Keeping a barrel stove kit just in case?
 

The guy in that video suggested it.

The kit itself is under $100. The barrel can be had for $50 or less. The needed pipe and parts would be significantly more.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vogelzang-De...item337c34e123

However, in regard to preps, heat in the winter (for colder climates) is vital.

But it's pretty compact and portable. So whether for your current home or a BOL...this seems to be a nice heating package so long as you're handy with a reciprocating saw and a drill.

What are your thoughts?

Thanks!

-Emt1581

For me - no
 

EMT - the problem is that you can always create a scenario in which to buy specific equipment.

The guy hooked it up in a basement. Depending upon your area in the country, many houses do not or cannot have a basement. Most people don't have the storage space.

Bugout location -

same problems as usually spoken. Most people do not have a secure bug out location. So, you might just be furnishing for the next guy.

If you don't want to cook in the first 30-90 days because it would attract attention, don't buy.

If you don't have a fuel supply, don't buy.

If you have a woods out back, you probably will cook in a separate structure like the old days, or just cook outside.

If you are urban, a barbecue pit or outdoor barbecue with a few tanks of propane will be enough.

If you live in Minn in the wild or Maine, you are going to buy comforters and warm clothing first and not primarily rely upon a basement stove.

This is why I keep 6- 30lb bags of charcoal and a small grill cached away. Its my third source for cooking.

If I were going the stove route, I'd definitely go with a higher grade airtight stove. You can still cook on it and it will use wood much more efficiently (read less wood consumed).

After a week without power a few years back, a gas grill proved its worth. Cooking outside was the way to go too, as it was warm enough to not want additional heat in the house.

I'll have to disagree with this. Wood heat is a key part of life up here for many people, particularly those of us who have land, but not lots of cash. warm clothing IS a big part of it, you are right about that, but a well insulated and heated BOL or house is where you will want to be when that clothing is wet with freezing rain or wet snow.
One of my winter projects is a knockdown type tent cabin, heated with a small woodstove that nearly anyone can build. Once done, I'll do a video of it- i though of this as someone was lamenting they could not afford a BOL. our nation was founded with shelters like these.
As far as a woodstove, i'd recommend installing it NOW, and learning to use it. Then you can take it out, cap off the chimner connection, and use your oil or whatever, then install the woodstove when you need it. They often go in the center of the house, not always the basement.

Oh I already have and LOVE a wood stove. One of THE best buys I ever made. Talk about off the grid!!!

I'm anxious to see this stove you are building so please do report back.

I saw some english guy on youtube last night that actually made one from a 50 cal. ammo can!! Had a little door on the front and everything!

I was just thinking that if I could put a stove kit in a barrel, seal it off and keep it in the corner of my prep area or at a BOL for decades....it could prove useful although it'd take some work. So maybe building ahead of time would be the better idea.

-Emt1581

That sounds wonderful. :thumbsup:

How far from your BOL is your primary residence?

Will you leave the stove at your BOL, or will you store at home and then pack it when you bug out?

There are better things than a barrel conversion for heating with wood. You can find them used on Craigslist for about the same price as this would be new.Like everything else, use it now to save money and become proficient. Save on heating expense by keeping it colder in the winter.

Cutting/splitting wood would be very difficult without chainsaw & something to bring the wood back with!

As a lifelong Mainer I will second this. My primary heat source is a woodstove in the center of my basement, 2 floor vents above it and a small fan pushing the heat up the stairway. I prefer this arrangement to having it on the main floor because it heats the whole house without overheating the main living rooms.

As to the OP - For what you are describing there are FAR better turn-key stoves out there than a barrell conversion kit.

Google up some outfitter tent stoves and/or military stoves...they collapse and all the pipe fits inside, when not being used they are basically a metal rectangle. I know guys that use them in their ice houses and they throw plenty of heat.

The time and effort involved in converting a barrell does not equal the monetary savings.

I have a barrel wood stove in my shop. Its free to operate and works quite well. I blow a fan over it to help circulate the heat.

I checked on those folding stoves...awesome suggestion!!!

However, I called up Cabelas today and they advised against using them indoors citing tents had far different and improved breathability/ventilation in them.

Personally I figure as long as I'm using the correct piping/thimbles/etc....should not matter but the guy just kept saying they were not able to endorse such a thing.

Anyone have any thoughts on this?

Personally, I'd love to be able to use this a few times a year down in my basement's fireplace (terracotta lined brick with a 13" hearth in front of it. But if it is going to smoke us out or present a fire hazard it wouldn't work the same way a barrel might.

Thanks

-Emt1581

My main concern would be carbon monoxide buildup.

Are you saying you have a fireplace in the basement, and are thinking of putting the barrel stove there - inside the fireplace?

No. I sort of blended two topics together. In another forum I was trying to figure out how to cheaply heat my basement via wood.

But yes, I have seen people do it. So long as you pipe the barrel right you're fine.

-Emt1581

Keeping a barrel stove kit and a few pieces of pipe may be a good thing to stash for SHTF especially if space is an issue (use the barrel to keep food rodent-free), but you can do better.

Barrel stoves are STUPID HOT. Like great for heating shops (uninsulated metal 6000+ ft buildings with high roofs), but really too much for most houses, even in a basement.

I can build a cob oven fireplace for free (just sweat) that is better at heating than the barrel stove.

Here's a Vogelzang stove I was looking at at Harbor Freight for this same reason. I've seen them on sale for $129

http://www.harborfreight.com/cast-ir...ove-32058.html

I've spoken of and researched them on a forum that ONLY deals in stoves. They are total junk. Plus the double walled piping you need to to make them safe will dwarf that price immediately. Add a zero just for the pipe, depending on your home.

I was quite exited about it to and for the price I figured it'd be fun to play around with.

-Emt1581

The little fold up sheet metal stoves like what the .mil uses/have used are alright, but a cast iron stove, is a much better choice. They last longer, and are much tougher.


My hunting tent uses a Colorado Cylinder stove, http://www.coloradocylinderstoves.com/ but I'll be uprgrading soon.


As for heating with a barrel stove, inside a fireplace. Yes, you can do it. So long as the smoke from your stove, does not exceed the ability of the chimney to vent it. However, you'll loose alot of your heat, as its reflected into the bricks, and not out. Much better to have a stove designed for the task, instead of a stove, inside a fireplace.

Actually the brick can absorb the heat and act as an extension of the stove. Plus my heatilators don't hurt. If the brick/stone is not connected to an exterior it is pretty much pure heat being spit back out into the area.

What you mentioned is why I'm not a fan of inserts...well the loss of heat plus they need electricity.

But if the barrel puts off a ton of heat, the loss might not matter much.

-Emt1581

barrels get hot. Damned hot.


My shop has one for when I don't feel like running the gas stove. or I feel like being warmer than I have it set for.

1,000 sq feet, with a 30 ft roof, and I can heat the shop to the point of not wanting to be in there.

Yeah, I've sat around more than a few barrel stoves in some hunting camps and I'll guarantee you one thing. They work fine. Maybe not the most asthetic stove you'll ever see. But you won't have a problem with the thing throwing off heat.

You don't need double walled pipe to make a stove safe any more than you need a push button safety on a lever action rifle to make it safe. Wood stoves existed in people's homes for hundreds of years before double walled pipe came out. You do need some common sense in terms of how and where you set up a stove with plain stove pipe. And you do need to maintain it to keep it free of creosote buildup.

But this is a viable option for emergency heat in you home and if you are a hillbilly it might be your only option.

I agree that a barrel stove will throw off incredible amounts of heat. I am not sure of the longevityof the barrels though. I know that when I was growing up we used 55 gallon barrels as trash burning barrels and they tended to last about a year before being used up. Not sure if indoor wood burning would last substantially longer or not.

If you could, please talk more about the single wall and the how and where part...

I only ask because I've heard a few people talk about trying it and the pipe burns through quite quickly.

Sure would save a ton of money if it could be done safely. The piping is really the expensive part!

Thanks!

-Emt1581

I've seen them last 20+ years.

I'm not sure how your burn barrel was kept but most I've seen usually have thoroughly rusted within a short time because the bare steel is exposed to the elements year round.

Just my .02 on the issue and mind you, I've never tried one myself.

-Emt1581

Yes, I suspect the elements was the big problem combined with the frequent hot heat of the burning. They were galvanized barrels, the ones that were not used for burning ( stored wire in some) never rusted.

Singe wall stove pipe works fine. You can't back the stove up to the wall if its stick frame/drywall construction. Need to give it a foot or more clearance. You can buy the standard stove pipe at any Tractor Supply etc. I think it comes in 3 or 4' lengths and there are 90 degree elbows and wll plates for transition through walls etc.

Like I said...use some common sense. Keep it clean and keep it away from things that burn Don't burn green wood or coniferous woods that create a lot of creosote.

Line the bottom of the stove with some fire brick or use some exapnded mesh to keep the fire off the bottom and it will last a lot longer. Firebricks are cheap but heavy.