Flower pot + gas ring = cheap dry heating ?

[Johnjo]

Re: Home made stove

Nick its just a lenght of mild steel box section with a couple of brackets welded on to hold it in place....., the doors are same, mild steel... held in place with a heavy duty steel hinge welded on and the catch is simply a bolt welded in place with a butterfly nut to hold it closed...same on bottom door..top door is fitted at least 2 inches down from top of heater

The draught is controlled in the bottom door simply by drilling a couple of holes in centre of door covered with a round plate which simply swivels on a bolt again with a buttterfly nut to hold it shut.

chimney is stub of 1" 3/4 inch steel tube welded on ....which allows a stainless "2 inch tube to slip over and lagged cause it gets extremly hot..

None of the heater is sealed in anyway what so ever.....as the chimney is always drawing no fumes escape from it....honest lol....but the doors are close fitting..

I was thinking of fitting some sort of baffle in the chimney to close it up tighter but was worried about it fuming so decided to leave the chimney open..

light it withsome small chopped kindling then its fed with those round boiler type nuts....last for ages and ever so cheap lol to run..

I welded it up myself and the metal i scrounged ....all i bought was the stainless tube i used for the chimney and some elbows.... converted a old bronze vent to allow it to exit the cabin roof... only advice i can really give......is keep it simple, dont overbuild it..

It gives out masses of heat so unless you got a bigger boat than mine...Sabre27 definately dont make it any bigger..

And the whole thing is covered in blacklead, but it still shows rust through it, dont think its possible to stop it...anyway its so cheap what does it matter...

Sorry no pics available..

Make sure its well off the boat and plenty of fireboard around it to insulate the boat, this heater actually glows red in the dark if you let it......operative words here are.......if you let it ! ..dont overfill it...or give it to much air..

 

[William_H]

It seems to me that in trying to use an existng cooker for heating you need to make the boat fairly airtight and secondly you don't want to be asphixiated by gasses, both requirements being contradictory. I have this idea that an aluminium tube or (copper) with a funnel shape at the end could be supended over the gas ring. The tube should be as long as possible probably going up then horozontal to an exit conveneiently in the bulkhead front of cockpit.
A small computer fan could be used to extract the fumes at the exit. Hopefully the heat of the fumes will heat the pipe and then be transfered into the cabin. The horozontal pipe could also be used as a clothes dryer.
The length of the pipe dictating how well the heat is transfered to the cabin but also how well the system draws out the fumes. just a few thoughts not used in practice. regards olewill

 

[Blueboatman]

It actually works beautifully,just leave the hatch open 3 inches or top washboard out,flowerpot inverted on stove ,low flame setting- try it ,it really works,in spite of the theoretical watervapour emisions....

 

[webcraft]

Re: Home made stove

Sounds brilliant - one last question, how long is the chimney and how far does it stick up above the deckhead?

- Nick

 

[Thistle]

Doesn't it work because the flowerpot heats up and acts as a radiator? But you do need to ensure that there is adequate ventilation both to get rid of the products of combustion (water, carbon dioxide and, possibly, some carbon monoxide) and to ensure a continuing supply of oxygen (for both you and the cooker.)

 

[nedmin]

dont know if anyone else has said this (too many posts to read) but if you want to keep your eyes make sure the pot is PERFECTLY dry before you put it on the gas ring.

 

[Johnjo]

Re: Home made stove

I suppose total lenght would be around seven feet, the heater is mounted a few inches above the cabin sole and shaped to follow the contours of the side of the boat so the chimney is out of the way and makes it unlikely that anyone would grab a hold of it.....the lower in the boat it can be mounted the better the draught up the chimney and the warmer the feet stay...

Sticks about four inches out of the roof with a mushroom shaped dome on to to keep the rain out..

 

[Glyka]

A flower pot (upside down with a hole on top) on the gas cooker is what many of us use for heating. But then, the weather in Athens is not exactly the same...

Anyway if you chose to give it a try make sure that the flower pot is of very good quality as it will otherwise crack. A brick like the ones used in fireplaces is also used by some.

 

[VicS]

[ QUOTE ]
a piece of asbestos string jammed into the gap between the chimney and stove is not much of a danger to anybody, he's not waving it around shedding fibres into the air. There are lots of dangerous things in our lives that are acceptable because we use them safely. This is one of them in my opinion.

[/ QUOTE ]
Supermalc may not be waving it about but unless it has been sealed it could still be shedding fibres. In any case he was at risk himself using it as will be the person who one day uncovers it without knowing what it is.

Asbestos is one of the very dangerous things which is now NOT acceptable. It was used in ignorance of its dangers until the "asbestos reguations" came into force around 1970. Now the precautions that have to be taken when old asbestos insulation is removed are quite extreme. It is only by taking such measures that it can be handled safely. Asbestos free products are now used in place of the old materials.

After 1970, monitoring of asbestos fibre concentrations in the air and identifying asbestos insulation, and indeed even the different types of asbestos, became one of my responsibilities so I have first hand knowledge of the subject. I have also known several people, including one sailing friend, who have suffered from the effects of asbestos. It is very unpleasant and ultimately fatal.

Some dangers are almost unavoidable if we are going to lead reasonable lives, but we take sensible precautions to minimise them, like looking each way before we cross the road, wearing lifejackets and safety harnesses when appropriate. In the case of asbestos we avoid the danger by not using it and leaving the removal of old material to the properly trained and equipped professionals.

In this instance your opinion should remain just that: your opinion.

 

[Andrew_Fanner]

I use the traditional oil lamp. Makes the saloon nice and snug.

 

[chippie]

Did the people you know with asbestosis contract their illness from one exposure? I think not, the dreadful effects of asbestos on humans happens from prolonged exposure, insulation installers, brake lining workers etc.not one piece of string jammed in a stove and covered by a flared pipe end.

I agree with you in terms of taking sensible precautions, I felt in this particular case you overstated the risks. You disagree. OK.

 

[VicS]

[ QUOTE ]
Apparently he told me it only takes 1 microscopic grain of asbestos dust to stick to cause asbetosis, however I tried not to breath too deeply while poking it around the chimney. Considering the number of times I've blown the dust out of brake drums on a car, I don't think I've too much to worry about though either.


[/ QUOTE ]

One fibre in the lungs is all it takes. I forget the exact definition of a fibre and what size range is considered to be dangerous but if anybody really needs to know I suppose I could look it up.

Thre is always a warning about asbestos in brake shoes (is it still used in brake shoes though?) but I suspect that the dust does not contain fibres that fall within the dangerous range. I don't know for sure though. Next time I clean out some drums I'll put some of the dust under the microscope and see what's there.

 

[twisterkai]

Your warnings about asbetos are quite right. However, I think there is always confusion surrounding it, and in particular, stoves. The number of people I have heard refering to stove sealing rope as asbestos defies belief. Although it looks similar - weave patten etc - it is certainly a very different material, thankfully. My grandfather, in his late eighties, developed asbestosis from (almost certainly) his time in the RN as an engineer. The ww2 fleet used it in abundance as insulation etc as it was deemed to be effective. Recent(ish) history, unfortunately, has given us food for thought.

 

[VicS]

[ QUOTE ]
You talk of butane and propane expelling water vapour, how does this compare with diesel or kerosene?

[/ QUOTE ]
All the hydrocarbon fuels produce similar quantities of water vapour, and carbon dioxide for that matter, but as you go up the series from methane, through propane and butane to kerosene and gas oil (or diesel) the ratio of hydrogen content to carbon content decreases slightly so by the time you get to kerosene 1 lb produces only around 1.36 lb water.

Also relevant is the calorific value of the fuels as taking that into consideration would enable you to calculate the quantity of water produced per 1000 btu of heat released. A more meaniful figure but still the differences would be pretty academic.

 

[Forbsie]

I was thinking about doing the same until Woolworths had these on special for £13.99.

 

[rickp]

Cool, I love foxton locks. Almost as good as the Tardebigge flight.

Rick

 

[Peppermint]

Re: For sale. Marine quality flowerpots.

8" diameter £7.99p Roll up Roll up.

I've been wondering how to make my horticultural business more sailing friendly.

I've worked with flowerpots for 25yrs. If I was daft enough to take one on my boat I certainly wouldn't be heating it up.

 

[Superflid]

I've seen (and felt the heat from!) Malc's stove, any chance of a pic of your's as I intend building one for my boat shortly.

 

[Johnjo]

Sorry Ken
I dont have any pics of it..... just imagine a piece of 4" square box section 12 " long standing upright with a door cut top and bottom with a chimney out the top, that sums up basically what it looks like....like a minature rayburn without the oven...

 

[Superflid]

Thanks Mike, it should be as simple as it sounds. I've found a very thick piece of steel tube about 6 inches in dia, looks like mine will be a round version!