Splitting and Seasoning Oak

[Stere]

Theres some similar ones for sale in UK & USA mostly called masonary stoves  but they tend to be  expensive versus iron stoves from looking on the websites.

 

Some are ceramic tiled some are just plain fire brick.

 

 

 

I think its a very good design concept could be a DIY kit with  firebricks & plans etc for a more  basic one.

 

 

Masonry heater - Wikipedia

EN.WIKIPEDIA.ORG

 

 

 Good article on them:

 

Sunbathing in the Living Room: Oven Stoves and Heat Walls

SOLAR.LOWTECHMAGAZINE.COM

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Oven stoves are greener, more efficient, healthier, safer and cosier than all modern heating systems. Why are they gone...

 

 

EDIT:

 

I  don't understand  why there  saying masonary stoves produce mainly raidiant  head and iron ones convective heat though.....

 

Not sure that parts right?

Edited January 15, 2024 by Stere

[openspaceman]

1 hour ago, Dan Maynard said:

I think I've heard of them as Scandinavian stoves, don't know where they started but makes sense the idea should spread around if they work so well.

Have a search on masonry stoves which are becoming popular in north  America and Canada. Same principle in that you load them with dry wood  and burn fast and clean but without the ceramic tiles. The flue takes a torturous path through the substantial brickwork which allows the bricks to absorb all the heat and then deliver it into the room over several hours, and at end of burn the air inlet is sealed so air cannot carry the heat out of the chimney.

 

Soapstone is also used instead of tiles as you get into asia as this can stand the heat without cracking.

[dan blocker]

Have come across lots of ceramic tiled stoves in the Alps (Austrian, French, Italian, Swiss) whilst skiing. They come in various forms from what Gabriel shows here to some as big as a Mini car. They’re used as a heat source in bars and cafes a lot and give out a lot of heat and act like a thermal store at the same time. Your able to touch the hot tiles without being burnt and are useful for drying/ warming your jackets and gloves🤔

[Squaredy]

4 hours ago, Gabriel82 said:

@Squaredy ceramic tile stove is an old technology, swedes and russians used them for centuries(I think...). These stoves are simple,are made only of ceramics(the square plates you see outside) and 230x60x32 mm "bricks" wich will be fitted INSIDE the ceramic square plates you see outside, mud+sand ,some steel wires to hold it all together and no need for power(electricity) to run them. They do need good draught,so a good chimney. Never measured or wheighed the wood that is burned on one fire. But a 3-4 hour burn time from cold ,will keep the whole stove hot to warm for the next 10-12 hours. I opted for a blocking plate inbetween the actual stove and chimney. On windy days the draught can be regulated and when all burning is done and the stove is hot enough for the "user's liking" ,the plate can be closed to block all natural draught.wich is always present. A very important condition and test of the stove: it must have a draught always, regardless summer or winter! You get to the good chimney part, tall enough, big enough on the inside diameter, etc... 

I have friends with Wiessman gasification units that can burn anything ,inverted flame, etc... One paid about 7500 Euros just for the unit+fitting,etc... And when we load it up with dry wood and wood briquettes plus some bituminous briquettes from Ukraine(the GOOD STUFF,tried them myself) got it going ,temperature was up at 65-70 Celcius, everything seemed ok ,we went for a coffee, not far from his house. On return the damn thing extinguished itself ,whole neighbourhood smelled like coal... Smelled it from the car...

And it has double wall 316 stainless steel chimney that cost him a lot of cash again... Never figured out what happened then ,or next weeks... Nothing is defective as tehnicians confirmed but fire goes out once in a while(not always) regardless of fuel used... 

Needles to say I wouldn't wake up in the middle of night to relight the 10000 euros stove... 

He installed another central heating unit on natural gas since his house is too big and he "kind of" forgot about the Wiessman "episode"... 

Compare that to a ceramic tile stove that lasts decades built from new, burns almost anything ,doesn't need electricity fans or pumps and when it's broken you can rebuild it with just refractory bricks ,ceramic tiles some mud+sand... 🙄 Shocking to even think about it 😂 

And it stays hot all night ,or at least 10-12 hours. Plus it's a constant not too high "heat" when burning just dry hard wood. 

On my tests it will get a lot hotter on coal briquettes, wood briquettes or straight bituminous coal(no anthracite around to test it).

My opinion a ceramic tile stove is the best heating option if you don't have 500 square meter house or bigger. Even then, I still would live "small " in cold period, who needs 10-15 rooms 4 bathrooms, gigantic living,etc...

Found this video when I burned only hornbeam and birch. Got blue flame in the end from the remaining coals 😁 

That's why I'm curios how oak will perform in the stove when bone dry . 

Maybe I'll add some coal in there too just for fun

 

Fascinating, thank you.  Great video by the way.

[Stere]

 

 

I thought   all stoves,  so the metal stoves also would riadiate heat from a hot surface but just not store the heat for hrs after fire gone out, so only when lit...

 

So its actually  is the large thermal mass volume or/plus he larger stove  surface area volume the produces the extra riadiant heat of a ceramic stove versus a metal one?

[Steven P]

Storage heater but with fire as the heat source and not electric element.

[Rob_the_Sparky]

If you had to get up to fuel your cast iron stove over night then I see the preference for this sort of stove.  Seems like a really good solution but oddly one that I have never heard o before in the UK.  Maybe it is all the regulations here, if every stove is build individually then how can their design be regulated.  That sort of slow release of heat just makes sense if you are heating a house with wood alone.

[Muddy42]

I think all wood is easier to split when fresh. Some types of wood take longer to dry than others, oak being one of them, but don't think of that as a negative.  Oak is a hard strong wood with lots of stored energy hence why it holds onto water longer. Its a trade off.  If you want quick drying, cut birch or softwood but it will have less stored energy.

[openspaceman]

8 hours ago, Rob_the_Sparky said:

If you had to get up to fuel your cast iron stove over night then I see the preference for this sort of stove.  Seems like a really good solution but oddly one that I have never heard o before in the UK.  Maybe it is all the regulations here, if every stove is build individually then how can their design be regulated.  That sort of slow release of heat just makes sense if you are heating a house with wood alone.

 

American homes tend to be much bigger than UK and the masonry stove is built in to a central position, we couldn't afford the loss of space. Old houses, like mine do have substantial brick chimney breasts.

 

I have said a number of times about my cement lined chimney retaining heat which keeps the two reception rooms above 18C even with the fire not being kept in between 23:00 and 07:30. It also keeps the bedroom above warm (as well as the loft).

 

 

Picture of the chimney in the above bedroom with the solid uninsulated wall to the far left and outside temperature -3C.

 

 

[sime42]

On 14/01/2024 at 12:51, Gabriel82 said:

@sime42 I've talked with the guy who works in forest and is responsable/decides things in a big forest area up in the "hilly"/mountain area. Will have those oak logs in february,if weather is good of course. No more soaking wet for me . The offer is around 500 euros(2500 RON) for a 4 cubic meter truck. Small load. Usually the wealthier people buy a trailer truck 30-40 cubic meters. But those ones also have big 500-600 square meters villas. So heating for them means either quality hard wood logs or bituminous coal,maybe with some wood briquettes too... Never understood the "attraction" of big houses or expensive cars! But I wouldn't say NO to a 7-10 days vacation at Vama Veche Black Sea or even Greece islands! Man has to relax too ,not just work like a slave from dusk till dawn until we die off at 70-80 years old. Although I know people that stood on their feet and worked from 4 AM to nightfall untill they the day they died at 85 years old... 

I burn this wood in ceramic tile stoves, traditional around here in Romania. Cheap to build too if you ever should need one. About 400-500 euros the cost of work if you find a good experienced builder(they are hard to find lately, too old or allready died...) plus the materials cost(another 500 euros or at most 1000 euros if the stove is big and with fancy with granit parts). I like them hot and working, don't care  much about fancy rocks 🙄😁 

As for Makita EA6100P ,I think I bought the last one in the country... It was that hard to find... Makita no longer makes gasoline chainsaws for about 2 years now... Was so mad about it that I was almost about to get a XP395... But same guy that sells me the wood logs told me to calm down ,that chainsaw is for forestry professional experienced men. Not hobby. I might hurt myself or cut my legs off. I agree with him now 😁 I did butchered some trees anyway with this Makita  anyway. In summer hot weather it exhausted me but I was a bit too dark dressed for 38 degrees celcius...  And I cut all day in direct sunlight... was helping a friend with his firewood, he is working too much all the time and didn't had the time for this,not even saturday or sunday... this is how things are around here: work nonstop just to stay alive  🙄 

 

I know those ceramic stoves that you mentioned, they're nice. I spent a fair bit of time in Romania a few years ago, Transylvania. I always admired them, some are really ornate, and they seem to be very efficient - kick out a lot of heat from not much wood fuel.