Q: What makes your boilers different from other boilers?
A: Our modern gasifying boilers use the gasification process to use the energy contained in wood with an efficiency that is three times greater than traditional boilers. Through this process smoke and other emissions are cut to a low level, which makes our boilers not only efficient, but enviornmentally friendly.
Q: Is a chimney required to operate on of your boilers?
A: Even though most of our boiler models smoke less than traditional boilers a chimney is still required.
Q: What is wood gasification?
A: Wood gasification is the process of breaking wood down into the gaseous components (Nitrogen, Carbon monoxide, Hydrogen, Carbon dioxide, Methane and Oxygen) it is made of. Our furnaces do this by starting a hot fire, but limiting the amount of oxygen it can consume.
Q: What types of fuel can the boilers use?
A: The fuels that are able to be used vary from boiler to boiler. They can use wood, wood chips, corn cobs (with kernels) and coal. Please see each individual boilers specifications for more information.
Q: Do any of your boilers have oil or electric backup built-in?
A: No. but some of the wood boiler models can be outfitted with a pellet burner head. We also have an accumulation tank, the Aqualux CU, which has a built in electric immersion heater that can provide backup. We believe that keeping you existing boiler as backup is a good solution.
Q: Isn't burning wood bad for the environment?
A: No. Burning wood is considered to be "carbon neutral", which means that it doesn't release any more carbon dioxide (a "green house" gas) into the environment than if the tree had died and decayed naturally.
Q: Which type of heating system do I need to have in order to use one of your boiler?
A: Our boilers can be integrated into a hot water system or by using a heat exchanger they can be integrated into a forced hot air or radiant heat system.
Q: How often must you refuel the boiler?
A: There are many variables that go into answering this question, like the temperature outside, desired temperature inside, how well is the building insulated and so on. A load of fuel in a Vedolux 30 will yield around 400K BTU, if you have a heat loss of 30K BTU per hour the load has the potential to last 13 hours. .
Q: How can you calculate the moisture of your wood?
A: The easiest way to calculate your wood moisture is to use a wood moisture meter. If you do not have a meter available, another method is to take a piece about 1/2" to 3/4" thick from the center of a log. Weigh the piece you've cut out (the more accurate your scales are the better). Then take the piece of wood and bake it in the oven at 200° for an hour. After you take it out of the oven, weigh it again. Enter the weight values into the formula below.
Formula:
m = (a - b) / b
Where:
m = Moisture Content Percentage
b = Weight Before
a = Weight After
Q: What materials are acceptable when building a chimney?
A: When choosing chimney building materials it is best to check with your local building codes authority. However, typically a standard mason chimney with a liner will work. Also a type A stainless steel chimney will work as well.
Q: How long do the boiler refractory ceramics last?
A: Varmebaronen boiler's ceramics are designed as a consumable item. Generally the life of the ceramics is 3 to 10 years (or more) depending on how you fire your boiler. The ceramics are easily replaced and are not cost prohibitive. Overheating your boiler will shorten the life of your ceramics.