Hi Steve and thanks for your response.
As you can guess, electricity is a valuable resource to have off grid.
I chose to experiment with TEG’s for the main reason as you explained. We have a good contrast in temperatures here in northern Minnesota in the winter. In the middle of December, we have 8 1/2 hours of daylight. That and the efficiency of LED’s nowadays, I feel I can make good use for my wood stove. I did ruin this setup already and waiting for more Chinese TEG’s to be delivered soon. I was a little rough with how I handled the last set.
I think I can achieve a 200-300 degree gradient temperature and maintain the integrity of the TEG’s
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Bill take a good look at the junction sodder temperature rating. I toasted my first set as well. The problem of course is the ones made with the non silver based high temp sodder are crazy expensive.
Best regards David
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Thanks for the info David.
I picked up a 4wd 1997 RAM with a V8. I checked on DOW before I bought it to make sure someone has already been down this path. Discovering Terry L fed his wood gas I gave him a call. I don’t have plans to wood gas this truck right away, I just want the option. It has brand new tires, steering box, some other front end work, brakes and a different used transmission.
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Sure does look nice for the age. Most dodge products here would look like 4 tires and some window glass sitting in a pile of rust here. The others wouldn’t be that much better…
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I’ll have to remember that description.
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When I moved from Wisconsin to Colorado I was surprised to find that bolts under a 5 year old car or truck didn’t twist off. Needed a light more. No holes in the floor so it was darker underneath.
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I for got to add, the truck shuts off at idle when it’s warmed up, not all the time. It won’t start back up unless I flutter the gas pedal.
Does anyone have an answer for this problem? I would like to purchase the one part if it can be pinned down to that. I’m getting mixed results online.
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its pretty common for the idol air valve to get crap in them spray carb cleaner in the valve port while goosing the throttle this works most of the time .
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New project.
Last year was my first year making Maple syrup. I upgraded the first evaporator shortly after making a batch of syrup. It worked great. I ended up with 3 gallons of syrup and found out it wasn’t near enough for the demand.
I acquired a 265 gallon heating oil barrel last fall for the purpose of upgrading again. This should hold 40 gallons of SAP at one time. I’m adding a preheat second tier that will hold 5 gallons.
The trees are already starting to run which is about a month early. So I really need to get busy.
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We used to use 600 gallon stock tanks. Then it was switched to a stainless steel milk tank. And the 250 gallon plastic water tanks are used in the woods now.
It depends on where you are but I would check food laws. I doubt using an old oil tank for food you are going to sell is legal. They don’t even let you use the pills in the tree anymore.
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I wouldn’t think the tank would mater for the burner but it probably does laws are funny. I always wanted to build a brick burner for syrup so the fire brick would hold more even heat. But I have never bothered setting up for syrup. And now around here big companies have come in and setup massive evaporator pretty much driving the small local guys out.
Take a look at the video I posted about adding secondary air to a wood stove. If you ran a couple of 1 inch pipes down the lenght of the boiler to preheat secondary air then back like a big u with 1/8 inch holes down it you will get alot more efficient usage of your wood and more heat. I think that would save a ton of fire wood making syrup.
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I really like that idea, thank you. Are you talking about using black pipe? Is the a more economical material?
I think most anything would work but I was thinking black ion. It just needs to take the heat of the fire. In a wood stove you put fire brick above the pipe to take the heat but in this setup I would think you could keep the pipes a reasonable distance from the bottom of the evaporator so you don’t make hot spots and it would be fine. You should have more space in this then a wood stove.
Actually I misread what he was doing. 
He should be good to go if that is the arch.
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You could probably run it through the flue. You don’t really want to use the heat you are trying to boil with to heat incoming air. What you are talking about is more like the vortex arch. forced air will probably help more. And the “steam away” unit is just wicked.
Sean I think the blower will just burn the wood faster thus more heat but it won’t burn it completely or cleanly. I think you need secondary air to burn the gas and tars. It would be more like a rocket stove with secondary air.
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Rocket stoves are like 90% efficient.
The forced air system “This unit will increase BTUs by 10-20%, reduce wood
consumption by 30-50% and even out your boiling.”
However adding secondary air so it mixes well, and adding a ton of insulation helps more.
"he VORTEX is Leader’s most efficient wood-fired
arch. The large combustion chamber is fueled by
both primary and secondary air, under controlled
rotation, to optimize the burn of your wood and
distribute BTUs evenly and efficiently to your
evaporator pans. The unique step in the back of the
arch acts as a spark trap and draft control system.
Comes insulated with multiple layers of 2600° ceramic
blanket, requiring minimal bricking in the combustion
chambers and under the smoke stack. "
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SeanO’M
Rocket “stoves” are the most over-hyped gob in the current wood-for-power endeavor.
Rocket combustion is forced, over-aired high velocity combustion of very small amounts of woody fuel. Usually done in a small batch “use immediate heat” like an Asian wok, 3rd world mini cooking stove; or done in a heat retaining for later heat slow bleeding out Mass heater. Fine for those. Dependent for constant human attention to those small feed batches of woody materials.
For long duration, need hours of thermal input like sap reduction, water-boiler, steam-power making you do not use a Rocket-velocity type combustion!! Use a moderate velocity, large fuel volume l-o-n-g duration combustion process.
And yes. These too can be 90% fuel energy efficient. No visible smoke clean burning. Once up to clean burn operating temperature; large batch re-fuel. Walk away unattended for hours.
Make usable wood powered Tools, not numbers stunting Toys.
J-I-C Steve Unruh
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