Add On Wood Furnace - Are You Adding Heat or Headaches?

On the face of it, the addition of an Add On Wood Furnace to your existing furnace sounds like a great idea. If you cut, split and season your own firewood, you already know how much money you're saving over your propane poor neighbor.

Installing a wood furnace also tames the unavoidable messiness of burning wood by moving it to the basement.

Best of all, you can purchase a basic add on wood furnace for less than an inexpensive pellet stove.

However, the complex installation of an add on wood furnace goes a long way towards canceling out the benefits. When you install an add on furnace you not only have two furnaces; you now have two thermostats, two blowers, two plenums and two chimneys. Not to mention the connecting ductwork and dampers.

You don't have to be a home heating expert to imagine all the possible scenarios for failure.

As with any other type of furnace, the warranty and building codes requires installation by a licensed HVAC professional.

But this requirement alone doesn't necessarily guarantee your add on furnace will be installed for maximum efficiency. Simply because someone's been installing gas furnaces for 30 years doesn't mean their first attempt at installing an add on wood furnace will be a complete success.

Another problem that wood furnace manufacturers never address is a convenient way to store and transport a winter's worth of firewood without making hundreds of trips up and down the basement stairs.

Finding the least expensive way to heat your home will always involve trade-offs. As with an add on wood furnace, buying the cheapest appliance to burn the cheapest fuel is not without its drawbacks.

Improve your home with Alternative Heating

Corn Furnaces (Bio-Fuel) Reduce Heating Costs and are Good for the Enviornment Too

Recent rises in fuel prices have had most furnace owners—whether propane, natural gas, or oil models—seeing a substantial rise in their heating bills. These new financial headaches, coupled with increased environmental concerns over the gas emissions from traditional furnaces, have many clamoring for the development of new, safer, renewable energy sources. Odd as it may sound as first, corn furnaces are actually leading the way to achieving this goal.

Corn furnaces work by burning supplies of shelled corn, which is a renewable resource. Oil and gas, however, are limited, non-renewable resources. As time goes on and supplies of these much-sought-after fuels dwindle, costs will only continue to skyrocket. Many people who already struggle to afford monthly heating and electric bills may find themselves unable to heat their homes at all.

Using a corn furnace to heat a home is safe and simple. Most models require refilling only every ten or so days, so there is no need to constantly keep an eye on the machine. The only ongoing maintenance need is emptying the ash tray once a week. If the corn supply runs out, the furnace simply shuts off. Corn furnace owners report a light smell similar to that of a barbeque when their furnace is running, which is far more pleasant than oil odors emitted from oil furnaces. Most importantly, unlike traditional fuel-burning furnaces, there is no creosote buildup to cause a chimney fire.

Compared with oil and gas furnaces, corn furnaces certainly hold their own. One bushel of corn is the equivalent to about 3 gallons of fuel oil, with the average home requiring approximately 250 bushels per season. (Remember that most places do not need heat year-round.) Most corn furnaces have a AFUE rating of around 85%, which is well above the United States federal minimum of 78% and higher than many furnaces on the market today.

Another highlight of adopting a corn furnace is the chance to help financially-strained local farmers by creating a steady and reliable market demand for greater corn supplies. Many corn furnaces are designed to accommodate other bio-fuels like soybeans and wheat, which are also renewable resources that help keep small family farms up and running.

If you're interested in trying corn as a heating source, but not quite ready to give up your current model, you can always install a corn furnace as a supplementary heating source. This allows you to fully experience the power and reliability of bio-fuels, while easily being able to switch back to your old oil or gas furnace if you want to.

Austin Scott regularly writes for Furnace Helper on topics like Corn Furnaces and Furnace Repair

Add On Wood Furnace – Are You Adding Heat or Headaches?

On the face of it, the addition of an Add On Wood Furnace to your existing furnace sounds like a great idea. If you cut, split and season your own firewood, you already know how much money you're saving over your propane poor neighbor.

Installing a wood furnace also tames the unavoidable messiness of burning wood by moving it to the basement.

Best of all, you can purchase a basic add on wood furnace for less than an inexpensive pellet stove.

However, the complex installation of an add on wood furnace goes a long way towards canceling out the benefits. When you install an add on furnace you not only have two furnaces; you now have two thermostats, two blowers, two plenums and two chimneys. Not to mention the connecting ductwork and dampers.

You don't have to be a home heating expert to imagine all the possible scenarios for failure.

As with any other type of furnace, the warranty and building codes requires installation by a licensed HVAC professional.

But this requirement alone doesn't necessarily guarantee your add on furnace will be installed for maximum efficiency. Simply because someone's been installing gas furnaces for 30 years doesn't mean their first attempt at installing an add on wood furnace will be a complete success.

Another problem that wood furnace manufacturers never address is a convenient way to store and transport a winter's worth of firewood without making hundreds of trips up and down the basement stairs.

Finding the least expensive way to heat your home will always involve trade-offs. As with an add on wood furnace, buying the cheapest appliance to burn the cheapest fuel is not without its drawbacks.

Improve your home with Alternative Heating

Choosing a Furnace Humidifier

While everyone longs for a white winter, the problems associated with dry winter air can be unpleasant. Low humidity can dry out our skin, our mucous membranes, and our nasal passages. It can also cause undue drying of the wooden structures of our home. What’s more, our well-intentioned efforts to heat our cold, wintry space often make the problem even worse by removing any moisture remaining in the air. This causes nosebleeds, cough, sore throat, and more.

A humidifier can help alleviate many of the problems associated with dry air. Humidifiers work by sending moisture into circulation in the air, raising the humidity level. Tabletop humidifiers are good choices for humidifying a small space, such as a nursery or bedroom. Console humidifiers are larger and are effective for humidifying multiple rooms or small apartments. For humidifying large spaces or a whole house, however, it is much more cost-effective to use a whole house humidifier. These generally attach to either the air-conditioning or heating system and circulate moisture throughout the entire home.

Furnace humidifiers, as the name suggests, are connected to the furnace system. It is installed in the ducts and works with your home’s heating and cooling system to humidify your entire house. A furnace humidifier uses your home’s water system.

With prices starting around $100, furnace humidifiers are initially more expensive than the other models. However, they are more energy efficient and cost less to operate over the long haul. Annual maintenance costs, including filter changes, run from $2 to $30.

When purchasing a furnace humidifier, look for a model than has a humidistat. This will allow you to set the desired humidity lever. When that level is reached, the humidifier will shut off. This feature is important as it helps avoid the problem of over-humidifying.

As with other types of humidifiers, your furnace humidifier will need to be cleaned and disinfected according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Failure to follow the instructions can lead to the growth of mold and bacteria. These would then be sent circulating through your home.

Humidifiers Info provides detailed information on house, furnace, cigar, and ultrasonic humidifiers, as well as humidifier filters and product reviews. Humidifiers Info is the sister site of Dehumidifiers Web