PE Vista insert control

Ive got a Vista but I'm far from perfect with the thing. From a cold startup, I find the smaller the splits, the better. I dont cram it full either. 5 small splits is my max for startup. Air space is critical here. I use rutland firestarters. Upon lighting up, air is max open until about 200 (10 minutes or so). Then 3/4 open for 10 min or so. Then half open till 450. Usually, by this time, its mostly coals so I let it settle down to 400 and load'er up with normal sized wood (which is still smaller than most other peoples split size) from there which means back to max air for 10 mins or so. Then 3/4 open for another 5-10 minutes or until you get around 500. From there I cut it back based on my observations of the fire and wood being used. If its cold as all get out, I have to almost close it thanks to a darn good draft. If using less than perfect wood, or on a warmer day, it'll stay closer to half open. Again, Im no pro. I would like to hear what you are doing as well. What works for you, what doesnt, etc. The manual states an 8hr max burn. Have you gotten close to that? I know I have NOT.

I would doubt that with a Vista you will get and 8 hour burn time on a start up load. Over half that load will go to just getting the stove up to operating temperature. You need to burn down the load to a good coal bed and a 300° stove top temp and then pack it full. If your wood is good and dry it will take less than 20 minutes to have the stove shut down most of the way and great secondaries going and that is when you might see an 8 hour burn time. If your wood is wet at all forget the 8 hour burn time since you will have to burn a portion of the load before you even get the wood to the point you can shut the stove down. The key to this whole process is a nice bed of coals and bone dry wood!

I've never had an 8 hr. burn from my Vista. I'd say 4-5 is more like it and maybe 3-4 if it's cold out and you're running it hot. That's with bone dry hardwood.

The issue is that you just can't fit much wood in it especially with the E-W loading and having to angle each piece through the door.

We really like the stove and it can throw a surprising amount of heat but it's not much good for overnight burns.

From cold, I use 2 Eco Bricks N-S with about 3 inches between them. I place 1/4 of a Supercedar in the gap with some small scraps of wood or twigs the dog collects (not necessary, but speeds up the lighting process). I place 3 small splits E-W across the Eco Bricks and a couple more splits diagonally across the top, depending on what I can fit in. Light off the SC and leave the draft wide open for 10 to 15 minutes until it's about 250, shut it down to half for another 10 to 15 minutes until it's about 450, and then shut it all the way down where it will slowly climb to 550 and stay there for a couple of hours if I'm lucky and then gradually drop as the wood burns down to coals. The alternate loading if I'm felling lazy and haven't been to the woodpile is the all Eco Brick load with 2 N-S as described above and 2 more E-W on top (Eco Bricks are bigger than Bio Bricks).

On a reload, I'll rake the coals to the front, put a big (relatively--it's a Vista after all) split or round in the back, pack more splits in front and on top of that and place a smaller split on the coals to light off the pile. I repeat the same shutdown process from wide open air and if I'm really lucky, will get 5 to 6 hours of usable heat. I really don't know where PE gets the 8 hour burn claim from, unless it's from the first strike of the match to the last glowing coal. I do come down in the morning to some glowing embers in the firebox, even if I haven't loaded it for the night (which I generally don't--it's supplemental heat for the first floor) and if I do load it for the night I'll have enough coals in the morning to start a fire without the Supercedar. Which really isn't bad given the size of the stove.

I've said it before--it's a great little stove, it puts out a surprising amount of heat for its size, is easy to operate and seems to be built like a tank. I wouldn't want to have to heat the whole house with it but anything bigger would cook us out of the living room and wouldn't fit in the fireplace anyway.

I have a vista insert. My start up load is 2 or 3 thinner splits with a bunch of finger thick to 1.5" diameter branches or kindling and 5 newspaper twists mixed together. I light some of the newspaper at the front, leaving the door open a crack with the handle in the closed position. When I see that the branches have caught, I close the door. This usually burns down to coals in about an hour and then I load with 2 to 4 splits depending on size. I can get a max 4-5 hour burn (down to coals by 4 hours) with larger splits. I am often able to light from the coals the morning after if I want to get it going the next day early. The firebox is pretty small and you have to be careful to leave a gap at the front or the next load won't start properly.

It's a good room or open-plan floor heater but won't heat the whole house unless you have a small house. I have an open L-shaped living/dining/kitchen area which it heats pretty well, although the end of the kitchen furthest from the stove is noticeably cooler, as is the office which is partially closed off in the non-L part of the floor. I run a ceiling fan to move the air around. Can't run a fan on the floor because the puppy thinks it's some monster that we need to be defended from. Some heat does find its way upstairs to the second floor, but not in any consistent way.