Wood Stove Fan
 

Has anyone had any expierence with the Ecofan? They call it a "Sterling" Engine. :confused:

http://www.green-logic.net/ecainowostfa.html

video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0atjr...eature=related

We love our woodstove, but would like to move the heat around the room better than just plain radiant heat.

Comments welcome. I see the 3 blade model on Amazon for about $120.

I am not familiar with the Ecofan but would encourage you to consider a ceiling fan if at all possible. If you have a reversible fan, you can direct the air flow upwards to force warm air downwards without feeling a draft. During the summer, you can reverse the flow for a direct cooling breeze.

We heat our camp exclusively with wood and the ceiling fan has made a tremendous difference in heat distribution and comfort.

Best wishes.

I will second the recommendation for ceiling fan(s). We have a family room with a cathedral ceiling and a wood stove. During the recent, extended power outage, everyone in the family noticed that the upstairs was noticably warmer than the room below. When I say noticably, I mean double-digit differences!

When the power is on and the fans are running, this heat stays downstairs. How much difference it makes if you have a one-story ceiling I can't say

Both can be a plus
 

I have a ceiling fan, and have a ceiling that is about 9 feet high. Our woodstove (a hearthstone type) sits in the corner of our living room, the outside walls of which are all glass sliding windows. Due to the construction of our house (not just the windows), it is very drafty, and while the ceiling fan has helped (both summer and winter), I keep thinking that one of those stove fans would be nice to put the heat out into the middle of the room as well, or at least blow towards Mrs. UTS.

SteveA, let us know how it is, so I can decide if I want to spend the money or not!!!!!!:D

I have one
 

I have a sterling engine fan and I think that they work really well. I had the eco fan and "upgraded" to this fan

http://www.thermalengines.com/

Once you get the fan moving, if moves the air in the room. I would also agree with the members who suggested a ceiling fan.

good luck

Newbie

Thanks
 

I did see the Heat Wave while looking around the internet, but it was more expensive. And I'm cheap. :emb:

Thanks for all of the advice! I ordered the Ecofan today after talking to a fellow worker. He loves his and claims it has really helped spread the heat.

I don't really have "head room" for a fan.

UTS... I found it on Amazon for $119.99 with free 2 day shipping. That was for the three bladed model.

Hearthstone stove
 

and so I am not sure that the Ecofan will work well with that surface. I may have to go with the sterling fan. right now I have some other issues around the house that need attention...unless I can get Mrs UTS to want a little more heat from the stove:rolleye1:.

I have onee of these and it works great!!!!
http://www.northlineexpress.com/item...sp?ic=5VZ-HR-6

Not this exact model but the same idea. It takes the heat that goes up the pipe and blows through the vent pipe and doesnt waste it just going up and out the pipe.

Cheaper, and effective...
 

Also pictured at the above site is one of these:

http://tbn1.google.com/images?q=tbn:...at-405x664.jpg

I own one of above—bought 2nd-hand—and never installed it.

Instead, I installed a 10" steel stovepipe around a new stainless steel 6" pipe—encasing the 6" pipe—then added a 10-inch "T" turned 90° at the ceiling.

Any fan can be used to blow warm air into the "T" from the ceiling downwards, collecting heat from the 6" pipe. (But also can be aligned to draw the heated air from the 10" pipe at the "T" and direct the warm air downwards, utilizing the natural inclination of heat to rise).

Since the 10" pipe doesn't have to withstand high temperatures, it can be spray-painted any color wanted prior to installation. :cool:

(Deposits inside the 6" new pipe since has reduced its effectiveness over these five years, but deposits will affect the other designs from the above site as well).

In a one-story home, the first effect is immediate, but over a short time the "wind-chill" factor reduces its effectiveness. It's not used when there's people "about" for that reason.

One good old trick is to add a cast-iron pot of water on top of the wood stove to add water vapor into the air.

That "feel" of warm, humid air can make you peel off the sweaters! :eek:

Ecofan
 

My Ecofan arrived and we put it to work yesterday. I must say it is encouraging to buy a product that does exactly what it claims to do.
It really works well and spreads the heat around the room. It also serves as a good indicator of the stove temp.. When it starts to slow down, it's time to get my lazy butt out of the Lazy Boy and add more wood. :laugh:
I swear, you could post a request for "do it yourself brain surgery" out here and get good advice. THANKS :cheers:
(Well FLL would send me off to Walmart for a discounted home surgery kit, but that's another thread :eek:)

finally got one...
 

I got the Ecofan off Amazon (2 blade) for $79 and free shipping. Got it today, set it on the Hearthstone stove on the back left corner, angled it toward Mrs. UTS. It does move the air towards her little corner of the world.

It is amazing to watch, as Steve A says earlier, it is nice to see something work as advertised.

And an apology to our webmaster. I was following a series of Google links, ended up on Amazon and ordered the fan. As I hit the last enter button, I realized I could have accessed Amazon from this website and helped Don out. Sorry Don...(insert picture of Upthesaukee with his head hung down) :)

Oh, and the Heat Fans are no longer being manufactured as of Jan 2009.

Eco fan
 

I'm Skeptical
 

$150...? Let's try this. A simple table fan..($15.) aimed AT the stove..from whatever angle..Off to the side..or behind the stove...blowing the Hot Air coming OFF the stove... OFF to somewhere else. Just wondering... :look: Simple is as Simple does.......:) NB

A little fun with math...
 

Your $15 dollar fan if used 24 hours a day, (like my Ecofan is used) will use about $23.00 per month of electricity. That number is from these PSNH charts. Don't be fooled by the 50 hours they show for "average monthly use" we have our stove burning 24-7, 720 hours per month, from mid October to mid march. ( 5 Months )

https://www.psnh.com/energycalculato...anceusage.aspx

The 3 blade model is $127 with free shipping on Amazon.

So the math (for us, your results may vary :D) After a $15 dollar fan, and $23 a month electricity, the Ecofan was a "push" in about 5 months and all "profit" for the life of the Ecofan. (We've had ours for 3 full heating seasons going on 4) :):)
Plus fans are noisy, even the best ones, and the Ecofan is completely silent. ;)

So we're several hundred dollars to the good vs. a fan. :cheers:

My thoughts
 

I am not sure that I would want to have an electrical fan that close to my wood stove. Our living room is about 16 x 20, with large glass windows on 3 sides. The hearth is in the left rear corner of the room from where the wife and I sit, with the stove sitting across the angle of the corner. The hearth area definitely gets very warm.

We did try a fan a few years ago blowing from the left edge of the hearth area across the stove, with little effect. We also tried it going the other way. Wife could feel a little effect, not much, but what was a pain to listen to the noise of the fan. The TV sits to our right of the stove and the noise was a noticible distraction.

Fast forward to our Ecofan, and it sits on the left rear of the stove, drawing in relatively cooler air from the rear of the stove and pushing the warmer air over the stove out the front area of the stove. It doesn't push as much air as the electrical fan, but there is no fear of melting or damage to the fan by heat, and best of all, there is no noise...I mean none...zero noise.

It will be interesting to see the effect it has as the temps drop this week.

All in all, I am happy with the fan so far and it costs nothing to run 24/7. :)

And Steve A: as you doing the math, and I was wondering about it as I type the above, we obviously had the same thoughts. Had to edit my post to catch up to you. Have a happy and warm new year!!! :)

Thank UTS,

I love the change of seasons here in the LR. The change I like most is from "wood stove" to "golf clubs". :laugh:

I'll take "Fore" over "Freezing" anytime. :D

Just Curious
 

I'm just curious where the $23./month operating cost figure to run a table fan came from. My electric bill during the winter is only about $80./month for Everything in the house, including an oil furnace/hot water, etc. (1400 square feet)

I checked the literature that came with one of my Cheap table fans and there is NO Technical Specs listing Current draw OR Wattage drawn by the fan. :D :D

YES: I saw the chart. The fans listed are NOT table fans. They are 200-500 Watts. NB

More Math...
 

Here's the formula to figure the cost of running any electrical device:

wattage x hours used ÷ 1000 x price per kWh = cost of electricity

For example, let's say you leave a 100-watt bulb running continuously (730 hours a month), and you're paying 17.64¢/kWh. (current PSNH rate is 17.64¢)

Your cost to run that bulb all month is 100 x 730hrs ÷ 1000 x 17.64¢ = $12.88

The watts listed on an appliance is the number of watts used per hour.

If your fan doesn't list wattage, but it does list amps, then just multiply the amps times the voltage to get the watts. For example:

2.5 amps x 120 volts = 300 watts :)

You're correct, I did base my number on 200 watts from the chart. I should have added " Your Mileage may vary!" :emb::emb:

Happy New Year NB! :cheers:

YUP: The first thing to consider when doing calculations like this is the validity of the basic numbers. I noticed in the chart compiled by the NH Utility, the First Item at the top of the chart was a One Horsepower compressor @1000 Watts.

The problem is with the assumption that one horespower equals 1000 Watts. It does NOT. One horsepower equalls 745.7 Watts. This minor "Error" throws suspicion on the valiidity of the entire rest of the chart, no matter how usefull the chart would seem.

I suspect the chart was an attempt by the NH Utility to cause the uninformed reader to say to himself..OMG, "Danger Danger Will Robinson", MUST save energy, I'm wasting energy and ruining the planet...MUST cut back. .......:D NB

Ecofan
 

We have one and it worked well for about four? years. we were happy with it, really soundless, and moved the air. Now it won't work and we don't know why. Haven't actually tried to find out why it doesn't work, but it does not. You have to keep it on the back edge of the stove to work correctly.