The cost of an outdoor wood furnace system depends upon factors such as how much heat is needed, and how many buildings to be heated, but system costs range from $9,000 to over $15,000.

Outdoor Wood Furnaces are Definitely worth it! All studies show that the single cheapest way to heat any building is with firewood. An outdoor wood furnace provides the most convenience since it only needs to be loaded once or twice per day.

Outdoor wood furnace efficiency ratings are measured in many ways and this can be deceptive. Some rating methods are hard to understand. Most commonly, “efficiency” is measured based on “What percent of BTUs in the fuel go into your building?” With all fuels, some of the heat from the fuel must go up the chimney to eliminate contaminants, but this “lost heat” needs to be minimized. If 100,000 BTUs of wood fuel is put into an outdoor furnace, and 80,000 BTUs of heat are sent to the home, then that outdoor furnace efficiency can be rated at 80%. Most of the high efficiency outdoor boilers achieve 80% or more efficiency.

An Outdoor Furnace can be located from 50 to 500 feet from your house. Insurance companies prefer that the outdoor boiler be located at least 50 feet from the house. And depending upon the location of your wood pile, landscaping, and perhaps other buildings, some outdoor boiler owners have their boilers 500 feet from their home.

An outdoor boiler system will cost from $9,000 to $15,000 or more, depending upon how much space you need to heat, and how many buildings are being heated.

Yes, you can still buy outdoor wood boilers. Here are some options: Traditional outdoor boilers are still available for commercial use. For residential use, High efficiency outdoor boilers are now available that meet EPA standards. Also for residential use, some homeowners have switched to outdoor coal boilers, because the EPA does not regulate coal burning for residential use, and outdoor coal boilers have a very similar design to outdoor wood boilers. Another option is to purchase a used outdoor boiler, which are also not regulated by the EPA.

There are over 35 manufacturers of outdoor wood boilers, and perhaps more than 100 different models that have been sold to customers in the US and Canada. Asking which one is the best is like asking which truck is best – Ford, Chevy or Dodge…the answer will always be different.

Outdoor wood boilers can add up to $250,000 to the retirement savings of a homeowner, since firewood is the most economical way to heat a home or any building. Most people would agree that when such savings are achievable, this is a very wise investment.

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Outdoor wood furnaces are simple heaters – they consist of a firebox (that burns firewood) that is surrounded by a tank of water. An automatic fan turns on and off to keep the water heated to 180 degrees. Since the outdoor boiler is usually placed about 100 feet away from the home or building, the water is pumped underground through insulated pipes to the building that needs heat. Inside the building (your home), the hot water interfaces with your current heating system via a “heat exchanger” (see link HERE). For most homes with forced air heating, the heat exchanger looks like a car radiator that fits into the heating ducts and heats the circulating air. The in-home furnace switches to “fan-only” mode and just circulates air that is heated by the warm water circulating from the outdoor boiler. For homes with an indoor boiler, in-floor heating, or baseboard radiant heaters, a “water-to-water plate heat exchanger” is used to transfer heat from the outdoor boiler water to the indoor system, without mixing the fluids. These plate heat exchangers can also be used to provide endless hot water for domestic hot water use.