B&D Heating Systems, LLC
Owners: Bruce and Doug Youngblood; Roger Haan, Consultant (left to right)
Location: Diamond, Missouri
Company History:
“We started playing around with big round bale stoves about three and a half years ago out of necessity. The cost of propane kept going up, and even then we didn’t know how things would get. We started off with a smaller version of a round bale burning stove that gave us a lot of information for how we needed to improve the design. It was a lot of trial and error. We have something now that is tried and proven on our farm for three years. We work with Topeka Metal Specialists because the orders were too much for us to build on our own, and still farm. We now market under AgriFlame, with a patent pending on our stove,” Doug explained.
Products and Services:
“The stove is designed to hold two four-by-six bales. It has a 10 ft. long burn chamber that is 1/2 inch thick. The system has a 12-hour burn time, requiring reloading two times a day. The system can be built to fit two five-by-six bales. One stove will typically handle four chicken houses, handling 80 percent or more or the heat load. An average guy can save 50 to 70 percent figuring a four-house farm."
How do you stay ahead of the competition?
“We’re competing against corn burners, central boiler systems, but most aren’t sized for a four-house farm. The advantage with this system is that the fuel comes at a reasonable price and you’re burning scrap. Every farmer’s got a spear, and many put up their own hay. You don’t have to sell corn to buy fuel; bale then burn your cornstalks, fescue stubble, weeds and hay. The emphasis is on dry. Whatever you burn has to have no more than a 15 percent moisture content. Also, nobody’s made a big commercial burner yet. This system will work in zones so you can place heat where you want it.”
