# Wood fired water heater.



## Darren (May 10, 2002)

Some of you probably have heard about a Hahsa which is an owner built wood fired heater. Depending on the construction you can build them so you can throw whole pallets into them. Obviously that wouldn't get the load you need for a long firing period. I've been searching for a way of cutting down on the smoke. We often get inversions here that trap the smoke so it stays close to the ground. When the neighbors down the valley are burning stuff whether it's wood or trash the smell hangs around during an inversion.

A fellow who used to operate a pottery up the road told me about a Bourry kiln. These put out very little smoke due to the hotter burn and the down draft setup that pulls air down through the fire.

http://www.duncanshearer.co.nz/kilnplans/bourrykiln.html

I'd like to build a hybrid heater using the walk-in Hahsa design and the Bourry design.The hot water would be used for heating a greenhouse and the underside of the first floor of the main house. It would be nice to be able to model this on a small scale first before building something the size of a small outbuilding.

Has anyone here seen anything similar?


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## Ky-Jeeper (Sep 5, 2010)

http://www.econofurnace.com/The Stoves.htm


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## Darren (May 10, 2002)

I know a few people that have the manufactured units. I helped install one. I was less than impressed. Every time I've driven past those in use they are putting out lots of smoke. The HAHSA has a large sand and masonry mass that is used to transfer heat to the circulating water piping. It puts out some smoke but not to the extent of the ready made units. There's no metal firebox or grating to deteriorate. There were some restrictions on the unit I helped install. You had to keep a bed of insulating ashes over the grate to keep it from warping. There was also a need to maintain the water chemistry to prevent corrosion. None of that applies to the HAHSA.

Due to the way the land lies with a bank and terrace, I have the option of putting the HAHSA either beside or under the greenhouse to save room. With the HASHA, you can always get access to the internal piping if needed. Those points and the ability to load it up and fire for a couple of days are what got me looking at the design years ago.


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