If your garage needs efficient heating, but there is no particular desire to spend money, long-burning potbelly stoves can be an excellent solution. Such a compact design can be made independently. For this, only metal, some tools, as well as desire are useful. The stove can be made from improvised materials; a thick-walled barrel or an ordinary can is perfect for this. In practice, it turned out that the use of thick metal, the thickness of which is 8 millimeters, is not very good for the furnace, since it is quite difficult to heat it up. This reduces the efficiency, and a significant part of the heat is not used for heating at all. You should not choose too thin metal, as under the influence of high temperatures it will begin to deform and lose its original shape. One of the best options is a thickness within 4 millimeters.
Materials and tools
In the process of making a potbelly stove of long burningit is necessary to decide at the first stage what design features and dimensions the equipment will have. The design can be rectangular, and also have a reflector. To do this, you need sheet metal, the amount of which will depend on the estimated dimensions of the future furnace. Stock up on metal corners, the thickness of which is 5 millimeters, you will also need a steel tube with a diameter of 30 millimeters and a 180 mm pipe. Take care of the presence of an electric tool, a welding machine, without which during the manipulations you will not be able to do.
Work technology
When making a potbelly stove for long burning, it is important to understand what design features the stove will have. In this example, a variant of a rectangle is considered, the sheets of which are welded together. To begin with, blanks are cut for the five main planes, among them the back, as well as the side walls, the top and the bottom can be distinguished. A door for the combustion chamber and a blower should be placed on the front panel, however, these elements will have to be worked on later. When craftsmen make long-burning potbelly stoves, the side surfaces should first be welded to the bottom. In this case, it is important to ensure that the elements are located strictly vertically, for this you should use the building level or square. Components should be placed only at right angles. Having grabbed the seam in three places, you need to make sure thatthe location of the blanks, only after that you can proceed to the final boiling.
Tips for getting the job done
At the next stage, the master can start welding the back wall. The internal space should be divided into 3 compartments, namely: a firebox, an ash pan and a chimney. The first and second compartments are separated by a grate on which fuel is placed. It can be made in the following way. On the sides, from the inside, at a certain height, which, as a rule, is 15 cm, you need to weld the corners, placing them along the entire length. For the grating, strips made of thick steel are prepared. Their width should be 30 millimeters. The length must be chosen in such a way that it matches the width of the future design.
The step between the plates should be approximately 5 centimeters. The strips are welded to two steel bars with a diameter of 20 millimeters. This must be done with maximum reliability. This is due to the fact that these elements will act as stiffeners. In the process of making a potbelly stove on long-burning wood, there is no need at all to attach the grate to the inner corners by welding. If there is a need to repair or clean the potbelly stove, then the element can be easily removed. After a certain time, some plates may burn out, then they will need to be replaced. The above reasons can be supplemented, because it becomes necessary to remove the grate quite often.
Supplementing the furnace with a reflector
In the process of making a potbelly stove on long-burning wood, at the next stage, two steel rods must be welded on top, a reflector will be held on them. The latter is represented by a steel sheet, which serves to separate the furnace and smoke circulation. It needs to be made removable. The master must position this element in such a way that a channel is formed in the front part, which allows smoke to escape. This surface will heat up more than the others, so it must be made of a particularly thick metal of 16 mm.
Final works
In the process of making a potbelly stove for long burning with your own hands, at the final stage you need to weld the cover of the structure. It is recommended to provide a hole for installing a chimney in advance. After that, a jumper is cut out and welded, which will be located on top. You will also need a narrower jumper, which will be located at the level of the grate. It is installed in the next step. This element will separate the ash pan and the grate doors.
Specialist recommendations
Before you make a potbelly stove for long burning, you should not think too much about the size of the future furnace, as well as the doors. The main thing is that through the latter it is convenient to lay fuel and extract ash with ashes. The door for the furnace compartment is the mostoften made to full width. This will allow you to easily remove the grate and reflector. For the ash pan, the door should be narrower. At this stage, we can assume that the long-burning potbelly stove is almost ready. It will only be necessary to weld door handles, curtains and latches. The penultimate can be purchased or made independently using a thick rod and a metal tube. The master should not encounter special difficulties when carrying out these works.
Fire safety
In the course of making a potbelly stove for long burning with your own hands, you need to think about fire safety, which is ensured by the presence of legs. They are mounted only after the finished structure is assembled. These elements are made of a steel tube of 3 cm. Its diameter should be from 8 to 10 cm. A nut and a bolt are welded to the workpiece. This will allow you to change the height of the structure during operation. However, do not do this while the oven is in operation, as this may cause injury. It is necessary to wait until the fuel burns out completely.
Stove chimney
A long-burning potbelly stove must have a chimney. It is made from an 18 cm pipe. It will have to be brought out using a hole made in the wall. The bends should be 45 degrees. It is important to exclude horizontally oriented sections. Home-made potbelly stoves of long burning are supplied with a chimney, on the bottomwhich it is necessary to provide for the presence of a rotating damper. For it, a circle should be cut out of metal, the diameter of which will be less than the given parameter inherent in the pipe. A hole is made in the circle for a handle designed for rotation. The latter is made from a steel bar. Home-made long-burning potbelly stoves are made in such a way that the chimney is on a sleeve 20 cm high. It is made of metal, while the workpiece must be given a diameter smaller than the chimney. This element should be welded on the opening of the cover.
