permaculture

["Laurence Gaffney" <lgaffney@bigpond.com>]

-   
On  Thu, 09 Feb 2006 21:17:49 +0200 mitshell <mitshell@netvision.net.il 
wrote:-

Is anybody aware of wood burning stoves/heaters that can be loaded with wood
once every 24 hours or something there about as opposed to the regular 
fireplaces that need
to have wood added every few hours ?

Thanx for any info
Mitch Schertz

SOME COMMENTS ON STOVES:
1.    Shane from Charlottesville, VA may well be correct in suggesting that 
Masonry Stoves are what is being referred to here.
These European stoves come in a number of different shapes sizes and names. 
Sometimes referred to as Russian or Finnish Stoves. Sometimes called 
Kachelofens. Bill Mollison has advocated these stoves over the years and they 
do make alot of sense if in the right climate.
Suggest they are not so useful in climates that require only intermittent 
supplementary heat. Good in climates where constant day/night heat required.
2.    Regarding overnight burning in more conventional stoves
I think we should not be encouraging this practice as this type of 
smouldering is not a clean hot burn. In  terms of air pollution it would be 
much more preferable to burn out the load with a hot burn before shutting 
stove down at night and relighting in the morning.
Mind you I do not always do this myself.
The air pollution from wood stoves could be dramatically reduced if only 
operated in hot burn mode.
The efficiency test standards usually only apply to this mode of operation 
which interestingly from my observations in Australia is not the normal mode 
of operation. 

Laurence Gaffney
Australia