The Rural Voice, 1981-04, Page 29Broiler operation
heated
with wood
Nick Whyte is convinced energy costs
for fuels like oil and propane are going to
increase more than labour costs in the
next few years. That's why Mr. Whyte,
who runs a broiler operation at R.R. 2.
Seaforth, is heating his barn with maple
wood cut from his farm woodlot. The
extra labour required in collecting the
wood is still costing him Tess than using
oil to heat the barn.
Mr. Whyte. one of the speakers at the
Alternate Energy Update held in Clinton
Feb. 12. put a large addition on his
broiler barn in 1978. He decided at the
time to try and cut his heating costs by
using wood from his farm, so purchased a
boiler from Robert Bell Industries in
Seaforth. The combination boiler in a
room five feet away from the barn can
burn any solid fuel, and some liquid
fuels. The boiler in Mr. Whyte's barn
switches to oil when water temperatures
in the boiler drop below a certain level.
Should someone overfire the boiler. vents
on the furnace act as a choke and cut off
the fire before temperatures rise to a
dangerous level.
Nick Whyte told the audience a
woodfuelled furnace works only in an
operation where someone is around the
farm anyway. since the boiler must be
fired every three or four hours during the
day. This winter. the third on the system,
Mr. Whyte is burning fairly large pieces
of wood cut from his farm woodlot in the
spring and late fall, when labour on the
farm isn't in peak demand. Mr. Whyte
cautions he's learned by experience dead
trees don't produce much heat value
when burned.
The Seaforth area farmer said a
well-managed woodlot should producc
one cord per acre per year of wood for the
farmer.
The second year Nick Whyte used
wood to fuel the boiler. he asked Ministry
of Natural Resources staff to inspect his
SO -acre woodlot. and mark the trees that
didn't have saw log potential. He said
conservation authority staff will girdle the
trees so they die slowly. which starts the
drying out process before they're cut.
Mr. Whyte has found it takes the maple
trees he burns eight months before
they're dry enough to burn well in the
boiler.
The farmer, who cuts SO cords per year
from the woodlot, warned "safety is an
important factor" in working in the
woodlot. He said there's always a risk of
falling trees toppling on someone and a
Nick Whyte and his staff cut maple logs from the farm woodlot into f bur foot lengths to
-be burned in the combination oil -wood boiler which heats the largest barn on his home
[Photo by Gibb]
at the energy update the boiler cost him
$6.500. but he spent approximately
$2,000 more to have it altered so it could
burn wood as well as oil. He also
constructed two small woodsheds to store
the cords, so that additional cost must be
considered. Nick Whyte said he's found a
dual boiler, when fired on oil, works at a
slighly lower, between five to 10 percent
efficiency rate than a straight oil -burning
boiler. That means he uses five per cent
more oil in the furnace. when he burns
oil.
. farm.
danger of injuries when using a chain
saw. The farmer said due to these
hazards he never sends anyone to the
woodlot alone.
Mr.Whyte has found it takes two men
four hours to cut a cord of wood. in the
four -foot lengths he burns in the barn.
Nick Whyte estimates labour costs at
approximately $28 per cord. The wood is
always cut and transported back to be
stored near the barn. so it's only handled
once, which saves on labour costs.
fhe broiler operator told other farmers
THE RURAL VOICE/APRIL 1981 PG. 27