2014-2015 Blaze King Performance thread (Everything BK)#2

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Joful said:
So, how do you use the plug? How do you re-seat it, if you're keeping the recommended 2" of ash in the firebox?
Click to expand...

Does bk really recommend 2" of ash? The bottom of my princess is two layers of brick thick and seems to burn just great with no ashes. Why give up the firebox volume?

To accumulate 2" of ash with Doug fir would take me three months of 24/7 burning. I've only emptied it once this year and that wasn't even a full ash can.

The ash plug seems to seal well and is not easy to knock out of place.
 
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Highbeam said:
Does bk really recommend 2" of ash?
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Well, my dealer recommended it, but now that I check the stove manual, it recommends not shoveling down to less than 1/2" ash.
Ashford 30 manual said:
It is not necessary or advisable to completely remove all of the ashes when cleaning this stove. Wood burns best in a bed of ashes 1/2” thick.
Click to expand...
Jotul, and probably other stoves with a grate / sealed ashpan system, does recommend maintaining a healthy bed of ash in the floor of the stove.
 
I never really pay attention to how much ash I leave in the stove but it's probably always a couple inches. I usually shovel out half the stove when I see a cold snap coming and I want to be able to fill the stove to capacity. During the shoulder season I rarely bother to shovel anything out of the stove unless it's about to fall out the door. ;lol The deep belly of this thing has really spoiled me, not sure I could ever deal with a shallow stove again.
 
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The deep belly of this thing has really spoiled me, not sure I could ever deal with a swallow stove again.
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Yes, swallow stoves are for the birds. ;lol
 
;lol I have to agree though, I too like a stove with a deep belly.
 
Highbeam said:
Does bk really recommend 2" of ash? The bottom of my princess is two layers of brick thick and seems to burn just great with no ashes. Why give up the firebox volume?

To accumulate 2" of ash with Doug fir would take me three months of 24/7 burning. I've only emptied it once this year and that wasn't even a full ash can.

The ash plug seems to seal well and is not easy to knock out of place.
Click to expand...

Our King manual also states 1/2" of ash. Something else kind of funny: "Ashes should be removed any time they come within one inch of the door opening." We would never wait that long but it made me think...how many years would it take to accumulate 8" of pine ash:)?
 
So I gave the princess ultra ash pan a try today. Had two inches of ash and a warm stove. I used the regular ash shovel to empty the stove completely through the chute.

1) the hole is not too small. Ashes fall in just fine.
2) not mess free. Ashes still float up and out of the loading door and if you immediately remove the ash pan a ton of junk floats out of the drawer.
3) Those two inches of ash filled the pan to the top. The mound was scraped flat as I pulled the pan out. The princess holds 6" of ash. You can do the math.
4) easy to replace and reseal the plug.

So I certainly would not recommend the ash pan if you actually have a stove full of ashes. It would be a disaster if you overfilled it. If you insist on using the ash pan then it works. Can anyone imagine any possible reason that bk would use such a tiny pan? The pedestal has a huge amount of space for a pan that might hold half or even one full load of ash.
 
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Highbeam said:
So I gave the princess ultra ash pan a try today. Had two inches of ash and a warm stove. I used the regular ash shovel to empty the stove completely through the chute.

1) the hole is not too small. Ashes fall in just fine.
2) not mess free. Ashes still float up and out of the loading door and if you immediately remove the ash pan a ton of junk floats out of the drawer.
3) Those two inches of ash filled the pan to the top. The mound was scraped flat as I pulled the pan out. The princess holds 6" of ash. You can do the math.
4) easy to replace and reseal the plug.

So I certainly would not recommend the ash pan if you actually have a stove full of ashes. It would be a disaster if you overfilled it. If you insist on using the ash pan then it works. Can anyone imagine any possible reason that bk would use such a tiny pan? The pedestal has a huge amount of space for a pan that might hold half or even one full load of ash.
Click to expand...
I think they intend it for more frequent clean outs. As stated before, us hearthers are not the status quo wood stove owners....
 
bobdog2o02 said:
I think they intend it for more frequent clean outs. As stated before, us hearthers are not the status quo wood stove owners....
Click to expand...
Bingo!
 
and the recommendation for ash in the bottom is to protect the bottom brick from impact with the loading of the fuel. Believe or not, some folks THROW their wood into a stove or kick it in!
 
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BKVP said:
and the recommendation for ash in the bottom is to protect the bottom brick from impact with the loading of the fuel. Believe or not, some folks THROW their wood into a stove or kick it in!
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At which point they deserve what's coming to them!
 
Yeah...right.
 
To add, a perfect tool for corralling ash into that chute would be a 4" wide putty knife, like a sheetrock knife. I still just scrape it all down and then gently load the wood.
 
Highbeam said:
So I gave the princess ultra ash pan a try today. Had two inches of ash and a warm stove. I used the regular ash shovel to empty the stove completely through the chute.

1) the hole is not too small. Ashes fall in just fine.
2) not mess free. Ashes still float up and out of the loading door and if you immediately remove the ash pan a ton of junk floats out of the drawer.
3) Those two inches of ash filled the pan to the top. The mound was scraped flat as I pulled the pan out. The princess holds 6" of ash. You can do the math.
4) easy to replace and reseal the plug.

So I certainly would not recommend the ash pan if you actually have a stove full of ashes. It would be a disaster if you overfilled it. If you insist on using the ash pan then it works. Can anyone imagine any possible reason that bk would use such a tiny pan? The pedestal has a huge amount of space for a pan that might hold half or even one full load of ash.
Click to expand...
I set the air all the way open. It works to pull dust up the flue instead out of the door. I use the L shaped poker that came with the stove to move ash around and load the pan. When the ash starts to back up into the chute, use the L shape poker to level out the ash in the drawer By snaking it down the hole into the pan so when you go to take it out it dosent drop back into the pedestal. I can empty my king ultra in 5 ash pan dumps if it's within 1" of the door. Takes a little to get used to, but great overall imho
 

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webby3650 said:
It's perfect! It has made life so much easier.
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I made a tool a lot like that. 1/2" rebar handle about 2' long with some 1-1/2" angle iron 1' wide welded to the end. Its perfect for getting that cavity right under the door.....
 
bobdog2o02 said:
I made a tool a lot like that. 1/2" rebar handle about 2' long with some 1-1/2" angle iron 1' wide welded to the end. Its perfect for getting that cavity right under the door.....
Click to expand...

What? How's that? Right under the door would be terrible to access with a long handled tool. How to you get the business end down in the ash without bonking the top of the door frame?
 
The stove is 18"-20" deep. I need that much to get in there, I take care when using, also if a "book" happens its the reinforced door opening that isn't visible with the door closed. No "bonk" related rust etc. yet.

Pics to follow
 
rdust said:
Most of us on this site don't heat with wood because we "need" to, we do it because we want to. People who "need" to heat with wood can't afford fancy cat stoves, computers or internet. ;lol
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Don't be so sure...we couldn't afford a new furnace and all new duct/new boiler and all new lines plus the LP to feed it. Hence the stove...Not a fancy cat stove but we do have a computer and the interwebs! I am drooling over the sirocco/ashford 30s though. Wish the door swung the other way. And I had a couple grand to drop on a new stove, lol.
 
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eclecticcottage said:
Don't be so sure...we couldn't afford a new furnace and all new duct/new boiler and all new lines plus the LP to feed it. Hence the stove...Not a fancy cat stove but we do have a computer and the interwebs! I am drooling over the sirocco/ashford 30s though. Wish the door swung the other way. And I had a couple grand to drop on a new stove, lol.
Click to expand...
You know, I wish the door swung the other way too before I bought my Ashford but wanted the awesome technology more than anything. Now that I have it, I don't even notice the door not swinging the right direection. When I load, I swing it all the way open and it doesn't get in the way at all. Don't let that discourage you!
 
eclecticcottage said:
Don't be so sure...we couldn't afford a new furnace and all new duct/new boiler and all new lines plus the LP to feed it. Hence the stove...Not a fancy cat stove but we do have a computer and the interwebs! I am drooling over the sirocco/ashford 30s though. Wish the door swung the other way. And I had a couple grand to drop on a new stove, lol.
Click to expand...
I can afford a fancy cat stove, I also could afford to run my electric heat. I choose to run only wood instead of hundreds and hundreds of dollars a month on electricity.
I prefer the door like it is. I can have a big load of wood in my right arm and open the door with my left hand. Works good for me. It's geared toward right handed people.
 
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What???

You guys clean ash out of your BK's?

:p
 
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