New to coal

Hello all! I have been lurking around for a while, but finally took the plunge and bought a coal boiler. I moved to a new home in the spring that has an oil boiler. At my previous home I heated with an outdoor wood boiler since 2006. I loved the abundance of cheap heat. When moving to this home I made the decision that I wanted to go the coal route. I liked the idea of an efm mainly because I remember my grandparents having one when I was little. Well, I finally found one for what I thought to be a good deal (750 bucks!). I got it home, now time for the install. I plan on installing it in my 2600 sq ft insulated garage. There is a block chimney, and a block outdoor coal bin. (Approximately 12 ton capacity) I want to run Thermopex underground to my home and plumb it to my existing boiler in series with a circulator running constantly to keep that boiler hot for heat demand, and domestic hot water. I will also put a zone in the garage that the boiler is located in with a Modine heater. It’s going to be some trial and error, but I enjoy projects like these. I’m sure that I’ll be here looking for guidance in the coming months, so I figured I’d sign up and say hello.

Welcome!

That's a real Beauty! A square door for $750.00!

You will find some very capable EFM burners here to get you on your way.

Welcome to the forum.

Nice job scoring the EFM, I'm sure you will love it.

Djy1983 wrote: ↑

Fri. Oct. 25, 2019 1:01 pm

I plan on installing it in my 2600 sq ft insulated garage.

Why???
If your heating the house primarily, you put the boiler in the basement. That way your not heating the outside world before heating the house. You can always run a zone out to the garage as a secondary.

-Don

Hello Don! My reasoning for the garage installation is that I only have one chimney, and limited space near it in my basement. I want to leave the oil boiler in tact for complete redundancy. Also, there is already a coal bin, and chimney in the shop that I intend to put it in, and any dust or odors will be out there instead of in the house. I was very satisfied with the thermopex pipe I used with my OWB install. I didn’t have any measurable temp drop between the boiler, and the house. Unfortunately the pipe is 12 bucks per foot, and I have about 200 feet of it to run. I have seen some cheaper stuff, but based on my past experience with that particular pipe I am a bit reluctant to roll the dice with something different. I don’t mind burning an extra ton or two a year to have the convenience of it being in my shop. (I spend a lot of time In it anyway) my only concern is that the efm will be able to heat the 2300 sqft house, hot water, and keep the shop around 50 degrees. Everything is fairly well insulated, and I figure the oil boiler can pick up some slack if it struggles on a night below zero. (Here’s hoping the efm does it on its own!!).

That thermopex is painful to purchase, but it pays you back every day afterwards.

Assuming your house and shop are of typical construction, the 520 will have an easy time with that load. My house is about the same size and located in the tundra of Northern NY. With the stoker on 4 teeth runs at about half capacity in the coldest weather.

By the way, getting a square door 520 for $750 is a fantastic deal.

That was one heck of a deal on the 520. I paid $2500. For my 1981 model and I thought I got a bargain.
Your reasoning for the garage shop installation makes good sense especially since you spend a lot of time out there. It certainly makes coal and ash handling easier I would think. That boiler is a work horse. You should have no trouble with capacity from the load you described.
I just watched a video from thermopex which says it only needs to be just below the sod. Not sure I agree with that method. The laws of thermodynamics still apply and I would bury it 3-4’. Please post lots of pics and videos as your install progresses.

Welcome to coal! I'm sure your system will keep you warm & happy.

coalkirk wrote: ↑

Sun. Oct. 27, 2019 7:05 am

I just watched a video from thermopex which says it only needs to be just below the sod. Not sure I agree with that method. The laws of thermodynamics still apply and I would bury it 3-4’. Please post lots of pics and videos as your install progresses.

It is a trade-off between losing heat to the cold soil, and losing heat to ground water.

Down a couple feet doesn't see much variance of 50 degrees. Just under the sod usually sees some freezing temps during the coldest months.

Rob R. wrote: ↑

Sun. Oct. 27, 2019 11:04 am

It is a trade-off between losing heat to the cold soil, and losing heat to ground water.

Yes I can see that in areas with a high water table. Around here if you dig down below the frost line in most areas you won't be in water. Even so the specs for Thermopex state that it is impervious to water and none will infiltrate the outer shell of the pipe system. In my opinion the fact that once you get below frost line the constant temperature of the earth of around 50 degrees is much more important than other factors given it will not get wet. The critical thing is what is the temperature of the material that the outer shell of the Thermopex will be exposed to. In that regard it seems to be a no brainer that being in 50 degree anything below frost line, even water, is better than being is frozen soil near the surface.

Yes, certainly agree

There have been some installations where the ThermoPEX was propped up and then "spray foamed" in the ditch before back filling, but that adds even more to the price per foot installed. Besides, there then is some excess soil to be dispose of also...

The thought had crossed my mind of using the badger 5 wrap (7 bucks a foot) underground pipe when I came across some threads on here of people using it with success. At 12 bucks per foot for the thermopex I’d be into it for about 3k dollars. But, I don’t plan on moving, and as I said before I used the thermopex and it was great. I’m still leaning towards the thermopex. My plan is to get the efm up and running, and heating the garage only for this winter. I’ll bury the lines, and tie the house into it this summer.

Djy1983 wrote: ↑

Sun. Oct. 27, 2019 6:15 pm

The thought had crossed my mind of using the badger 5 wrap (7 bucks a foot) underground pipe when I came across some threads on here of people using it with success.

That's for 1". It's a really bad idea to try to push the 150,000 BTU from your EFM to your house through 1" underground PEX pipe. Don't forget, it has to be Oxygen Barrier pipe.

From your estimate of $3K for Thermopex at $12 per foot, I would guess you are going about 250 feet. Your going to need something with a lot less piping resistance than 1" PEX to make this a happy installation.

Do you know how many BTU's you need to heat your house and DHW?

-Don

Hello Don! Believe me when I say, I am happy for any help you all have to offer!! My home is approximately 2300 square feet and there is a domestic coil in the oil boiler for hot water. There is approximately 175 feet of slant fin style baseboard in the house. It is one big loop. I don’t know the oil boiler’s btu, but someone who does hvac said that based on the amount of baseboard and the domestic coil it would likely be around 100k btu. I have only lived here since spring, but when the heat runs it feels pretty even, and comfortable. I would also like to heat my shop (an additional 2600 sq feet) to 40 degrees most of the winter.