Anybody have a non-electric fan for their woodstove?

[bcr495]

I was thinking about getting one of these, and now there is two different manufactuers? Anybody have a Ecofan or Heatwave fan. Just in case I didn't make myself clear- the fans that sit on your woodstove and spins from the heat off the stove thus using no electricity.

One is $115 and the other $145, so don't want to waste money if they don't move alot of air.
thanks
Alex

[jlxian]

We have eyed those things but they seem so expensive and also like we should be able to create something that would work in a similar fashion.

I'm also very curious to hear about anybody's experience --- either with the "boughten" variety or a homemade one.

[watcher]

Do a google search on stirling engine and you can find plans on how to build one using scrap parts. If you are good with your hands you should be able to put one together in a weekend for just a couple of bucks.

Or for about $50 you can buy a kit.

[Gailann Schrader]

I have a blower on my woodburner that blows underneath/around the firebox...

I bought one of those non-electrics?

MINOR/MINIMAL airflow/movement compared to the blower...

I returned it as it didn't move the air as well as a squirrel cage fan...

However, it WAS non-electric.

[bowdonkey]

We have the smaller Ecofan. We really like it, but like has been said before it doesn't move a lot of air unless the stove gets real hot. Our kitchen is 12 X 14 and the corners stay warm. Don't know about a bigger room. I would definately purchase another but would get the bigger one if using it in a larger room. The most important thing about a woodstove is having an outside air source for the firebox.

[Silvercreek Farmer]

I don't have one but my buddy does, I wasn't impressed.

[anniew]

I read somewhere that the heat has to reach 500 before the fan works well.

[bluetick]

I have the Heat Wave brand. The stove temp needs to be about 425 degees to work properly. Last year was my first year with it but my wood wasn't seasoned properly and I wasn't operating the stove efficiently, so keeping the temperature up was difficult.

My stove is in the middle of the main floor rooms and there is an open effect with very wide doorways allowing air movement. I think I will have better luck with it this year, because of the mistakes I made last winter.

I wish I could give you a better review of its performance, but I did things wrong. When it did run, it seemed to move the air fairly well. As someone mentioned, the non-electric feature is a big plus, especially during a power outage as we had for 2 days last winter.

[Alice In TX/MO]

We have one, and we are happy with it. We probably would have gotten the larger model if we had known it was this good.

[Vicki McGaugh TX Nubians]

We love ours, we got it pre Y2K, we face it towards the chiminey pipe so it blows across it, we used to run a big oscilating wall mounted fan, thinking more airflow was the trick, it's not this little thing works great! I don't remember the brand name but ours has a Canada leaf on it? Vicki

[Christiaan]

We have the small Eco, it works well. Got it from Lee Valley, which had the best prices around. Ours was $79 a couple of years ago.

[canfossi]

I have an ecofan, I don't find it works all that well. That's my opinion. Chris

[Liese]

We have looked at these fans but figured our ceiling fans are probably doing enough and of course multi-seasonal.

[bcr495]

thanks everybody! I have a woodstove in the converted garage. I need to get the hot air into the kitchen so it is picked up by the furnace fan and sent to all the rooms.

[bowdonkey]

bcr, by the sounds of your set up I doubt that will work. The air flow is very passive, but much better than nothing. As an example, with a good fire and the fan really spinning, a candle flame 5-6' away will just be bent over.

[Jim S.]

If you're off grid, go solar with a battery, cut a hole in the wall between the two rooms near the ceiling, and mount an electric fan -- your choice of 110 with an inverter or 12 volts. That's your best off-grid bet for moving some air.

[FreightTrain]

i read that you need to keep a 450+ degree min fire going to use those non powered fans

[bcr495]

ok, idea nixed. I won't waste money. I have a old ceiling fan I could put in that room????

last year when I got a gas bill I would go and cut wood, so you can imagne I have alot of wood to burn! the house is a long rectangle with the garage making a L but since has been converted to a den with a wood stove. so need something to push the air around the corner-the furnace is in the next room-kitchen.

any money saved from not buying propane will go to updating heat source next year. that's the plan anyway.
thanks
Alex

[AJ Williams]

How easy would it be for you to a put return from the room to the furnace? If you could the problem might be solved.

[pinfeather]

We try to keep our stove between 300 to 500 degrees. Anything less than 300 you're making creosote anyway.

We have the small eco-fan. Our house is only 960 sf, so our small fan pushes the heat down the hall into the bedrooms well for us instead of the heat just staying in the kitchen/living rooms.

The fan also helps us save wood - probably 1/3 to 1/2 cord per year. We used to pack the stove with wood and keep it coming so the heat would reach the bedrooms. But doing that made the living room almost unbearably warm.

We're very happy with it.