Can BTU capacity be estimated / calculated from grate area?

 
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Retro_Origin
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Joined: Sun. Feb. 21, 2021 7:46 pm
Location: Schuylkill county
Stoker Coal Boiler: 1957 Axeman Anderson 130
Coal Size/Type: Buckwheat / Pea

Post by Retro_Origin » Sun. Dec. 11, 2022 4:22 pm

I’m going out on a limb here, I’m suspecting you might be either be or have engineer tendencies. The importance of quantifiable and measurable data is always starting point to any project, much as I’ve tried to do this with coal burning apparatii the coal quality, size, unit efficiency, cleanliness, design variety, installation environment alone are enough to near trump any standards or rules of thumb, it seems we must react to the coal burning environment more than predict. No offense intended but it seems most of these well experienced men on here are experienced because of their time with stokers/stoves rather than their tools or measurement data. (Not that those things aren’t useful) I think a five minute conversation with one of these veterans in front of the unit in question would give a more accurate answer than an engineer with charts and calculators and heat cameras...
Last edited by Retro_Origin on Sun. Dec. 11, 2022 6:55 pm, edited 1 time in total.

 
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Sunny Boy
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Location: Central NY
Hand Fed Coal Boiler: Anthracite Industrial, domestic hot water heater
Baseburners & Antiques: Glenwood range 208, # 6 base heater, 2 Modern Oak 118.
Coal Size/Type: Nuts !
Other Heating: Oil &electric plenum furnace

Post by Sunny Boy » Sun. Dec. 11, 2022 6:10 pm

C. E.

That's all understandable. And we can't even come close to "perfect" by our "guesstimates", as opposed to how stove BTUs are really measured in a special laboratory setting.

However, if you want to, "know what you have in front of you", by just measuring the grates, that could easily be misleading, and very likely not by a small amount.

My point being, asking how to figure the BTU of a stove with just using Larry's grate equation without knowing the efficiency of that stove design can be waaaayyyy off for what you might think you have.

If it is a simple stove design that sends half the BTUs that the grate measure equation says it's capable of, up the chimney then you only have half that as its rating. So then, what good was that equation ?

Paul


 
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mntbugy
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Location: clearfield,pa
Hand Fed Coal Stove: D S 1500, Warm Moring 400
Baseburners & Antiques: Art Garland 145,GW114 ,Clarion 115, Vestal 20 Globe,New Royal22 Globe, Red Cross Oak 56,Acme Ventiduct 38,Radiant Airblast 626,Home Airblast 62,Moores #7,Moores 3way
Coal Size/Type: stove and nut and some bit
Other Heating: Propain

Post by mntbugy » Sun. Dec. 11, 2022 6:44 pm

The number are real close on the input side. On my many antique baseburners and base heaters, even 1950 and new box stoves at full throttle.

The output side is dependent on the appliance. Whether you got an outhouse heater or a whole house heater.

What SB is saying.

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