Excellent explanation of all the steps involved. I just finished a shop-built exchanger for our fireplace on a covered patio, but it's not as nice as yours. I used 1- 1/2" pipe with 1/8" wall thickness - 6 pipes total. I can't calculate the increase in efficiency & volume of heat produced. The fireplace was just for the ambience before, but we can now sit outside on a 45° night in shorts & T-shirts. VERY labor intensive, however.
This is simply amazing. I've been looking for a good in-depth viddo about this... Thank you!!! I'm sharing everywhere! Idk how the hell this video isn't more popular! Thanks again!!!!
Thank you. I really appreciate that. I've fired it up a few times this year for our cold season. Still going strong. Pipes up top are experiencing delamination but hasn't penetrated yet.
I'm happy that works for you. Did you build it? As far as comparisons go, I can only consider the efficiency of my fireplace before and after installation of my DIY unit and it's certainly a significant improvement. Thanks for watching.
What about adding a rectangular ceramic catalysts to burn wood gas thus giving you additional heat. I have noticed that much of the heat is waisted in unburnt gases escaping through the chimney. Also installing heat reflectors inside the fireplace might increase the temp and heat generated in the fireplace. I believe the ceramic catalyst have to reach at least 500 degrees F in order to burn the gases released from the wood.
Great ideas. I don't have the time to engineer a catalyst into the design but the heat reflectors could be a good return on the time taken to install them. Cheers.
Do you have any concerns with the tubing material or thickness? I want to use something as thin as possible without worrying about damaging it over time. It looks like mild steel is the only realistically cost effective option
Mine too, haha. I regret the choices. Royalty free music is lacking but this was my first major project video so I'll know better next time. Cheers for the drama and yelling 👍
Good question. The whole unit is removable. It's quite easy to tilt forward and lift out. The fireplace is next to my front door so dragging ashes through the house isn't a problem.
Ok, that's sounds easy but if I'm using this as a primary heat source that seems rather time consuming and inefficient to let the fire burn out, clean, and rebuild fire. When using a woodstove insert, I have to clean out ashes on average of twice a week.
@@tillerbeez6575 That would be inefficient. I have the original grill raised up on ceramic bricks to allow space for the pipes. So there's quite a lot of room underneath and if I use a low ash wood such as red gum then cleaning isn't required for at least a week.
Hello Jason! I've come across your design a few times, and overall, I must say kudos to your work. I am working on something similar to get better energy, but the first big question I have is do you have an idea of the gains you made from going from 9 larger diameter pipes to your smaller 19mm pipes? I was looking at using 25.4mm OD pipes (or even 51mm) as they are readily available including the 90 degree bends. I have an older HE downstairs that uses 3" (72mm) pipes X 4 and I get a ton of heat out of that in a large firebox. I've hit 200C on average. I know you have a larger surface area contacting the pipes with a greater number over a larger area...but is it worth the time? PS - what steel did you use?
Thanks for your kind words. I wouldn't recommend choosing the smaller diameter pipes to maximise surface area if time is tight for you. By far, the most time-consuming part of the build was pipe bending. I'm sure my design is more efficient but I'm no mathematician. I can only assume that if you half the diameter, you double the efficiency of heat transfer. I went through a number of other designs before settling on the final one. The first one was one single large car exhaust. Then I learned about surface area so I maxed it. Didn't know what I got myself into. However, I think I have too many pipes because unless you get the fire spread out over the full width of the exchanger, the edge pipes will receive little of the energy that is usually concentrated within ~40 cm in the centre. So, if you have time, go for smaller pipes but fewer of them situated only above where the fire is. I can keep my hand in front of the outlets on about 3 pipes either side but not in the centre. If you don't have time, larger pipes, say 7 or 8 x 25.4 mm over the centre of the fire would be sufficient. Just make sure you have a blower, preferably quiet, capable of taking advantage of the total cross sectional area. I'm still super stoked how my build worked out. It's still going strong. But in hindsight, the design is mad for how little time I had. The steel is plain old mild steel, ERW tube. Good luck with your build. Will you post a video on it?
@@mozkitolife5437 thank you very much for your reply. My thoughts are exactly aligned to using a concentration of mass over the center of the fire. I've even toyed with the idea of firebrick over the top to force the smoke around the side vs just exhausting straight up. We'll see. I'll post a video reply for you once done.
True, I have been checking it but the pipes seem to be hole free. It's running right now. After it cools down I'll scrub it with a wire brush to remove flakes and check properly.
That all depends on your insulation. Mine is rubbish because I live in Australia and older homes are terrible. But we never get down to -5. If you had good insulation, then yeah, this would easily warm your rooms up from -5.
You seem to have built a great heat exchanger. I've been thinking of a project like this myself, it does seem like a lot of work. How many hours total do you figure you put into it?
Thank you for commenting and asking a great question. It was a lot of work, spread out over about 1.5 years due to family commitments. I'd estimate 120 hours. Of course it would be shorter if you had a pipe bender, prior welding experience, and no distractions to break your focus. I really appreciate your time and I hope this inspires you to build something great and long lasting.
Yes, I just happened this watch a video the other day that had no music and narration that I thought was well produced and easy to watch, you might agree. ua-cam.com/video/b9UPihp04xY/v-deo.html
Super! Wish it could be productized into a box like structure and chimney/woodstove! Glad I came across this
Looks easy to make right?! Wrong ..he is a PRO and that's why it seems easy on a video ..great job Sir 👍
Ingenious! Thank you.
Excellent explanation of all the steps involved. I just finished a shop-built exchanger for our fireplace on a covered patio, but it's not as nice as yours. I used 1- 1/2" pipe with 1/8" wall thickness - 6 pipes total. I can't calculate the increase in efficiency & volume of heat produced. The fireplace was just for the ambience before, but we can now sit outside on a 45° night in shorts & T-shirts.
VERY labor intensive, however.
This is simply amazing. I've been looking for a good in-depth viddo about this... Thank you!!! I'm sharing everywhere! Idk how the hell this video isn't more popular!
Thanks again!!!!
This is the best video I found with such great detail. Thank you for sharing. Excellent job!
Thank you. I really appreciate that. I've fired it up a few times this year for our cold season. Still going strong. Pipes up top are experiencing delamination but hasn't penetrated yet.
Great job! VERY well done sir!
Thank you for your encouragement!
I have a heatform by superior you will never beat that ever
I'm happy that works for you. Did you build it? As far as comparisons go, I can only consider the efficiency of my fireplace before and after installation of my DIY unit and it's certainly a significant improvement. Thanks for watching.
great job. I will try to make one just like yours. could you tell me what is the inside diameter of the pipes are please. thanks
Thank you very much. 19 mm. Good luck! I hope you don't have kids to distract you. This took me a long time to complete.
great job. what is the thickness & the diameter of the pipes and other other materials used. thx
Thank you. Please see 0:44 for those dimensions.
What about adding a rectangular ceramic catalysts to burn wood gas thus giving you additional heat. I have noticed that much of the heat is waisted in unburnt gases escaping through the chimney. Also installing heat reflectors inside the fireplace might increase the temp and heat generated in the fireplace. I believe the ceramic catalyst have to reach at least 500 degrees F in order to burn the gases released from the wood.
Great ideas. I don't have the time to engineer a catalyst into the design but the heat reflectors could be a good return on the time taken to install them. Cheers.
Would you recommend increasing the airflow?
Yes. But that might mean more noise.
Planning on having the fan in basement and running a vent up through the ash pit
Do you have any concerns with the tubing material or thickness? I want to use something as thin as possible without worrying about damaging it over time. It looks like mild steel is the only realistically cost effective option
That's all I used and it hasn't burned away yet. I think it's 2 mm thick. It's in the video.
Great plan and execution. Is the pipe used aluminum or steel?
@23:50...?
GOOD INFO BUT YOUR SOUND TRACK MADE MY I Q DROP BY 40 POINTS.
Mine too, haha. I regret the choices. Royalty free music is lacking but this was my first major project video so I'll know better next time. Cheers for the drama and yelling 👍
you the man!!!
Cheers. Thanks for the support 👍
what about metal emissions ??
Can you elaborate what compounds you're concerned about? Any oxides etc?
Excatly how do you get the ashes from under the exchanger?
Good question. The whole unit is removable. It's quite easy to tilt forward and lift out. The fireplace is next to my front door so dragging ashes through the house isn't a problem.
Ok, that's sounds easy but if I'm using this as a primary heat source that seems rather time consuming and inefficient to let the fire burn out, clean, and rebuild fire. When using a woodstove insert, I have to clean out ashes on average of twice a week.
@@tillerbeez6575
That would be inefficient. I have the original grill raised up on ceramic bricks to allow space for the pipes. So there's quite a lot of room underneath and if I use a low ash wood such as red gum then cleaning isn't required for at least a week.
Hello Jason! I've come across your design a few times, and overall, I must say kudos to your work. I am working on something similar to get better energy, but the first big question I have is do you have an idea of the gains you made from going from 9 larger diameter pipes to your smaller 19mm pipes? I was looking at using 25.4mm OD pipes (or even 51mm) as they are readily available including the 90 degree bends. I have an older HE downstairs that uses 3" (72mm) pipes X 4 and I get a ton of heat out of that in a large firebox. I've hit 200C on average. I know you have a larger surface area contacting the pipes with a greater number over a larger area...but is it worth the time?
PS - what steel did you use?
Thanks for your kind words.
I wouldn't recommend choosing the smaller diameter pipes to maximise surface area if time is tight for you. By far, the most time-consuming part of the build was pipe bending. I'm sure my design is more efficient but I'm no mathematician. I can only assume that if you half the diameter, you double the efficiency of heat transfer. I went through a number of other designs before settling on the final one. The first one was one single large car exhaust. Then I learned about surface area so I maxed it. Didn't know what I got myself into.
However, I think I have too many pipes because unless you get the fire spread out over the full width of the exchanger, the edge pipes will receive little of the energy that is usually concentrated within ~40 cm in the centre. So, if you have time, go for smaller pipes but fewer of them situated only above where the fire is. I can keep my hand in front of the outlets on about 3 pipes either side but not in the centre.
If you don't have time, larger pipes, say 7 or 8 x 25.4 mm over the centre of the fire would be sufficient. Just make sure you have a blower, preferably quiet, capable of taking advantage of the total cross sectional area.
I'm still super stoked how my build worked out. It's still going strong. But in hindsight, the design is mad for how little time I had.
The steel is plain old mild steel, ERW tube.
Good luck with your build. Will you post a video on it?
@@mozkitolife5437 thank you very much for your reply. My thoughts are exactly aligned to using a concentration of mass over the center of the fire. I've even toyed with the idea of firebrick over the top to force the smoke around the side vs just exhausting straight up. We'll see.
I'll post a video reply for you once done.
How long did it last? Fires get pretty hot must have burned a hole through the pipe
True, I have been checking it but the pipes seem to be hole free. It's running right now. After it cools down I'll scrub it with a wire brush to remove flakes and check properly.
do you warm the room with this if it is -5 ° outside?
That all depends on your insulation. Mine is rubbish because I live in Australia and older homes are terrible.
But we never get down to -5.
If you had good insulation, then yeah, this would easily warm your rooms up from -5.
You seem to have built a great heat exchanger. I've been thinking of a project like this myself, it does seem like a lot of work. How many hours total do you figure you put into it?
Thank you for commenting and asking a great question.
It was a lot of work, spread out over about 1.5 years due to family commitments.
I'd estimate 120 hours. Of course it would be shorter if you had a pipe bender, prior welding experience, and no distractions to break your focus.
I really appreciate your time and I hope this inspires you to build something great and long lasting.
What kind of pipe is that? -looks like electrical conduit
Just mild steel, 19 mm OD ERW tube. Could be used to run cables. I used an off-cut to protect the temp sensor and fan power wires.
Nix the music
Agreed. Tried my best with royalty free YT music. Do you think I could do this type of thing again but narrate as much as possible?
Yes, I just happened this watch a video the other day that had no music and narration that I thought was well produced and easy to watch, you might agree.
ua-cam.com/video/b9UPihp04xY/v-deo.html
Would you sell one of this you just made
@@ashrafiehelwadi Possibly. What do you think it's worth?