# Woodburner in a woodshop??



## TheWoodsmith (May 28, 2010)

So i'm getting ready to insulate my shop and install some heating so that i can continue working comfortably through the winter, the shop is 24×24 i believe. I like a woodburner because of the cheap heat and so on being that I have plenty of wood available to me for burning and those straight line rips leave you with plenty of kindling. I guess I just have a problem with having a woodburner in a woodshop. I'm kinda nervous about the thing to be honest my instincts tell me that it'll be fine but i just wondered if i was overlooking any important safty issues regarding a woodburning stove in a room full of sawdust and scrap wood? anyone have two cents???


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## Dark_Lightning (Nov 20, 2009)

I'd say as long as you have good dust collection, you'd probably be OK. But I personally wouldn't do it…or need it, I live in southern California, where it might reach 30F. And my garage door faces the sun, so the garage is usually too hot.


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## woodspark (May 8, 2010)

I have a woodburning stove in my shop. I also have a lot of common sense! It is a great way to get rid of my off cuts, I make a lot! I built the thing myself and in such a way that I can even burn my sawdust, contents of my DC bags. It is an unusual design I found in a old FW magazine. Works a treat.


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## spclPatrolGroup (Jun 23, 2010)

Check with your insurance agent first, make sure it wont void your homeowners, or increase your rates.


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## richardf (Nov 8, 2009)

I have a wood burning stove in my shop for years and no problems at all. Just use common sense when burning, just like the common sense you use when working with your tools. I never have a roaring fire, but just a sensible fire fed off my wood scraps and sawdust. Towards the end of my woodworking day, I stop feeding the stove scraps and let it slowly burn out.


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## wseand (Jan 27, 2010)

I can't seem to think of anything better to have than a nice fire going while doing woodworking. Make sure you have good ventilation, keep combustible far enough away, and just keep it hot enough to be comfortable.


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## TheWoodsmith (May 28, 2010)

Good stuff fella's i'm gonna go ahead and find me a woodstove then. I figured it would be fine, i grew up with wood/coal heat so i am a big fan. This winter maybe i can actually look forward to getting into the shop!


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## Gregn (Mar 26, 2010)

You can also use it to make coffee and heat up lunch. Just remember to clean the flue once or twice a year to keep the creosote down. That causes more fires than anything with wood stoves.


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## richgreer (Dec 25, 2009)

Just make certain you have some fire extinguishers that are charged up and ready to go.


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## Knothead62 (Apr 17, 2010)

Check with a hardware store or box store. I think there is some stuff that you can burn in a fireplace or woodstove that helps eliminate creosote.


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## mtkate (Apr 18, 2009)

Just don't burn pine in it too much. It clogs the ducts with buildup (sap) and you can end up causing a chimney fire.

I simply make sure that dust collection is on and I am not blasting chips over to the stove.


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## jusfine (May 22, 2010)

I also had a woodburning stove in the corner of my old 16×24 shop, and had a fire start due to a failure of a metal support in the chimney system, so I am very cautious about fire in the shop.

I couldn't work in there for a week, just gave me an uneasy feeling.

Currently I use a gas tube (radiant) heater.

I agree with the insurance verification, very important!


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## Lucywu2012 (Jun 25, 2010)

That's easy, take it!


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## willy3486 (Feb 5, 2009)

I have a wood stove in mine as well. Like others said just use caution. Any source of heat can be dangerous if not used properly. I have my stove close to the front door since that area is wasted space. I also have it away from the wall. I have the smokestack away from any wood going through the roof. I used tin for the ceiling so there is no wood close. I also used the double pipe that has a inside pipe. The outside of the pipe is almost cool to the touch. If done properly it works great. I don't have a shop dust collection but I do try to keep it clean. I have a cyclone dust collector that I made I intend to set up in the shop. I want it outside my workshop area in a covered part. I need to get a bigger blower for it so it will pull better.


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## Gator (May 2, 2008)

Woodstoves are not a safe sourse of heat in a wood shop - not only dust, but also chemical fumes are explosive, if you do any kind of finishing.
There have been just to many "near misses" I have seen to ever trust my shop, tools, home or my family to burning wood in my shop.

Watch around for an old direct vent natural gas or propane furnace - they are cheap to run, if you have a way to get gas to your shop, and they pull air from outside so you do not have to worry about dust or vapor explosions.
Just my $0.02.

Gator


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## Manitario (Jul 4, 2010)

Just don't pile your cans of varnish on the stove and you should be ok! Seriously, I'd be careful about doing any finishing in the shop due to the vapours, otherwise a woodstove is a pretty safe way to heat the shop. My father in law has a 15×10 foot shop heated with a woodstove (which gets it way too hot) and it hasn't caused him any trouble. Personally, if I had the room for a woodstove in my shop, I'd get one in an instant.


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## willy3486 (Feb 5, 2009)

I am kind of curious about natural gas or propane being safer. They run on flames as well.I even worked years ago in a factory that made gas appliances. I have seen them effected by fumes as well. I have seen the flame change colors from stuff in the air. I an not knocking either wood or gas but I think it has a lot to do with safety. If your shop has a lot of clutter and junk you may be more likely to have trouble. Myself I have gotten away from varnish with fumes as much as I can. If I do use any flamable I for the most part use it outside. I also sweep and clean my shop often. Lately I have been cleaning out and getting rid of a lot of junk. Electricity for example can cause fires as well, I see at least one housefire every so often due to wiring. But I am not going to pull all my wiring out so it won't burn. I am going to keep it up and use it as safe as I can. Just like I do with my wood stove.


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## NathanAllen (Oct 16, 2009)

willy3486,

Exactly why vented propane/natural gas aren't always the best choice. Along with burning the air in the room (though most have a sensor that will shut off the gas supply if Oxygen levels get too low) they also add moisture.

Much safer vented heaters. I have a direct vent 20k natural gas that is more than adequate for my 20×20 garage.


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## willy3486 (Feb 5, 2009)

I think probably the best heat you can get is one of the fireboxes mounted outside that runs a coil through it. Then the coils water goes into the building and heats it through a radiator. I am not sure of what this setup is called but I think one maker goes by the hardy brand name , I could be wrong on that. But the setup is expensive,runs into thousands of dollars the last I saw.So there is no way I can justify a cost like that for me. My shop is a hobby shop , use it mostly a few hours on the weekends. I use wood because its the cheapest for me. I don't do woodworking for a living but I do it as a hobby. I have other stuff I do so woodworking takes a back seat a lot of times. But for me wood is the best to heat my shop with. It beats no heat when it is 20 outside.


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## Gator (May 2, 2008)

The "in floor" heat is by far the safest way to heat a shop as there is no open flame inside the work area unless the heat sourse is in the work area. The only down side to this heat source is it is slow to heat an area if temperature drops suddenly, but it is a nice way to heat a shop.


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## ibewjon (Oct 2, 2010)

hard to put in radiant in the floor once the concrete is hard, but another safe way is an electric water heater hooked up to a fan coil type of hanging space heater. depends on electricity price in yo0ur area, but it is the safest way to go.


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## shipwright (Sep 27, 2010)

Woodstoves in woodshops are as safe as the person operating them like everything else. They are a great way to keep the scraps and sawdust down while keeping you and your glue warm for free. If you have lived with wood heat and are aware of the basic safety issues involved with burning wood or open flame stoves of any kind for that matter then you won't have any problems with one in a woodworking shop. If you're not familiar and comfortable with these issues then They can be as dangerous as any other device that is not well understood by the user. I'd never part with mine.

Paul M


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