I was at the hardware store today and heard that wood pellets have gone up a good bit to $389 a ton, lady said they won't be able to get a truckload until January! This is only one of a few indicators that many commodities (like diesel apparently?!) may become nearly impossible to get. I've got a stockpile of coal to take me probably 1.5 winters but not without electric!
Aside from using a generator can any boilers (most like the AA's...) be run without electric and utilizing gravity circulation to get some heat in the house in an emergency situation? I'm sure the handfed crews are pretty well set for this kind of thing!!
What's some good backup plans for a powergrid drop for a few days? And if someone says solar panels....so help me....
Running boiler without power?
- Retro_Origin
- Member
- Posts: 914
- Joined: Sun. Feb. 21, 2021 7:46 pm
- Location: Schuylkill county
- Stoker Coal Boiler: 1957 Axeman Anderson 130
- Coal Size/Type: Buckwheat / Pea
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- Member
- Posts: 3747
- Joined: Fri. Aug. 16, 2019 3:02 pm
- Location: Oneida, N.Y.
- Hand Fed Coal Stove: Harmon Mark II
- Hand Fed Coal Furnace: Looking
- Baseburners & Antiques: Looking
- Coal Size/Type: Nut
- Other Heating: newmac wood/coal combo furnace
Solar panels.
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- Member
- Posts: 3747
- Joined: Fri. Aug. 16, 2019 3:02 pm
- Location: Oneida, N.Y.
- Hand Fed Coal Stove: Harmon Mark II
- Hand Fed Coal Furnace: Looking
- Baseburners & Antiques: Looking
- Coal Size/Type: Nut
- Other Heating: newmac wood/coal combo furnace
Are normally grid tied and worthless during a power outage.
- Rob R.
- Site Moderator
- Posts: 17980
- Joined: Fri. Dec. 28, 2007 4:26 pm
- Location: Chazy, NY
- Stoker Coal Boiler: EFM 520
- Hand Fed Coal Stove: Chubby Jr
If your piping allows gravity circulation, you can lean something against the fire door on the AA to hold it closed and manually add coal and cycle the grate. The output will not be large, but it will keep the boiler & piping warm.
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- Member
- Posts: 3747
- Joined: Fri. Aug. 16, 2019 3:02 pm
- Location: Oneida, N.Y.
- Hand Fed Coal Stove: Harmon Mark II
- Hand Fed Coal Furnace: Looking
- Baseburners & Antiques: Looking
- Coal Size/Type: Nut
- Other Heating: newmac wood/coal combo furnace
How much space is in the burn chamber?
- coaledsweat
- Site Moderator
- Posts: 13763
- Joined: Fri. Oct. 27, 2006 2:05 pm
- Location: Guilford, Connecticut
- Stoker Coal Boiler: Axeman Anderson 260M
- Coal Size/Type: Pea
Get a generator. Doesn't take a lot of power to run a boiler, refrigerator, a few lights and a well pump. Run it when you need to.
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- Member
- Posts: 2684
- Joined: Fri. Jan. 26, 2007 9:55 pm
- Location: Birdsboro PA.
- Stoker Coal Boiler: EFM 350
- Hot Air Coal Stoker Furnace: reading allegheny stoker
- Hot Air Coal Stoker Stove: alaska kodiak stoker 1986. 1987 triburner, 1987 crane diamond
- Coal Size/Type: rice
i got a 1500 watt generator from the curb this spring, works great. will use a lot less fuel than the 8,000 watt generator.