Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Been waiting to hear of the success or lack of, of the wood burning hot water heater. I have been curious about these for a few years. But typically wood burning stoves won't burn through the night. Here in Kerrville I would check about midnight then get up about 3:00 to check again then 6:30.
For 48 hours it did'nt get above freezing plus the snow and sleet. I'm still using bucket heaters(electric) which I hate. They suck up the juice and you never know when they will quit working. I only have 3 adult caimens and 1 adult morelets (2 enclosures) outside everyone else is indoors.
The bucket heaters kept the water 56-58 which is okay but not great. Thursday the sun came out first time in 5 days. The morelets hauled out it was 36 but she was digging the sun.
Danny Conner

Hi Danny,

I would say from your comment you have a pretty good idea on these already. Let me start with what I have found are the positives:

1. portable- no electric chords, no gas lines, nothing. All you need are the PVC connections

2. Very, very effective. We heat 1000 gallons anywhere from 5-15 degrees per hour depending on the wood load and type of wood.

3. Pretty inexpensive compared to gas or electric although you can buzz through the wood during cold fronts like we just experienced. We went through 1/2 a chord of ash in about 2.5 days. We are burning oak now and it lasts longer and burns warmer.

Now the only real negative:

1. It's a lot of work and you do need to fill the firebox at consistent intervals which as you mention can be at 3:00am. I actually took two days of my day job to ensure we didn't have any problems.

I will give you an alternative that I think is a pretty good idea in an emergency. The link is below. It is costly to run long term though but has the benefit of being portable.

As a whole the wood burner is a great idea and very effective. For me in a normal Texas winter-which this isn't- it's all I need. We heat the ponds to 70-75, cover them with chemical heatsavr(which is very effective in holding in the heat you put in the pond), and just wait the cold out. On larger ponds we keep the heat going at a lower level and allow the wood to burn down lower. The crocs lines up on the return into the pond. I imagine the effect is much like when you are sitting in a cool bathtub and turn on a blast of warm water. They get a warm 'blanket' area to sit in.

We haven't seen the sun here in two freaking weeks!
Alternative

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CDieter
'Reason, observation, and experience; the holy trinity of science.'

Chris
So you are using this chemical "heatsaver"?
I've never heard of this so I just got on their website.
My pools look like the first one with all the steam rising off the water. It looks cool butI know I'm losing a ton of heat and water.
Are you ordering it out of Canada?
Do you think it helps?
I'm almost willing to try the redneck heater anything for warmer water and cheaper bills.
Danny Conner

I looked into this a while back and the problem is that the chemical is not intended for use with animals. I'm sure in a small amount it is safe but for I just really don't trust it. You can also save your self the work and leaks of all those fittings by using a heat exchanger in the grill or just get a small pool heater.

John

Watersavr is the exact same product as the popular heatsavr product used in smimming pools. It is totally safe for animals and as a matter of demonstration a demonstrator will drink the material. It biodegrades in 2-3 days. They are using the product in several countries to preserve drinking water supplies. Once you see what it is made up of chemically it is a very simple harmless organic material.

I conferenced with quite a few people in that industry about it and to a person they all said it is very safe. As mentioned they use it for human potable water supplies.

I'm not an apologist for it but don't want to see an effective product get a bad rap for no real reason either. It isvery simple to use and disappears in 2-3 days naturally.
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CDieter
'Reason, observation, and experience; the holy trinity of science.'

No I use watersavr. Watersavr and heatsavr are exactly the same product. The only difference is form. Heatsavr is a liquid designed to be dispensed into swimming pools through automated dispensers or through these plastic fish things that float.

Watersavr is the powder form and is much more cost efficient. I bought a 50lb bag and I think it'll last for years. That picture on their website really isn't much of an boast. I have the steam, I put a little of the watersavr in and you can actually see it diminish. It doesn't eliminate it but you do supposedly save 20-40% of the heat. It is very good in croc pools as the water tends to be very still if your flow in underwater or nonexistent. It forms a nice seal. I don't use it often but do on the cold nights.

I ordered mine from Save water solutions in Arizona and he gets it from Canada. I do think it helps as I can see the difference when you apply it. Without setting up a control and testing it I can't say exactly degree wise what I'm saving but if it's 2-3 degrees a night that makes a difference during a cold front.

I like DIY type things. I also don't have to heat much here and I like portability. Small pool heaters -either gas or electric- are costly to set up and costly to run. Then I have to move them as I don't want the clutter around my pools. Now I could go through the trouble of hiding them and such but frankly for the limited use they get here I don't find it worth the time, effort, or funds. we have our wood burner on a small trailer. When it's time is done(hopefully soon) we hook it up, pull it away, and store it till next year.

A good welder should make the redneck heater quickly and securely. All you need is the pit
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CDieter
'Reason, observation, and experience; the holy trinity of science.'