No wood shop would be complete without a wood stove. There are always scraps to burn for heat in a wood shop. I decided to go with the "Harman Mark I" coal stove that also burns wood. It is the smallest stove they offer which heats up to 1400 sq ft. I fired it up yesterday for the first time and the temp last night fell into the teens. It did very well after the paint smell burned off the stove. I loaded it full with coal and it lasted all night and half of today. I didn't see any smoke and the shop is very comfortable. Coal burns hotter than wood but has more ash. I can mix wood and coal together. The coal also helps keep creosote out of the chimney.
The chimney for the 12/12 pitch roof was very tall and very scary to install (by myself). I am not afraid of heights, just widths. All went well and I look forward to finishing the hardwood flooring so I can get moved in. 
I've never burned coal before and am curious about it. How would you weight the pros v. cons over wood? Thanks kindly and by the way the shop is looking great.
ReplyDeleteI have only used the stove now for 3 days so my advice is limited. however I did burn wood one day then coal the others and the coal burns hotter, cleaner with no flame. The coal should keep the chimney clean unlike wood. The coal burned for more than 24 hours with a full load but took a while to get going. You get more ashes from the coal than wood but not really an issue. I think I will be burning more wood in this stove since my fuel will be free. The coal is $8 a bag which last about 2 days. The standard blower attachment on this Harmon stove is nice but a little noisey. Good luck.
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