Greenwood's outdoor boiler wins EPA qualification

Demonstrates significantly lower emissions than traditional wood boilers

-- Casual Living, 9/1/2008 12:00:00 AM

Greenwood Technologies' Aspen Series outdoor wood-fired furnace was officially designated as a low-emission wood boiler by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

“Clean burning wood boilers are the wave of the future,” said Michael Kuehner, vice president of Greenwood Technologies, a renewable heating solutions manufacturer located in the Pacific Northwest. “They fill an alternative energy need for many households struggling with home heating bills. To help protect local neighborhood air quality, we are working hard to push the limits of what it means to produce a clean technology wood-fired furnace.”

The Aspen emits 8.4 grams of wood smoke per hour compared to the more than 70 grams per hour produced by a traditional wood boiler. This equates to 0.182 pounds of emissions per million BTUs of heat. The Aspen comes with an orange tag indicating that the appliance meets EPA Phase I emission standards of less than 0.60 pounds of emissions per million BTUs of heat. The Aspen emission test was completed at Intertek in Middleton, Wis.

Manufactured as a central heat source for both residential and commercial applications, the Aspen is a cleaner and higher efficiency appliance when compared to its older traditional wood boiler cousins. The emission test makes the Aspen one of the cleanest outdoor wood-fired boilers on the market. It is the second line of wood boilers within the Greenwood Technologies family of products labeled as EPA-qualified. The EPA approved the award-winning indoor Greenwood Furnace in April.

“This is our inaugural line of high-efficiency outdoor wood boilers,” Kuehner said. “We're challenging the belief that all wood boilers are a dirty-burning nuisance. We only produce low-emission products.”

The qualified designation comes through the EPA Outdoor Wood-Fired Hydronic Heater Green Label program, a voluntary engagement for manufacturers. This EPA program is similar to the emissions standards program implemented for wood stoves in the late 1980s. Within the program, the EPA has worked with manufacturers to develop emissions standards.

In side-by-side tests with traditional outdoor wood boilers, the Aspen uses approximately 50% less wood while producing a significant level of heat. When combined with radiant, baseboard, forced air or central heating systems, the Aspen can reduce heating bills by as much as 70%. It also meets strict Underwriters Laboratories and Canadian Standards Association standards for safe operation and does not need to be cleaned as often as wood stoves or traditional outdoor wood boilers.