"Heat Your Room with 1 Candle plus Flowerpots, Nuts and Washers" (Permaculture Magazine)

[eShirl]

(remember, kids: FIRE BAD so proceed with caution)

http://www.permaculture.co.uk/readers-solutions/heat-your-room-1-candle-plus-flowerpots-nuts-and-washers

"How it Works

The basic purpose of this heater is to capture the heat given from a candle flame and to concentrate it into a steel and ceramic radiator assembly. After some time, the ceramic surface will act as a thermal mass and begin to radiate the captured thermal energy into your room or office."

[dixiegrrrrl]

1. Hmmmmmm

Just so happens I live with a mad scientist type guy....
we'll see if this works.

[mzteris]

4. Your challenge is . . .

get him to make this one and the Ednahilda posted below and do a comparative analysis.

[onestepforward]

2. This is very interesting!

I think I may try it. Thanks for posting this!

[Ednahilda]

3. Here's the same idea,

but even simpler:
http://www.naturalcuresnotmedicine.com/2013/11/heat-your-room-for-15-cents-day.html

[Kaleva]

5. That is simpler and I might give it a try.

I have the flower pots and bread pan. Just need to get the candles.

[RebelOne]

10. I am going to try it also.

I have some flower pots, but I don't know if they are the right size. I also have tea lights, which can be bought at Big Lots dirt cheap, but I may have to buy more. All I need is the bread pan.

[Curmudgeoness]

7. This is simpler, but if I were going to use this one

I think that I would still find nuts and bolts to add to the inside of the pots. It seems to me that the metal would help produce even more heat.

What is interesting is that I work with a box turtle conservancy fostering baby turtles, and we use ceramic pots heated with small light bulbs to radiate heat in the turtle bins.

[Kaleva]

6. Another way to make a flower pot candle heater using bricks

"Place 2 bricks on each side of the candle that is sitting on a brick and 2 in the back, like a little fireplace,Put the Terra cotta pots on top of the bricks. It works great. It actually does give off heat. ."

http://www.tacticalintelligence.net/blog/how-to-make-a-candle-heater.htm

[Kaleva]

8. A GlowWarm electric candle may be a better choice.

A 100 watt incandescent light bulb will produce about 293 btuh of heat.

http://www.heatstick.com/_GlowWarm.htm

[ConcernedCanuk]

9. One could do the same thing with light bulbs

.
.
.

no fussing with candles, no open flames.

My hydro costs $0.08/ kilowatt hour let's round it up to 10 cents just for easier calculation.

I would try an incandescent stove light at first - they are around 40W and designed to take the heat.

so - run 40W 24 hrs @ 10 cents = 9.6 cents a day.

Better yet - I would hook a thermostat close to the power source, so when the area reached the desired temperature, it would simply turn the light OFF, then back on if/when the temperature drops.!

I have had lights before hooked up to a thermostat - put above my bed that would turn on when the temperature dropped, then I would know it was time to feed my woodstove! ( and not have to fumble around looking for a light switch)

Remember - doing the candle thing with tea lights ( and many I've had only burned for 2 hours ) at 4 hour burning - that means you have to change and light the candles 6 times a day.

hmmm - AND, even at 100 candles for a dollar say, 24 candles would cost ya 25 cents . . .

hmmm again. -

I think I'll try the hydro/light bulb route, BUT

will be prepared with candles should the hydro go out (it does that all too frequently here in Northern Ontario).

All in all, glad I stuck my nose in here today.

I learned something USEFUL.

Now, back to GD.



CC

[lumberjack_jeff]

11. Interesting.

I just did some math and it turns out that a candle can raise the temperature of an 8x8x8 room with a humidity of 50% by about 16 degrees.

Of course, this assumes a perfectly insulated, perfectly airtight room... which could be problematic, I suppose.

In real life I wouldn't expect a candle to "heat a room"... it might raise the temperature of a small bedroom a bit (5°?), but I suppose you could warm your hands on the flowerpots.

[Progressive dog]

12. An average sitting human puts out 70 watts

of heat. The candle only puts out about 55 watts. As a comparison, a 40,000 BTU/hour home furnace puts out about 136,000 watts or more than 2000 candles. Storing the heat in flowerpots and metal hardware doesn't create more heat.

[sendero]

13. The physics guy in me..

... has always struggled with this. What is the advantage of concentrating the heat?

Whether you put a flower pot over the candle or not, the same amount of heat it being radiated into the room.

I guess you could argue that having it concentrated lets you sit next to it and get the benefit of the heat - sort of like a campfire

[eShirl]

14. yes, radiant heat vs. raising the temperature of the air

<---- (not a physics person)