Outside Wood Stoves: Safer Heating Solutions

Outside wood stoves have made a comeback as preferred heating solutions and they are going to stay here for a long time. The reason being, they are safer, less expensive, and more ecofriendly than several other heating systems. Outdoor wood stoves are available in a large number of pre-fabricated kits and assembled stoves for different applications.

Working of Outside Wood Stoves

The working of outside wood burning stoves is very simple to understand. First, the wood fire of the stove heats the water. This heated water is then pumped into the house through underground pipes. Internal heating system of the house uses this hot water to heat the home. Outdoor wood stoves can be used with most home heating systems. Whether it is a forced air furnace heating system or a radiant floor heating system, a radiant baseboard system or any other type of heating system, outside wood burning stoves are compatible with most home heating systems. Control of the inside temperature is done by a thermostat.

Safer Heating with Outside Wood Stoves

Any wood stove, whether they are inside wood stoves or outside wood stoves, are safer than other heating systems that use gas as fuel. With the appliances that use gas, you have to be careful that nobody leaves the gas on and makes you breath harmful fumes. On the contrary, outside wood stoves keep you safe from the risk of igniting the gas in the air and starting a fire. You can expel out the unwanted smoke with the help of a pipe that goes either through the ceiling or through wall. Indoor wood stoves have a remote possibility of fire accidents because of incorrect handling of the stove. However, the outside wood stoves eliminate the possibility of an indoor fire. They are safer and cannot cause any fire, because of their total separation from the elements, and their self-contained design.

If you want to heat your home efficiently, and economically as well, there is no other better option than the outdoor wood stoves. These stoves are most common in rural areas. Wood is less expensive than any other fuel. These stoves use renewable energy and are cost effective than other heating systems. Even the upfront cost of outdoor wood stoves is lower than the heating systems based on coal, gas or electricity.

Outside Wood Stoves are environment-friendly heating systems. Environment experts recommend that if it is possible to use wood as fuel in heating systems, then no other fuel should be used. Wood is a renewable resource, while it is not the case with coal and gasoline. Furthermore, experts are of the opinion that the greenhouse effect, that causes global warming, is the result of large and unnatural amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Wood fire saves us from this dangerous pollution because it does not produce large amount of carbon dioxide.

Selection of outdoor wood stove depends on your house exteriors and the proposed usage. The landscape and space available are major factors that determine the selection of outdoor heating stoves. You should carry photographs of your outdoor space to show the retailer and take their help for selecting the right outside wood stoves for your home. Never hesitate in asking about waterproofing and long-term warranties when selecting your outside stove.

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Facts about Solar Energy

Do you know the facts about solar energy? Many people think that solar heating, solar cooking, and solar energy in general are all topics for future generations, space age ideas whose time has not yet come. Yet the facts about solar energy are nothing like that. Solar heating and cooking have been around for hundreds of years. Passive solar has been used for decades effectively and cheaply.

Even high tech solar applications are becoming more common and more affordable with each passing day.

Here are some important facts about solar energy you might not know:

In one hour, more sunlight falls on planet Earth than is used by the entire population for an entire year.

Solar cookers have been available for decades, work great, use no electricity, and can be purchased in basic forms for less than $20 each.

A one kilowatt solar energy system prevents 150 pounds of coal from being mined and 300 pounds of CO2 from entering the atmosphere.

The average U.S. household spends 25% of its energy costs on heating water and 50% on heat and air-conditioning.

A solar water heater can save up to 85% off the cost of heating water electrically.

Solar energy comes in both passive and active forms. Passive solar energy stores the natural heat of sunlight in natural heat-retaining materials like stone. Active solar energy makes use of photovoltaic panels and batteries for generating and storing electricity.

In some areas, electricity generated by solar photovoltaic panels can be sold back to the public electrical utility, reducing or eliminating a monthly household electric bill, and in some cases resulting in a monthly payment from the utility.

Anyone can make use of passive solar by using heat-retaining materials in walls (such as trombe walls) floors (stone, etc.) or thermal windows that let heat in but don’t let it back out.

Solar space heaters can be constructed at home for under $100 out of pop cans and simple construction materials.

You may be eligible for federal tax rebates for any residential solar energy installations you complete in 2009 or 2010. In some states, government-backed financing is also available.

New facts about solar energy are emerging every day, keeping solar energy in the news and at the forefront of green energy discussions. One of the most exciting facts about solar energy is that it has the potential to single-handedly meet all of earth’s energy needs with a bit of funding for installation and new and better ways of tapping sunlight. Solar energy is a completely renewable resource. It is abundant and readily available, and we use only a very small portion of it on any given day. Learn the facts about solar energy and see if you can’t make some small application to your own situation. Once you get started, you’re sure to become an advocate. Who doesn’t love the sun?

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How It Works: Outdoor Wood Furnace

An outdoor wood furnace can ensure your home stays toasty warm even during the coldest winter nights, but many would-be furnace owners find themselves confused to how the system works. Instead of not using and outdoor wood furnace to lower your energy bills, help the environment and heat your home, look at this great system as a viable option when it comes to heating your home. An outdoor wood furnace can quickly pay for itself many times over and keep your home a great deal warmer than other, traditional forms of heating, including electricity, liquefied petroleum gas (commonly known as LP gas) and natural gas.

In addition to heating your home, an outdoor wood furnace can also heat your water so that you can retire that energy and money sucking hot water heater and enjoy hot water without the cost. Just like a traditional hot water heater, you can set a thermostat on your outdoor wood furnace to keep your water at an exact temperature that is safe for you and your family. If you have a recreational body of water to heat, such as a spa, hot tub or pool, your wood furnace can heat the water quickly and easily. Adding a hot tub or spa to your home can be quite expensive after the fact, once your energy bill arrives and you see exactly how much it costs to heat water to the proper level to ensure bacteria, molds and fungi are killed. Instead, use your outdoor furnace to heat your new toy without costing you an arm and a leg.

An outdoor wood furnace sits up to 500 feet from your home or any other building that you intend to heat, allowing you to move the noise away from your home. Most furnaces that are located outdoors pump heated air to the structure that is to be heated via underground pipes. These pipes are insulated so that the air being pumped to the structure stays hot. Once the air enters the structure, it travels through traditional heating systems, including a radiant baseboard, a forced air furnace or a radiant floor system to heat the building. In addition to heating your home, this furnace can also heat outbuildings, so that your greenhouse, storage shed, garage, pool house, boat house, guest house, barn or workshop is toasty throughout the winter season.

By burning wood, you avoid consuming fuels that are dwindling in the environment. Fuels like natural gas, LP gas, coal, and kerosene are limited and cannot supply the planet forever. By using wood, a renewable resource for your heating needs, you work to help the environment instead of hurting it. Furthermore, burning wood does not produce any excess carbon dioxide, which is produced when fossil fuels are burned and attributed to causing the greenhouse effect, where hot air is trapped on the earths surface, slowly raising the environmental temperature and melting polar ice caps. Finally, burning wood helps forests and serves as a pruning effect on overgrowths so that trees can expand and grow to their full size.

Just like a traditional furnace, those that burn wood feature a standard thermostat that allows you to control the temperature inside your home easily. Once the thermostat is lowered, the furnace is told to stop adding wood in order to lower the temperature. Conversely, once the thermostat is raised, the furnace will add more wood to the fire in order to increase the temperature. Although the furnace uses wood, the constant attention required for wood burning fireplaces is nonexistent, since the outdoor wood furnace is capable of both controlling temperature and adding more wood on its own.

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Efficient Alternative Heating Solutions for Your House

The rising cost of heating their homes has led many to pursue alternative heating solutions. In fact, many are using alternative energy for all of their home’s energy needs and it’s saving them a lot of money. Alternative energy is also ideal because it is clean and environmentally friendly.

There are several alternative heating solutions available. Any one of them might be the answer that you’ve been looking for when it comes to inexpensively and efficiently keeping your home cozy all year long.

While some solutions to heating your home are relatively new and high-tech, there are some antiquated ways of heating that have become revamped and modernized for today’s homeowner. Just one of these alternative heating systems includes burning wood to keep your home comfortable. Now before you go get the idea to purchase an old-fashioned wood burner or install a fireplace in your home, you should know that today’s wood furnaces can be situated outdoors and pump heat into your home using your existing duct work. In addition to burning whole logs, you can also burn other types of energy in these furnaces such as coal or wood pellets.

Although not new, solar energy is just now gaining increased attention from homeowners looking for alternative heating solutions. Solar heating systems capture energy from the sun’s rays using solar panels and converts it into energy that can be used to not only heat your home but to perform all other energy functions as well. With solar energy, you can either choose to supplement solar power with your current energy choice or to convert your home to operate off of solar power completely.

A floor or hydronic heating system is also a great way to cut energy costs. This alternative heating solution uses a series of pipes that is laid underneath your home’s flooring. Warm water is circulated through these pipes to provide a radiant heat that warms your home from the ground up. Similarly a geothermal system heats your home by pumping warm water throughout a series of pipes or radiators installed in your home. What’s unique with a geothermal system, though, is that the energy to warm the water is extracted directly from the ground. You see, once you reach a certain depth, the ground stays a constant temperature of about 70 degrees. A geothermal system taps into this natural heat and uses it to heat your home. It can also be used to cool your home during the warm summer months.

Other alternative heating solutions include burning natural, renewable fuels that you may not have thought of. Fuels like corn, grain and rye burn very efficiently and create a great deal of heat for your home. And, unlike wood, these fuels can be grown right on your property and renewed every year. While wood is a renewable resource it is not as easily and quickly replaced as these other alternative fuels which is what will no doubt make these the alternative energy choice of the future.

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Corn Furnace as Alternative Heating for Your Home

Changing your old furnace for a corn furnace may prevent you from spending your salary on your heating this year. A corn furnace is economical and clean, not creating creosote or any other chemical that can create cleaning nightmares. Additionally, a furnace that burns corn can warm a house efficiently and effectively, ensuring that you and your loved ones are kept out of the reach of Old Man Winter. This winter, make the switch to corn your family and your bank account will thank you in the end.

A corn furnace is fueled by just that, shelled and dried corn. Unlike natural gas, corn is a renewable resource that can be grown again and again each growing season. In addition to being environmentally friendly and ensuring the next generations of individuals are able to enjoy Earth, corn is quite economical and is easily purchased and stored. Instead of having to chop down trees, split logs, stack wood and keep tinder dry, have a bag of corn delivered directly to your doorstep. Whereas cut wood can bring bugs, mold and other nasty pests into your home, corn is free from pests and will not potentially infest your home with harmful creatures. Coal is far too dirty for storing and can make a mess in any home. Corn on the other hand is clean and odorless, so if a few kernels are spilled on your floor, the cleanup is a breeze!

Burning corn as an energy resource may be a bit unique, but it has been proven to be quite effective. The corn that is used is shelled from the cob and generally dried. This corn is usually grown as animal feed, but found unacceptable (usually because the kernels are scorched or too small). Once the corn has been turned down by the feed processors, it is then sold cheaply for fuel. Corn burns with an incredibly high efficiency, rivaling the higher priced sawdust based pellets that are a rival on the market for alternative energy resources.

A corn furnace also has a feature that automatically controls the amount of corn added to the fire in order to keep the temperature at the set level. This way, you do not have to worry with the hassle of shoveling the corn into the furnace and can sit back and let the furnace do all the work for you.

In today’s world, most of our energy is derived from international sources. Our natural gas and oil comes from all over the world, allowing another country to control our access and costs. Instead of becoming more and more dependent on foreign supplies for our energy, consider using an energy source that can be grown locally without worrying about trade conditions with other countries.

Converting your current furnace to a corn furnace is simple and easy. There are several quality manufacturers that make furnaces that burn shelled corn, simply choose one that best fits your budget and needs and hook the unit directly to the forced-air duct system or the hot water system already existing in your home. This is a simple procedure that requires little set up time. In fact, the system can be controlled with a traditional wall mounted thermostat just like any heat-based or natural gas furnace.

Midwesterners have been using corn furnaces for many years to keep their home and families warm through those notorious Midwest winters. Today, corn is quickly catching on as high heating prices are driving residents of the entire country to find a more suitable source of heating. Regardless if your winter lasts a few weeks or several months, a corn furnace in your home is sure to keep you and your family snug until the spring thaw.

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