Prospects for the development of brick stoves and solid fuel boilers. The stove is good, but the boiler is better. What is better: stove or boiler?
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Of course, everyone wants it to not require large material costs and physical effort and to be warm and cozy. And therefore, first of all, you need to carefully consider which heating will be most optimal for your home - a simple stove or boiler. And if it’s a boiler, then what fuel does it use - solid, liquid, electricity or gas?
“There is nothing more reliable than a stove”
Stove on two floors
Ulan-Ude resident Dashima Dugarova lives in a two-story comfortable house on Zelenkhoz. The house measures 7 by 8 meters on two floors, approximately 110 square meters, and is heated by a conventional stove. The sides of the stove open into all rooms of the house. On the ground floor there is a large entrance hall, where the stove itself is located, a kitchen combined with a living room, a bathroom and a toilet. By the way, they are heated with electricity (warm floors - Note “OB”). On the second floor there are two large, bright bedrooms and a small hall.
When my husband and I were thinking about what kind of heating to choose, we decided that nothing had yet been invented more reliable and cheaper than a simple stove,” says the owner of the house.
They believe that in any unforeseen situations: there is no light, electricity, gas or liquid fuel prices rise, etc., the stove will never let them down. After all, we don’t have any problems with firewood in Buryatia yet.
In the most severe cold, they heat the fire twice a day: one firebox in the morning and one in the evening. The house is reliably insulated on the outside and finished with metal siding.
Over the winter, the owners burn one and a half to two cars of firewood.
"Zakamenskaya" stove
Ulan-Ude residents Svetlana and Alexey Dorzhiev also maintain their position in favor of the stove. They, unlike Darima, are just building their house.
When we were faced with the problem of choosing heating, we, after consulting with our loved ones, chose the stove,” says Alexey. “We cannot afford to build a boiler house with an expensive boiler, buy components for it, and these include pipes, radiators, an expansion tank, etc.
At first, as they say, they wanted to install steam heating from the stove. Since the house is large, with an extension it is 11 by 14 meters. But then my friends advised me to completely abandon pipes and radiators throughout the house, and install an unusual stove, which they nicknamed “Zakamenskaya”, since the stove maker is from Zakamna. It differs from a simple oven in its size. It is only 25 - 30 centimeters wide, and three meters long, and it replaces the entire main wall. The stove will heat the hallway, kitchen, living room and in one corner a large dressing room. There is no heating in two bedrooms.
The bedroom doors will almost always be open, the heat should come from the living room from the stove. But if it suddenly gets cold in winter, we will install additional electric convectors-radiators. We will turn it on as needed,” says Alexey. - And in general, we’ll see how the stove behaves, I hope we won’t freeze. The people who installed such stoves do not regret it, and the stove maker himself praised it.
Two stoves in the house
There are also those in the republic who, in the old fashioned way, install two stoves in a large house, as Damdin Erdyneev, a former resident of the Eravninsky district and now a resident of Ulan-Ude, did.
He transported to the city a house that he had built for his family back in the late 90s, measuring 14 by 12 meters. Friends laugh, they say there’s a whole gym,” Damdin shares.
According to him, he did not install any heating, but simply installed two simple stoves. He lived through one winter and does not complain about the cold.
Of course, it takes a lot of firewood, after all there are two stoves, but it’s still better than messing around with the boiler room. There is a lot of hassle there, taking care of the entire heating system, and you can’t turn it off in the winter cold, because everything will freeze. And you can leave the stove on at any time, and if necessary, light it, says Erdyneev.
In the next issue we will talk about which boiler is best to choose for your home. Our readers will also share their experience and talk about the advantages and disadvantages of different boilers.
Reference:
A large stove for a house measuring 8 by 9 meters requires 1000 bricks
For a medium-sized oven - 800 pieces
For a stove for a small two-story house with one firebox without a fireplace - 1200 pieces
One pallet contains 400 pieces
Price for one stove brick
7 rub. 50 kopecks
Dear readers!
Selecting heating equipment is a very difficult task. The main difficulty is that people do not even understand the terminology well. For example, many do not understand the difference between a boiler and a stove, while others understand, but do not know how to choose a boiler or oven For his private house or dachas.
What is a stove?
The very first thing that comes to mind when you hear the word “stove” is a Russian brick stove with warm walls, a cooking chamber and a stove bench. It warms you up, cooks dinner, and you can sleep on it. In the old days there were only such stoves. Additionally, they had different shelves and niches where you could dry anything: from crackers to felt boots.
Due to its massiveness and brick walls, a Russian stove accumulates and slowly releases heat. If the house is well insulated, then one kindling is enough to maintain a comfortable temperature inside all day. But that's where the benefits end.
Disadvantages of a brick stove:
But it is too early to conclude that the only solution to the problem of suburban heating in modern conditions is installing a boiler in a private house. There are other stoves - metal ones; according to some criteria they are better than a brick one, but according to others they are worse.
Metal stove compared to brick:
- more compact;
- easier to install - no stove maker or foundation required;
- can operate in long-burning mode.
However, metal stoves are not able to accumulate heat; they cool down and stop heating as soon as the wood in them burns out. And they are not so colorful and comfortable that they should be placed in the middle of the house, like a Russian stove.
What is a boiler?
If the stove heats the air around itself, the boiler heats the coolant. This is the fundamental difference. Typically the coolant is water. A water jacket is built into the firebox, and there is an inlet and outlet for connecting the pipe system that is laid throughout the house. Water is heated in the firebox, begins to circulate through pipes, radiators and heats the house.
Thus, the boiler, especially if there is a pump, can be installed in any room and place, even in a neighboring barn or garage. Boilers are often installed in basements. They do not need a foundation; it is enough to assemble the chimney correctly.
Are common installation requirements solid fuel boiler in a private house the most feasible: room area - at least 7 m², distance to walls - 0.5 m, good ventilation, base made of non-combustible material, iron sheet in front of the firebox. But problems may arise with the “registration” of a gas boiler in your home.
Installing a gas boiler in a private house is not always possible even if there is a gas pipeline
A gas boiler is the most trouble-free and economical heating equipment, but only if gas has already been supplied to the house and the boiler is already installed. If you want to connect to a gas pipeline running nearby, you will encounter many problems: how to obtain permission, draw up technical specifications and a project, and most importantly, the price of connection causes mute surprise and a decision to abandon such pleasure.
Therefore, even if a gas pipeline runs right through your site, do not rush to buy a gas boiler, first find out how realistic it is to connect to this “golden” pipe.
An electric boiler is also not available to everyone due to its high cost.
Installation electrical boiler in a private house Unlike gas, it does not depend on anyone but you. No permits or other documents are needed; initially, the money will be spent only on the purchase of the boiler itself. But only wealthy people can afford to heat a house with electricity, and prosperity is not always a constant phenomenon. Electricity is expensive, and in the private sector, tariffs are twice as high. It is not wise to spend your entire salary or pension on heating.
For the above reasons, today solid fuel boilers and stoves are widely used throughout Russia.
What's better: installation of a boiler in a private house or ovens?
From the definitions of these two different aggregates we can draw the following conclusions:
The last option (stove plus boiler) is the most reliable for any private home, especially if it is large. After all, a supply of heat never hurts. Some people install two boilers in their house, running on different fuels: when one runs out, the heating system is switched to another.
How to choose a boiler for a private home?
Despite the differences between a boiler and a furnace, furnaces are selected according to approximately the same criteria. Boiler installation requirements and ovens in a private house also identical, aimed at ensuring fire safety. And one more nuance, no matter how progressive the design of your boiler or furnace is, there will be no good heat if you use bad fuel.
The independence of home heating from external sources is of great importance for a number of reasons. Firstly, very often their work is unstable and unreliable. Secondly, the power is not always sufficient for the tasks of a modern cottage.
Finally, thirdly, the cost of connecting to electricity and gas supply networks is growing day by day. Now this is a capital expenditure, and the effectiveness of its investment requires thoughtful calculation and comparison.
So, it would seem that the well-forgotten old equipment - heating equipment that runs on solid fuel - is becoming increasingly widespread.
New variations of both boilers and furnaces are appearing, and their capabilities are expanding. But to benefit from their use, it is important to correctly understand the essence, target areas, principles of selection and maintenance.
Territorial preferences
A stove is a heating device in which the heat released during the combustion of fuel (wood or coal) is transferred through the walls of the chimney to the building structures and then fills the air in the surrounding rooms.
Therefore, in practice, stoves are designed for stable and high-quality heating of houses with an area of about 40-70 m2. The only exceptions are the Buleryan and Kuznetsov furnaces, named after the developers.
The first type is an all-metal structure with numerous outlet pipes.
In essence, this is a “potbelly stove”, only during operation it does not heat up and does not burn the surrounding air, but it provides direct heating.
Kuznetsov's stoves are made on the basis of traditional ones, but they use a special mechanism for the movement of burning gases - under the influence of their own gravity.
Due to constant turbulence and increased pressure, the perception of heat by the walls of the structure increases, which leads to a decrease in fuel consumption.
These two types of stoves can heat an area of up to 100-150 m2. In cottages of large area and number of floors, with huge rooms, flights of stairs and “second light”, stoves, like fireplaces, will primarily perform an aesthetic function.
A boiler is a set of equipment enclosed in a single housing, which is designed to transfer energy generated during the combustion of fuel to a coolant (usually water).
A solid fuel boiler uses firewood, stone or brown coal, pellets, and so on. Unlike a stove, a solid fuel boiler can provide heat to a cottage of any size. You just need to choose the right equipment performance.
For an approximate calculation, you can use a simple ratio - 1-1.25 kW for every 10 m 2 of the building. So, for a two-story cottage with an area of 150-170 m2, it is better to choose a boiler with a capacity of 20 kW. This guarantees sufficient productivity even on the coldest days.
Of course, an accurate calculation can be made by professional heating engineers who will take into account the type of materials, the thickness and weight of walls and ceilings, the presence and location of windows, as well as other parameters.
Final grade:
Construction features
It is difficult to install a stove in an existing building, but it is possible to install it at almost any stage of the construction of a house. Still, it’s better to think about this when designing a cottage. It will not be possible to use standard projects (with the exception of projects with stoves).
In full accordance with the saying, you will have to “dance” from the stove. The layout of the house should be formed around it. The stove should be located so that all or most of the rooms have a common wall or at least a corner with it (they form a thermal contour).
The only exception is the stairs, but in this case it will be cold on it in winter. An important point is that it is necessary to provide for the possibility of venting the smoke exhaust pipe through the floors and roof.
There are no special requirements for the design of houses in which a solid fuel boiler will be placed. It can be used in a cottage of any type, shape and layout. You just need to provide a separate room (boiler room) to house the equipment. The ceiling height in it must be at least 2.5 m, and natural lighting must be calculated based on the ratio of 0.03 m2/m3.
In addition, this room must have an air ventilation system, and when located in the basement or basement, a separate door to the outside is required.
The building as a whole needs an electrical grounding circuit. And, of course, you will have to install a chimney. A specialist will calculate its diameter.
Please note that this value must be taken with a small margin. You can install a solid fuel boiler in an existing cottage. True, in this case it is necessary to use an external chimney structure (necessarily insulated).
It should be understood that it is more difficult to find a truly qualified specialist to install a furnace. But a large number of specialized companies will help with the installation of boiler equipment. True, in both cases you need to look for recommended installers so as not to end up with would-be builders.
Final grade:
Operating Parameters
The main disadvantage of any solid fuel heater is the need to periodically add fuel to the firebox and clean the ash pan (a box or drawer that is located under the firebox and serves to collect combustion products).
Thus, being non-volatile, this equipment imposes obligations on the owner of the house. Thus, stoves are characterized by a high level of efficiency (it reaches 90%), but the price for this is the long duration of warming up the house and the need to constantly add fuel.
To ensure complete heating of the cottage, loading is carried out in the morning, afternoon and evening, and not just once, but 2-3 times. Reloading is done when the firewood from the first stack has burned down to the stage of large coals (usually this happens after 30-40 minutes). Thus, furnaces will require a larger amount of fuel compared to boilers.
An important advantage in this regard is the increase in modern boilers operating time on one load of fuel (on average from 1.5-2 to 3.5-4 hours). This is facilitated by the increased size of the combustion chamber and the use of a secondary air supply system for afterburning flue gases.
The use of a storage (buffer) tank also helps to increase the time between fuel additions.
During combustion, hot coolant accumulates in it, which is then supplied to the heating system for a long time as needed. Thanks to this, even on the coldest days, fuel can be added no more than twice a day (and the rest of the time even less often, for example, limiting it to an evening lining).
True, water is supplied to the system by a pump that requires connection to the electrical network. However, many modern solid fuel boilers, unlike their predecessors, are already equipped with volatile automation.
It maintains a given coolant temperature and provides protection against overheating, but relieves the boiler of an important advantage - complete independence from external factors.
The fuel used in such boilers is firewood, hard or brown coal, as well as pellets (compressed wood pellets). You should decide in advance on the most available fuel (most often it depends on the region) and choose a boiler with the appropriate type of firebox.
The use of improper fuel leads to its excessive consumption, and in addition can cause equipment failure. By the way, there are also “omnivorous” boilers, but their cost is 30-50% higher, and the economic efficiency of use raises questions.
The average fuel consumption in the case of using a solid fuel boiler in a cottage with an area of 100-200 m2 will be about 3-5 kg/h.
Provided that a storage container is used, this means that approximately 12-15 kg will be needed per day (in the coldest times - up to 20 kg). For a traditional oven you need at least 15-20 kg, in a Kuznetsov oven the consumption will be 10-15 kg.
Final grade:
I’ll tell you how I chose my long-burning stove. How long did it take to find the right, seemingly simple solution, what difficulties did you have to face when choosing a stove, and what did you get in the end? I warn you - my experience or review on choosing a stove is completely subjective, non-binding, but interesting.
Furnace or boiler?
Modern manufacturers vie with each other to offer a huge selection of boilers: gas, electric, solid fuel, pellet, liquid fuel, waste-fired, combined. If you are the happy owner of gas in your home, you don’t have to consider other options for stoves or boilers.
I was given an open field without gas or electricity with unclear prospects (nothing has changed in three years). Heating a house with electricity using a diesel generator is a waste of pure water (plus or minus one hundred euros). However, the announced price of electricity consumption for the corresponding boiler was not inspiring - more than fifteen thousand rubles in winter for one hundred and fifty square meters of a well-insulated house.
As a result, the choice was between a long-burning solid fuel boiler (discussed below) and a long-burning stove.
The advantages of such a long-burning boiler:
- economical fuel consumption;
- high heat transfer;
- heating 1-2 times a day depending on the model and outside temperature;
- relatively uniform heat distribution.
Minuses:
- high cost (purchase plus turnkey installation with a guarantee of at least one hundred to one hundred and fifty thousand rubles);
- control, control and more control! (it is impossible to allow the system to overheat, dripping from radiators and pipes, uninterrupted electricity is required for a variety of automation sensors, timely addition of antifreeze and much more);
- separate boiler room, equipped according to all SNIPs;
- well, and the risk of an explosion (unmotivated from the point of view of logic and conscience), which more or less decent sellers of this equipment honestly warn about.
As a result, having thought it over and weighed it, I decided to install a stove. But which one?
General overview of furnaces
There are three types of ovens:
- Handmade brick oven.
- Factory ovens made of cast iron and metal.
- Something homemade, with questionable results in terms of heat transfer and safety. We will not consider them - very individually.
Hand-made brick ovens are an excellent option for large country houses built on a monolithic (ideally deeply buried) foundation, or cottages with a basement floor. Any distinct stove requires a separate, personal foundation.
If you decide to acquire such a stove in a timber, log, frame house built on a strip foundation, take care of the foundation for the stove in advance, before construction begins. And by the way, the house design in this case should also be planned to “dance from the stove.”
Advantages of a hand-made brick oven:
- durability;
- high heat transfer;
- versatility (it warms, cooks, bakes and can lie down);
- low consumption of firewood;
- safety (if in full working order and correct operation).
Cons of this oven:
- price (including the purchase and delivery of materials, masonry);
- extensive preparatory work;
- long installation and drying;
- difficulty in finding a good specialist (friends had a “very cool one”, in the end the stove lasted for six months, after which it made a strong-willed decision to fall apart);
- maintenance (chimney cleaning, brick inspection, heating in a certain way at least once a season).
This stove is perfect for people living in a country house all year round. If you visit the estate exclusively from May to October, it’s definitely not worth the candle.
Factory furnaces can be divided into five broad categories:
- Sauna/bath stoves (provide high temperature in a room of 6-12 m2).
- Fireplace type (open or partially open fire).
- "Powerbelly stoves" (quickly warm up the room, keep it warm while they burn).
- Cooking and heating (heating, plus the ability to cook food, including in the oven).
- Long-burning stoves (maintain heat for seven to ten hours on one stack of firewood).
On the Russian market, factory stoves are presented in a very good assortment. Today, there are more than thirty leading domestic and manufacturers who are ready to offer a wide range of prices (from three to seventy thousand rubles). Long-burning stoves are especially popular:
- "Thermokraft" (www.termokraft.ru)
- "Teplodar" (www.teplodar.ru)
- “Professor Butakov” (www.professor-butakov.ru)
- "Ermak-Termo" (www.ermak-termo.ru)
- "Laotherm" (laoterm.fis.ru)
- "Bavaria" (www.pechnik-spb.ru/pechi-bavariya.php)
- "Vesuvius" (www.vezuviy.su)
- Termofor (www.termofor.ru)
And not without reason. “Our” stoves are adapted to the climate, easy to operate, and have clear operating instructions. The design is on point. There are no problems with “spare parts” (ash pans, doors, chimneys, etc.). Warranty periods are respected impeccably - thanks to high competition. Installing a chimney is quite simple; if you have the hands, head and ability to read the instructions, it is quite possible to install it yourself.
Among the foreign “long burning” we can note:
- "MBS" (Serbia)
- "Thorma" (Germany-Slovakia)
- Contura (Sweden)
- "Edilkamin" (Italy)
- Ferlux (Spain)
How to calculate the required furnace power?
The established global standard is 1 kW (kilowatt) per 10 m2, with good insulation of the house. If it leaves much to be desired, it is smarter to take it with a reserve (about 10 kW per 70 m2). The exception is long-burning stoves. Their power is indicated in the technical data sheet. Surprisingly, it’s a fact - a 5 kW long-burning stove is quite capable of heating a house up to 70 m2. It's all about the design features.
What is long burning?
If you explain it concisely and clearly, an association with a barbecue suggests itself. By burning, a high temperature is reached, after which the coals simply smolder (long-term burning), which allows you to retain heat for a sufficient amount of time.
Long-burning furnaces have a closed circuit. It can be hollow, double, water, gas generator. Thanks to this, the heat is maintained for up to ten to twelve hours (unlike the aforementioned barbecue, it simply has nowhere to go) and is distributed evenly. This achieves the effect of increased heat transfer, “prolongation” of a comfortable temperature and economical consumption of firewood. Each manufacturer has its own “strong point”, so before purchasing a specific model of long-burning stove, it makes sense to get comprehensive advice from a specialist.
After painful doubts that lasted a year, bringing my family, friends, stove makers, managers and sellers to the boiling point, I finally I decided to buy a long-burning stove.
I don’t see any disadvantages yet, the main thing is to strictly follow the operating instructions. A free interpretation of the instructions leads to smoke, the appearance of an unpleasant odor, and the formation of creosote (if it does appear, urgently seal the pipe joints with fire-resistant sealant and clean the chimney).
Among the advantages of a long-burning stove, I can note the ease of use, minimal consumption of firewood (five to seven logs for twelve hours in the autumn - spring period), the ability to cook and heat food, a pleasant comfortable temperature, and not dry air.
Among numerous manufacturers, Termofor somehow “selected” by itself - many positive reviews, winning design, low price, low weight, modest dimensions, quality, ease of installation (cost a penny).
In a couple of years, I plan to purchase a model that allows me to distribute heat throughout the house with the function of heating water for domestic needs.
Current (“ Fire - Battery-7 Light") warms up the house (88 m2, 2 floors, frame) to 18-22 degrees in just over an hour. Does not require control, which is important. Easy and quick to clean, no additional tools needed. The firewood burns completely, the ashes fall into the ash pan. The ash pan is made in the form of a scoop. One movement of the hand and “garbage” in a special bag (excellent feeding).
To prevent clogging of the chimney, once every two weeks, I heat it with birch firewood in the intensive burning mode. On other days, my long-burning stove “eats” whatever is given - spruce, pine, poplar, aspen. The main thing is to chop bigger. And keep foreign objects such as nails and staples away. The only (severe) warning is that it is strictly forbidden to extinguish it ahead of schedule (including with water). It is better to put less fuel, or switch to intensive combustion mode. If you need to leave urgently, leave it to burn out and don’t be afraid of anything (this is written in the technical passport).
It rained all day - damp and dank. How great it is to return to your beloved home, where it is warm, the firewood crackles cheerfully, the kettle invites you to get-togethers, and your daughter, stunned by new impressions and an excess of fresh air, snores sweetly.
No wonder housewives all over the world say: the stove is the main thing in the house!
Why is a brick boiler better than a steel one? Are there any undeniable advantages? After all, for some reason, people everywhere use purchased metal boilers in their heating systems.
No, not everywhere. Everywhere it’s just the opposite. Especially in old houses - there are brick ovens everywhere. As for new buildings, people really first try to assemble a heating system that seems simpler to them. I did the math with the managers, chose the right solid fuel boiler, installed it, started it up... And everything is fine?
But no. It turns out that it needs to be heated almost around the clock, there is too much fuel and the suspicion is growing stronger that you made a mistake in your choice, that the efficiency of this boiler is simply non-existent. In addition, chimneys quickly become overgrown with soot, requiring frequent cleaning.
However, not everyone even admits to themselves their suspicions, praising their choice left and right. But a moment comes when the question arises that something needs to be changed. And first of all, as a rule, the idea comes to install a heat accumulator in addition to the solid fuel boiler.
We will not talk here about the fact that again nothing works out, that with the heat accumulator there is no desired effect or it is negligible. Simply because the selected boiler does not develop the required power. In the end they come to the conclusion to replace the boiler with a more powerful one.
But here there is no need to prove anything. If you take a calculator and calculate how much it costs, a 110 kW brick boiler turns out to be much cheaper than a steel boiler of the same power. And not only cheaper, but also much more effective.
Why is it more effective? Because its design allows for the most complete combustion of fuel. And this, accordingly, increases, since less fuel is needed to generate the same amount of heat if it is completely burned.
But what does incomplete combustion mean? Soot formation is the incomplete combustion of fuel, since one of the components of any hydrocarbon fuel - carbon - does not burn, but remains on the walls of chimneys in the form of soot.
What else is effective? The fact is that a brick boiler is better. The generated heat passes into the coolant as much as possible, and cooled gases go into the pipe. Cooled to such an extent that still allows sufficient draft to be present.
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In addition, a brick boiler itself is a heat accumulator, capable of accumulating considerable heat in its mass, sometimes enough to heat a small house during the day. This accumulated heat is heat in addition to that which was given to the coolant.
Thanks to this property, the volume of the water heat accumulator can be significantly reduced. For an average house with a heated area of 100-150 m2, the volume of the water accumulator can be halved, to 1 m3. And this, as a result, is another reduction in material costs and saving space in the room.
So, the choice of a solid fuel brick boiler over a metal one is always in favor of the former. Because:
- brick is cheaper;
Compared to any metal boiler of the same power, costs can be more than three times lower. - brick has higher efficiency;
This is achieved by a firebox design that ensures complete combustion of fuel, as well as more efficient heat exchange with the coolant. - with a brick heat accumulator is cheaper.
Since the boiler array also accumulates heat, this heat is transferred to the coolant long after the boiler has been heated and closed.