that contains the burning fuel.

Solid fuel and charcoal have a respectable heating value, and it is at least arguable that a piece of firewood that can be readily grasped and placed in a fireplace is actually less of a fire or explosion hazard than either liquid or gas fuel.

I have no opinion to offer regarding dust explosions, since I have never heard of one in this context.

BTW, most solid fuel heaters and fireplaces dissipate their heat output by natural convection and radiation and, properly located, can certainly operate without the assistance of a fan.

If you like solid fuel heat and can handle the high (?) price of the fuel, there is no rational reason that you ought not have it.
 
#22 ·
I am also an advocate for a forced air central system over any of the bulkhead ones if you are living on the boat. The system does a very nice job of heating multiple areas rather than just a lot of heat in one area. This makes for a much more liveable situation. We installed a Webasto unit that is wonderful.
 
#23 ·
I am new to the whole thought of heat on a boat, as my old boat did not have it, but I only lived on it during the summer a spent winters at my parents house. My last house we had oil heat, but also with a wood stove. Wood if you have a source for it is actually much cheaper, normally free. Here in the North East you can get enough wood delivered, cut and split, for a whole season for around $200. I don't see doing that with diesel . Storage could be an issue for a boat but you should be able to rent a bit of space in the boat yard. I don't really plan on sailing once heating season arrives, as it will be iced up anyway. I was thinking that both an diesel and a solid fuel heater combo makes sense. You can run the wood when you are on board, and have the diesel as an option to keep the boat from freezing while at work.

To me in the day and age of uncertainty about oil prices and availability having options for heating works better for me. But I may just be a bit paranoid. Of course I am planning on making my own bio diesel for the boat in the summer.
 
#24 ·
A fireplace in the boat is a great thing. You don't get to imagine it until you see it and try it. I don't have experience of Alaska winters, but in New England autumn and New Zealand winters, it did work great on our boat. We have a Newport By Dickinson and burn mostly wood in it. Talking about the cost of the fuel, it is not an issue in our case: we burn drifting wood that we never failed to find in abundance along the shores. It is well dry, smells great and heats you for free. The only problem is that it contains salt and tends to leave rust stains in the heater...
Next boat we will stick to a solid heater fuel, but bigger, possibly in cast iron or thick aluminium with radiators for the cabins.
Anyway in case you winterize in a very cold place you will have to stick to a jetty or a marina. Except for Antarctica, but then you can bring coal!
 
#25 ·
If I was a coastal liveaboard, I would definitely have wood and hard coal in preference to diesel, but you've got to have the space and the tolerance for the inevitable cleaning up you'll have to do.

But access to the fuel is usually the deal-breaker here, and as we are heading offshore, it'll have to be diesel, I think.
 
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