How to heat a Big House with Hand Fired Coal Stoves. Burning Coal made easy. Hitzer 503 EZ Insert.

Burning Coal simple and easy. More BTU's than oil, gas, or wood. Heat and cooking ability during prolonged power outage. Grid Free Heat. What is the best alternative fuel? Coal is the best fuel because it never rots or spoils and Anthracite burns clean! The more options you have to heat your home the better you are. I can heat with coal, wood, oil, or electric.
The best resource for questions regarding heating with coal can be found at coalpail.com. There is a forum there where coal enthusiasts are eager to help and share their tips.

[@Mr-mopar]

Burnt coal for years..loved it.,clean , safe, and throws massive heat..I would shake it down twice a day and maybe put coal in once a day…

[@Depression2010]

When very cold out door temperatures I tend twice daily. As you see in the video the stoves are burning well prior to tending and the temperature in the house is stable. Thanks.

[@GaHullbillyRanch]

​@@Depression2010is that purpose built coal heater? Does that manufacture offer a stove different styles?

[@Depression2010]

@@GaHullbillyRanch hitzer.com/our-products/stoves-furnaces

[@jarredphillips6090]

Coal pail is a great forum. I have a stoker which has a few mechanical and electrical parts which sometimes malfunction. People on there are very helpful if you have questions.

[@armslength2618]

I just use a stand-up Hitzer 55, which works great. I use 3 kinds of fuel every day when I'm home. Throughout daylight hours I occasionally throw in cheap dry ugly firewood of any kind that I source for almost free. After dark I throw in a little sub-bit coal to get that started, then a main charge of it a little later which burns most of the night. Then around 5 am when the coal has burned down so it's not throwing off much heat, a separate little gas furnace kicks in for a couple hours until I wake up for breakfast. Obviously I could choose to burn any fuel exclusively if I wanted to or had to, but when it gets really cold I'll increase the percentage of coal a lot. The firebox is really big, but if I topped it off with stove coal, it would all eventually catch and create far too much heat. That's even with the thermostat damper closed as far as I dare. If closed too much, the stove will just pop with little explosions, driving smoke and soot out the air ports. The local sub-bit is cheap, around 70 dollars a ton picked up at the mine in my truck. They still mine anthracite many hundreds of miles away, which they sell to the orient for steel production. But if I drove all the way to that mine and back the total cost would be much higher than just running the gas furnace all the time.

[@miketamok3369]

Straight to the point

[@kevinmckay8481]

I load mine through the front door. Interesting to see the way you do it. I'm in a 2600 square foot house and this stove does an amazing job at maintaining temperature. I don't nearly use that much coal unless it under 10 degrees.

[@Richardofdanbury]

As a boy growing up in NYC coal ash, as well as incinerated trash and garbage were used on the streets and sidewalk in winter for foot traction. Today in nearly all areas of the Northeast this is considered a hazard. That said, I still use coal ash on my steep driveway to get my vehicles in and out.

[@kennyp507]

Nice work

[@Depression2010]

Thank you!

[@andrewdonohue1853]

currently i heat with rice anthracite and use a keystoker 90K. i just love the reliability and simplicity of coal heating. a modern natural gas furnace is stuffed full of un-reliable electronics. as soon as the damn thing breaks your calling the HVAC guy. with all of this ridicilous climate alarmist BS.... the governor in my state thinks she's going to force everyone to buy electric cars, heat with electric, cook with electric, heat hot water with and even poop with it (kidding). if this starts to happen i would consider a hand fed coal stove because it doesnt rely on a grid that has become un-reliable. i do love my keystoker but it does word without electric. my coal supplier said these insane climate zeolots dont seem to be attacking the coal suppliers...... maybe it's a niche market?

[@dioscurimas1018]

Im in south eastern PA. I heat with wood approx. 5 months of the year. My home is 2000 Sq. Ft. well insulated with good windows. I only use two cords of wood per season and I keep my house HOT !!! How much coal would I need to compare to two cords of wood ?

[@Depression2010]

Here is a calculator. Please note that coalpail.com is the best resource around for burning coal. There are lots of knowledge to be found there. They have a forum where people are very happy to answer questions and give advice. Here is the link to the calculator. coalpail.com/fuel-comparison-calculator-home-heating

[@dawnstraughen755]

What kind of grate is the coal on? What kind of metal can withstand that long term intense heat? We have a wood earth stove. Can we use coal if we had the right grate?

[@Depression2010]

Coal stoves are different than wood stoves. I wouldn't try to modify a wood only stove to burn coal.

[@paulkajtna7799]

Bud’s Soil in Fond du Lac WI has 50# bags of Kimmel nut size. Are you using nut or stove size Anthracite?

[@Depression2010]

Nut. I am no expert on how coal is processed or packaged. I purchased a truckload of bagged coal from Penn Keystone. So I am sure my coal came from Penn Keystone. I would guess they either own or contracted with Kimmel to bag my coal. With that said, I don't know who kimmel is or where they get there product from. This is the best, most consistent size coal I have ever received.

[@a.luchesa6823]

With the high prices of coal, do you think you're saving $? I'm burning wood but plan on burning coal when in single digits or low teens for the high. Just wondering what you're thoughts were on your future of burning coal. Thanks

[@Depression2010]

I already had the stoves and this spring I purchased a truckload. 22.5 ton/18 skids of nut. So I have enough for a few seasons. Another consideration is when I heat with coal the heat is on around the clock. So my walls, floors, tables, counters, the entire mass of my home is warm. When I heat with oil, I use a set back thermostat. So even when the thermostat is satisfied and the boiler shuts off, everything in the house is still cold.

[@a.luchesa6823]

@@Depression2010 FjB , Merry Christmas

[@Depression2010]

@@pacoal IMHO way cleaner than wood. I bring it in in bags. Take a pair of scissors and cut off the top. Dump the coal into the stove. The ash pan goes outside without spilling a drop. I don't think wood is that easy or mess free. Less work too. I would imagine pellets are about the same as bagged coal but burning real wood.. that is real work and messy.

[@dogshaff9307]

Coal at 400 a ton I’m burning wood also

[@paulkajtna7799]

@@dogshaff9307 you can buy Douglas Fir softwood pellets for $400 at ton. Those wood pellets produce at least 8500 BTU’s. Anthracite coal produces at least 13,000 BTU’s.

[@deluded00]

You mention grid-free heat, but doesn't the Hetzer 503EZ have electric blowers? wouldn't they stop working if the power goes out?

[@Depression2010]

Blowers would stop working but stove is a gravity feed. Just close down the ash pan vents and do not overheat the stove.

[@pcnorton]

Ever have the coal gas explode? I usually have to wait till I get blue flame before closing the top control.

[@Depression2010]

I am not going to say never. They call that puff back. I can say that what is in the stove already had the gasses burned off. I have a hopper and am only topping off the stove.

[@pcnorton]

@@Depression2010 But you put 40lbs on top of the hot coal with the top control pushed in. I have done the same stove and blew the lid off the stove. Ears rung for a while.

[@Depression2010]

@@pcnorton Maybe depends on the condition of the coal bed at the time of loading. There were some blue flames coming off the bed prior to loading. I do not have issue with the gasses at loading. Presently have the stove ash pan doors cut back even smaller. For the last month I have been using less than 30 pounds per day of coal. Another consideration is your supply of coal. I am no expert, but I have heard that suppliers treat the coal with oil or ?? IDK. Maybe one manufacturers coal gives off more fumes than some other does? What coal do you burn?

[@pcnorton]

@@Depression2010 Blaschak, 40lb bags

[@Depression2010]

@@pcnorton This has been a good dialogue. As mentioned I am no expert. If you are not already, I suggest you join coalpail.com forum. Great advice there for coal burners. A few weeks ago I had a carbon monoxide detecter chirping in my lower level. Why? The outdoor temperatures had warmed up to around 50 during the day and the chimney draft was not as strong. I noted a thread on coal pail that suggested opening the secondary air. I tried that. I now run with that open a little. It would be hard to describe how much it is open because the adjustment is crude. The lever probably slides half an inch or less from left to right and it is not all the way closed an not halfway open. Regardless, I do not have puff backs on either of my stoves. I believe in tending the stoves as little as necessary and using as little fuel as possible. If you join or are on coal pail I go by the name coldhouse. Here is a link to the forum. coalpail.com/coal-forum/

[@georgeshotrodbarn2113]

How much did a days worth of coal cost.

[@Depression2010]

Not really sure today. I purchased an entire truckload almost 2 years ago. I haven't purchased any recently. It also depends on how cold it is and how hot you burn the stove. It has been in 20's at night 30's day and I am using about 100# total a day to heat the house.

[@raydreamer7566]

What is the make of stove you have ?

[@Depression2010]

Hitzer 503EZ

[@-2u2]

So, about $10 to $14 a day at an external temp of 30 F.

[@Depression2010]

Depends on what you have to pay for your coal. I would say I average around 95# a day heating a 3,000+ sq foot house using 2 stoves. I think your estimate is low.

[@-2u2]

Yeah, I should have been more specific; I was thinking about a 1600 Sq Ft single story 3 bedroom ranch house in southern Missouri @@Depression2010

[@neillee3793]

Monthy cost of heating your house using coal?

[@Depression2010]

Last 45 days I have been averaging less than 30# per stove so 60# per day. I bought a truckload at less than $338 per ton. So $305 for 30 days.

[@coulterburnett6595]

About 500 a month in coal

[@Depression2010]

Heating is not cheap. When oil was $1.40 per gallon I wasn't burning coal. A few years ago I had the intuition that oil was going to go up so I purchased a truckload of coal. The benefit of heating with coal is more than $$. The entire house is warm. Floors, walls, tables... everything!

[@RS-sl5ko]

Does the government approve of your use of coal? I heard they were wanting all to use electric heat.

[@Depression2010]

The government probably does not approve of anything a person does today unless that would be to mutilate a child's sexual organs or destroy their thinking and or emotional coping abilities. As far as heating with electrical. Hmm. My home has the capability of electric heat. Each room has an electric thermostat and has heat in the floors or ceiling. The previous owner put in hydro air system run off an oil boiler. The air handlers also ran air conditioners. Why did they do that? I can only assume it was because the cost of electricity to heat the home was very expensive. Last year I replaced the two Air Conditioner units with Heat Pumps. Presently at this moment I have one heat pump running and heating the lowest level of my home. The coal stoves have been off for several weeks now. I have never run the AC as long as I have lived here. That might change this summer. But the point is that with LED light bulbs and trying to conserve as much as possible, we still use 15,000 kwh per year in electricity. The cost for delivered electricity here is over 30 cents per kwh. So without considering heat it costs a pretty penny to power the electrical needs of this home. In addition to purchasing an entire truckload of coal last spring. 22.5 ton, 18 skids, we decided to put a 16kw solar system on the roof. Recently 40, 400kw panels were installed. We are awaiting an inspection and activation of the system. The point is it would take a lot of electricity to heat this home. I am not a scientist or engineer but I think that directly using coal, a product that has more BTU's per ton than just about everything, to heat my home is more efficient than using coal, natural gas, or whatever to make electricity to heat my home. Burning coal provides direct result of heat in the home with very little loss. Heat is a direct result of the burning coal. I am not trying to convince any person to do anything. I am just trying to minimize my effort and expenses so I can afford to live. Furthermore, heating with coal is constant heat. The home is warm 24/7. When I heat with different forms of energy like oil or electric, I have had setback thermostats and not run the heat many hours of the day. The cost of heating was still exorbitant but the house was never comfortable. Suppose you have the heat come on, after being off all day, an hour before you get home, and it satisfies the thermostat and shuts off. The air has satisfied the thermostat but the structure is very cold. The walls, floors, table, bed, the thermal mass of the home and its contents never reach the temperature that shut the thermostat off. With coal the entire home/thermal mass of the home and all its contents are warm rendering a much more comfortable home at a fraction of the monetary cost of other forms of heat. Anyway just sharing my thoughts on heating. Good luck and do what is best for you.

[@peteantos-ketcham3493]

@@Depression2010 Can you talk about the process of ordering a truckload of bagged Blaschak directly from them? Do you have a driveway and property that allowed for a tractor trailer truck to deliver right to your house? Did you have a tractor to unload the skids with? Thanks.

[@Depression2010]

@@peteantos-ketcham3493 I don't think Blaschak sells directly to the consumer. I purchased and had a load delivered to a business location with a forklift not to far from my home and picked up the skids with my truck and a trailer and offloaded with a skid steer with forks. That is probably not something every person has the ability to do.

[@smokeylovesfire1589]

Where do you buy a coal stove. It seems like our government is trying to get rid of coal.

[@Depression2010]

You can still purchase new or you can look at classifieds and purchase used. Yes the government want to control everything. They will start by telling you what fuel to use and then one day control your thermostat. Good Luck.

[@lowellirish]

Ya THINK.what tipped it off ?? Was it the Biden plan to shut down oil reserves or to stop propane or come after you because you have a propane stove?