Using a Weso Ceramic Radiant Heat Wood and Coal Stove

joeq · Post by **joeq** » Mon. Aug. 29, 2016 5:54 pm

Hi Gina, and another Welcome. I see the dedicated "die-hards" have gotten a hold of you, and filled you with propaganda

Seriously tho, how can you argue with factual knowledge, experience and success? They do make great points, because they've been there and done it, for many years. Me? I'm new to these coal stoves, (bout 5 years) but with all their skills and expert advice, I've been skooled on the proper way of comfortably and effectively heating my home with anthy, with as little effort as possible. I've been spoiled with a stove that'll easily go 8-10 hrs W/O tending, and put out a great amount of heat. Not sure about your type of stove, and how it'll work, but once you start burning coal, even in a smaller stove, you'll never go back to wood. (Unless you have kids or grand kids that like doing the work.) Enjoy the forum, and keep us posted on your progress. The leaves haven't started turning yet, but it's not far off. Want you to be prepared for business.
(drat! T.O.T.P.

)

rberq · Post by **rberq** » Mon. Aug. 29, 2016 6:34 pm

gina wrote:Maybe you all will convert me We shall see.

Nope. A few years of wood burning will convert you.

Wood is the feel-good politically correct thing to do, even more so in Vermont than here in Maine. That's in spite of how extremely difficult it is to burn it cleanly. (Take that from me, the forum's token Liberal/Pinko/Commie -- so you understand I am not a low-life despoiler of the environment.

)

My prediction is, you will either convert yourself to coal, or wind up in three or four years burning wood pellets. Pellets' cost per BTU, in Maine, is about the same as for coal. Pellets are easier to come by, as long as you have adequate DRY DRY DRY storage space and buy them early in the season before shortages arise. Good feeling about the environment is a plus for pellets. The drawbacks that I can see are that many pellet stoves are very noisy, stop working when the electricity fails, and the pellets are easily destroyed by moisture. (Wet coal will burn just fine.) If not for those significant drawbacks, I would be burning pellets instead of coal.

Pauliewog · Post by **Pauliewog** » Mon. Aug. 29, 2016 6:45 pm

Sunny Boy wrote:I will add, don't confuse soft coal used in power plants with hard coal we use in our stoves. Being about 95% carbon, Anthracite (hard coal) is much cleaner burning.

To give you some idea about wood stove impact on the environment. The EPA has for many years now had restrictions on new stove allowable levels of wood stove emissions. Those restrictions are being further increased. The EPA doesn't require any restrictions for new anthracite coal stoves. Many municipalities have banned outside wood boilers because they pollute so much. If you want a real eye opener about how un-environmental burning wood is, Google "carcinogens in wood smoke".

Anthracite coal ash is not considered a hazardous waste by the EPA. Many of us use the ash in our driveways, lawns, and gardens,

And since anthracite has no creosote like wood does, there's no need to clean the chimney as often and zero risk of a chimney fire. In fact a coal stove can be run very low and slow in not-so-cold weather (winter's "shoulder months") and not have to worry about clogging a stove pipe with creosote.

Paul

Thank you Paul ! You added some very good points I failed to get into.

Gina ..... I really think the best avenue for you to take is to first, purchase a cord of wood and burn it until it's gone, and then buy a few bags of Anthracite coal.

After you burn the coal ........We will all look forward to your final evaluation.

Now remember. ....... You have to take into consideration. ...... You are on a coal burning forum.

All we ask is an honest opinion .......... What fuel would you prefer ?

Paulie

D-frost · Post by **D-frost** » Mon. Aug. 29, 2016 7:00 pm

Gina,
Paulie has the right idea- try it. Killington is ski country, I do not know if it's coal country. Can you buy coal locally, or is it a 'road trip'?
Either way, wood, or coal-be SAFE. Have the chimney cleaned, and have a smoke detector, and a carbon monoxide detector.
Cheers

gina · Post by **gina** » Mon. Aug. 29, 2016 7:22 pm

I've used a wood stove before and don't mind so much. Just never used wood in a wood/coal stove. Wood is $225 a cord here. I can get a ton of anthracite for $315, but I'll need to build a bin, if I do that. Does it need to be water tight? Not sure how much coal I would use a day and how many tons I'd need. I have a small cabin with a partial second-story loft. I don't like it too hot either.

joeq · Post by **joeq** » Mon. Aug. 29, 2016 7:32 pm

Uh oh. there's the clincher. She doesn't like it "too hot". Maybe coal isn't for you.

With an upstairs loft Gina, guess where all your heat will be going? If you've been burning wood in that cabin, you probably already know this. As for combination stoves, (or any other device, for that matter), they may do both, but don't do either well. But that doesn't mean your stove won't work better with coal, compared to wood. You'll have to do like these guys have recommended, and try both. Where did this stove come from? Do you know who used it before you?

D-frost · Post by **D-frost** » Mon. Aug. 29, 2016 7:43 pm

Gina,
I buy coal on a skid.(50 bags, 40lbs. ea.) Rough measure 4ft. X 4ft, and 4ft. tall. About $300/ton.
If it's bulk (loose), should be about the same dimensions. Dryer is better. Wet is OK. Frozen-no fun at all!!!
I do not know the specifics about a WESO-can't help you there.
Cheers

gina · Post by **gina** » Mon. Aug. 29, 2016 7:44 pm

An earlier tenant installed the stove, but that's about all the info I have. There is a plate on the top of the stove that says it comes from Ceramic Radiant Heat of Lochmere, NH, which seems to be out of business. The stove was manufactured in Germany though.

waldo lemieux · Post by **waldo lemieux** » Mon. Aug. 29, 2016 7:48 pm

Not to turn this into an environmental discussion, and if you want it removed from the thread, just say, buuuuut. One point never mentioned in the evils of coal vs. wood debate is that , the whole problem we are having has to do with green house gasses from burning the fuel. What no one ever thinks about is that the trees are always sequestering the dreaded greenhouse gases till they are cut down. The existing coal deposits are doing nothing to remove any of the same harmful gasses...

Sunny Boy · Post by **Sunny Boy** » Mon. Aug. 29, 2016 7:51 pm

No, you can put wet coal in the stove and it won't care. Burns just the same.

My dealer delivers the coal "washed" and water is running out of the truck bed and gaps in the coal shute as he unloads tons into my basement coal bin. It's wet enough that it doesn't dry out until about late December. Around here that's three moths of using damp/wet coal. Stove doesn't care.

When I was in the service back in the 1970's, some of the military posts still had old "splinter village" wooden barracks, which some in the colder climates, still had coal fired hot water heaters for the showers. The coal was dumped in piles outside the door to the heater room off the latrine end of the barracks. Rain, shine, or snow, the coal stove doesn't care. If you can shovel it in the stove, it will burn it fine. ..... again, the stove doesn't care

Paul

gina · Post by **gina** » Mon. Aug. 29, 2016 8:00 pm

Yes, exactly, Waldo. Thank you for sharing that.

Pauliewog · Post by **Pauliewog** » Mon. Aug. 29, 2016 8:38 pm

waldo lemieux wrote:Not to turn this into an environmental discussion, and if you want it removed from the thread, just say, buuuuut. One point never mentioned in the evils of coal vs. wood debate is that , the whole problem we are having has to do with green house gasses from burning the fuel. What no one ever thinks about is that the trees are always sequestering the dreaded greenhouse gases till they are cut down. The existing coal deposits are doing nothing to remove any of the same harmful gasses...

Very good point Waldo

............ I would say from an environmental standpoint ...... You now have the #1 advantage to burning coal over wood or tires.

Paulie

nortcan · Post by **nortcan** » Mon. Aug. 29, 2016 10:23 pm

Hi Gina and welcome to the forum.
All good answers here to your questions. I will just add my personal Canadian opinion, cutting wood needs gasoline and oil, not a lot but some, a chain saw making a lot of noise in a quiet forest ..........

, vehicules to get the wood home.....
In fact wood burning has some charms but having burned wood for more than 20 Yrs, I would never go back to wood except for the charm

Once you will master your anthracite stove you will be charmed by all the advantages from it. So fun to start the stove at Fall and stop it at Spring , burning on steadily all days and nights keeping you warm all Winter long.

freetown fred · Post by **freetown fred** » Mon. Aug. 29, 2016 10:47 pm

Very well put Pierre.

McGiever · Post by **McGiever** » Tue. Aug. 30, 2016 9:05 am

As for getting cabin too warm, coal is the hands down winner over wood as a fuel. Wood fire slowed to smolder for slower heat output can create alot of creasote inside which is bad even with well seasoned wood, even worse with not properly seasoned wood. (alot of wood is not even when stated to be)
Coal fire has no ill effects to inside of stove or stovepipe/chimney when dampened back to barely an idle and you are in total control of the heat output at all time., not so with wood.