Bioethanol fireplaces / stoves

[dustysheehan]

Hi all,

As I head into winter living full time on a 31 footer in Europe, I'm eager to install a fireplace / stove of some sort to heat up the boat. Currently my boat (a Vindö 40) only has an 1800W Wallas Marin heater from the 90s and a DHR oil lamp for heating. When away from shore power and unable to fire up the electric space heater, I find myself a touch chilly. And it's only October.

My original plan was to purchase a small solid fuel stove - had my eyes on one of these Cubic Mini ones that seem to be becoming increasingly popular among liveaboards. However, I cannot find a good spot to put it - the spots that I want to put it are no good for bashing a hole through my deck, and the spots that are good for bashing a hole through my deck are not where I want to put it. Not to mention, there is the additional time one needs to spend gathering wood / coal, stoking a fire, cleaning up ash and soot, etc. (things I'd probably find some satisfaction in, but which I imagine become a little wearisome on a regular basis).

I came across some cool-looking bioethanol fireplaces - here's a nice-looking, Swedish-built one that would make for a neat piece of furniture, assuming I could bolt it down adequately - which don't require a chimney. My question for the group: Does anyone have any experience using these as a primary / major source of heat on their boat? I'm worried that although they might look great, they are more aesthetic than they are practical. They would do less to dry out the boat than a solid fuel stove and I fear the heat output / $ ratio will be quite a bit steeper than solid fuel or even diesel heaters. However, they do provide a 'real fire' experience and are extremely low maintenance - just fill up with ethanol and strike a match.

Would be great to hear from anyone that has one of these or has seriously considered getting one.

Many thanks,
Dustin

 

[Bilgediver]

As you say they are designed for appearance and not comfort. You would still need a stove or heater to keep you warm.

 

[Minerva]

I would fear that without a chimney, the volume of condensation in a cabin would make it rain in very short order.

 

[sarabande]

Agreed; very roughly for every litre of fuel burned, one creates a litre of water vapour.


That chimney-less Swedish stove , if fired up in the closed environment of a boat's cabin will probably kill before it goes out through lack of oxygen.

 

[Wing Mark]

Not sure it doesn't have a flue going out the back?

But the yellow flame just screams 'carbon monoxide'.

 

[dustysheehan]

0 for 4 - no swanky Swedish bioethanol stove then. Thanks for the feedback all - very much appreciated

 

[westernman]

A friend has one in his living room.
It puts out a lot of heat.
No flue or chimney of any kind.

It might be useful for a couple of hours to warm things up quickly (e.g. when arriving on the boat on a cold evening), but I would imagine using it continuously will create too much water vapour.

 

[Stemar]

Either you have a flue/exhaust or you have condensation and a risk of CO. Or you use mains electricity. ISTM that those are the three choices on a boat.

A stove always looks good, especially on an older-style boat but, if you haven't got a convenient place to put it, I'd be looking at Chinaspachers. Nowhere near the class of that stove you linked to, but far more likely to keep you warm and less likely to kill you.

 

[ghostlymoron]

A friend has one in his living room.
It puts out a lot of heat.
No flue or chimney of any kind.

It might be useful for a couple of hours to warm things up quickly (e.g. when arriving on the boat on a cold evening), but I would imagine using it continuously will create too much water vapour.

I'd be far more concerned about producing poisonous exhaust gases than water vapour. There's no way that you can safely burn any fossil fuel in a stove without a flue.

 

[vyv_cox]

This type of stove is new to me but there is a precedent for flue-less heaters that seem to work safely. My boat came to me with a gas fired catalytic heater that I used for some years. No flue, no smell and certainly not excessive production of water vapour. After I replaced it on the boat with a diesel heater i transferred the catalytic to a camper van, where it also worked well.

 

[Davy_S]

If you are considering a log or pellet burner, then have a look at Prity stoves, they are a lot cheaper than others, but very good quality, they are from Bulgaria and deliver to europe, but ebay supply them as well.

About us - PRITY

 

[westernman]

The bioethanol burners work safely if you respect the instructions!
In a boat they would be ok for a reasonable amount time. But not permanently on with the hatches battened down completely airtight.
Take the precaution of having both a CO2 and a CO alarm.

 

[Wing Mark]

Burning anything with hydrogen in it produces water.
A boat is like a car sometimes, half the reason for turning the heater on is to dry it out, so any heater that's putting water vapour into the cabin will mean you need more changes of air, more hot damp air escaping, so more heat needed.
Unless you have a cheap, going of 'free' source of bioethanol, it's going to be low on 'cost-effective'.

Might work a bit better in Scandinavia of course where the incoming cold air is probably a lot drier than we get in the We(s)t Country.

Been out in the rain today, got back in my car, cranked up the heating to dry my coat and stop everything steaming up.
That is what you want!

 

[thinwater]

No different than just leaving the stove on, so the answer is no.

That said, you can build a vented heater for your stove. Very easy.
vented stove heater

 

[DoubleEnder]

I’d go for a blown air diesel fired heater. Eberspacher, Wallas or maybe the Chinese cover versions. There are smaller solid fuel stoves eg the ‘Faversham’. But ash, fuel storage are potential problems

 

[Minerva]

One of these days I'll have a boat with a proper stove. I'll anchor off in Ballachulish surrounded by snow capped Lochaber mountains and the Pap of Glencoe. The stove'll be on , it'll be toasty in the cabin and I'll be supping a fine malt.

 

[V1701]

If you really can't have a chimney then blown air might be an option, however in my experience they don't like being run for extended periods of time on low heat output settings, therefore less than ideal for long term liveaboard use. They also use battery power particularly on start-up so you'd need a good enough in winter setup for charging your batteries. Running the engine just to charge the batteries so that you can use the heater would, for me, be a no-no. Drip-fed diesel would be my choice, probably Refleks but you still have the chimney issue. I would also say that you absolutely need a form of heating that isn't going to increase condensation.
I live aboard as well, the trouble is we're living in something that's not designed to be lived in full time especially in winter so make every effort to insulate as best you can & ventilate at every practicable opportunity, it makes a huge difference...

 

[DownWest]

Having built a good few woodburners and paid attention to other forms of heating..unless you can access enough electricity to heat the boat, then one of those blown diesel heaters is the best solution. Anything without a flue burning hydrocarbons is a no-no. Wood burners are likely to be unpopular with your neighbours, though possibly pellets might be cleaner. (but need some electricity for the feed and fans)
If short of lecky, a drip feed diesel heater would give plenty of warmth., with a flue.

Edit, just realised I am repeating V1701..

And, in a chat with my neighbour this evening, he bought a pellet burner that you hand feed (?) he tends to buy 'good ideas' then leave them in the barn, but this one interests me., as part of the pellet efficiency is a very small firebox with an automatic feed, not relying on human input, likely erratic..

Will have a look tomorrow, he did say it was quite small.

 

[Laminar Flow]

This type of stove is new to me but there is a precedent for flue-less heaters that seem to work safely. My boat came to me with a gas fired catalytic heater that I used for some years. No flue, no smell and certainly not excessive production of water vapour. After I replaced it on the boat with a diesel heater i transferred the catalytic to a camper van, where it also worked well.

I had a gas fired furnace in both a camper van and a camping trailer, both were vented. Canadian winters.

Gas fired Dickinson on a boat - also vented.

 

[harvey38]

One of these days I'll have a boat with a proper stove. I'll anchor off in Ballachulish surrounded by snow capped Lochaber mountains and the Pap of Glencoe. The stove'll be on , it'll be toasty in the cabin and I'll be supping a fine malt.

Following on from another thread - But will the malt be from LIDL ?