Purchased a Used Stove- Now what? 6041 USSC

Coal stokers (any brand) and pellet stoves (any brand and wood chunk stoves (any brand) are all distinctly different arena's with different parameters and different outcomes for different situations and you can't compare across arena's.

Somehow, I don't think comparing a used 39 at 350 bucks to a Harman at say 5K retail is a valid comparison.

Like I said, get a coal stoker and be happy. I'm getting one this summer myself. Not because I have an issue with heat output from my 39-41 multifuel, but because a stoker stove is less hands on maintenance and I'm old (but still mobile) myself.

I want a hands off heater and a stoker stove is that. No fly ash to speak of, extended burn times (almost a week with a Reading stoker on low), tremendous heat output, the one I'm looking at is from 9Kbtu on low to 85Kbtu on high, about 30Kbtu more than 95% of all pellet/.multifuel stoves are capable of, less electromics to fail (big plus), fewer moving parts and motors to crap out (even bigger plus) but the seal on the deal is the price for the heat output.....around 2500 bucks new, in the crate (and an extra 300 bucks for a power vent (I don't have a tile chimney).

In essence, you could buy 2 stoker stoves for the price of one Harman and have 3 times the heat output. No brainer for me in as much as my neighbors want to buy my 39-41 and I'm all about selling it (not for 350 bucks though).

Besides, rice coal comes in bags just like pellets (but 50 pound bags instead of 40's) and unlike pellets that get wet and are no good, damp coal is no issue, in fact I heated with chunk bit coal in Ohio and I used to hose it down outside to keep the fine dust down.

Furthermore, stoker ant coal puts out 1/3rd more btu's per given volume that the best pellets available and the cost per ton, even here, a ways from the ant fields of NE PA is still competitive with pellets, even slightly less considering the gouging thats occuring.

Coal isn't for everyone but pellets aren't either. Most homeowners still heat with conventional forced air central furnaces fired with NG or Propane or oil.

Pellets > 16,500,000 btu's per ton
Coal > 25,000,000 btu's per ton
That's 50% more per ton

It's a no brainer for anyone WITH a brain. Especially if you live in Pa. If you get bags, it's about the same price as pellets but if you're one who hauls his own (many on here do. Just look at the posts about hauling overweight), you can get it for $170 a ton vs $250. Pellets 50% more expensive. Savings on top of savings. Duh.

Just do what I originally said. You won't find anyone to work on it so it's up to you to learn the stove inside and out BEFORE you have a problem and come on here asking for quick advice next season. Get a volt/ohm meter and learn how to use it on the stove. Make up a jumper with two male spade lugs. Play with it and become an expert NOW. It won't cost you anything but your time, which will be well spent.

Im definitely not selling mine for 350.00 what i got it for , i spent hours cleaning it , painting it, actually looks almost new. I have about 560.00 into stove with combustion blower , agitator motor , the pipe i have about 200.00 so id like to sell stove/pipe together , might be hard to sell just pipe by itself. I dont know what these go for used , (good price ) , i saw few couple months ago on craiglist that were going for 800+ and they looked like crap.

I can get the Alaska stoker for 19xx.00 bran new , base model , no fancy stuff for me . They claim a 5% efficiency gain over top vent with there rear vent , its down low near floor on left side. Sidecarflip is the reading better ? Keystroker has flat grate they say is better but i dont know .

I realize i was comparing 350 stove to 5000 so there is no comparison.

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Since you're an electrician, you should have no problems at all since electricians, at least in manufacturing, get heavily involved in the mechanical end as well. The electrical system besides the computer is dirt simple.

Sometimes simple can be perplexing, if you allow it to be...........

Problem is, the newer the stove is, the mpre complex it is. Old timers like I had decades ago used rheostats to control funcrions, now it's all solid state and expensive. Motors and drives haven't changed, still shaded pole synchronous motors with pot metal gear cases and triple reduction gearsets to impart some torque to the shaded pole motoe's lack of. Most stoves use snap discs for limit switches, stone simple and reliable and simple vacuum switches to monitor firebox pressure/vacuum.
Most everything can be sourced aftermarket but if you want to spend the long dollar, buy OEM.

Bills6039 said:

Coming from a wood burner ( in my living room ) dampner 3/4 shut most of time and averaging 85 in the house may explain why we like it 72-75. #1 the wood burner was way to much for this house but was given to me but due to my physical condition , 29 yrs old and artificial hip and L5 S1 fused in my back , i could no longer do all the required work involved with a wood burner so thats why i bought the 6039 (350.00) thinking it would be the way to go however it is costing to much to run it so thats why i made the decision to sell the 6039 and put the money towards something that will more efficiently heat my house and still be automatic . I agree with you sidecarflip about btu rating , it doesn't matter double , triple but one thing i do know is single wall there would be more surface area to put off heat , on this 6039 heat moreless just comes out front , Harman has the surface area , set on top of the harman , you Can't , i can set on my 6039 even on setting 4 but like you said were talking 2's the cost for a harman. One thing i dont understand is if btu is btu regardless of how many wall , a harman of the same btu rating as the 6039 ,,, the harman would tare the 6039 up as far as heat output goes. Im not here to argue I came here to this site to simply learn about the 6039 , learned more from reading the forums then the manual will ever teach a person. Manual is next to worthless but again thats my opinion. After comparing the stokers they all seem to be made well but the Alaska definitely is a better looking stove and much better price.

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The BTUs for rating the stove is measured by how much fuel it can burn in a given time. It does not measure what is coming out in front of the stove via convection fan or radiant heat or how much is being blown out the exhaust pipe. Usually the higher priced units have a better system of capturing the heat rather then blowing it out the exh system. As a example you can have both radiant heat plus convection fans or convection fan alone, Convection tubes, The Z bar fins, and that heavy cast iron heat reclaimer that Quad has in the AE. There will be others but all try to capture the heat before it leaves the stove. Some are more efficient then others. The idea being to leave enough heat to carry the exh out through the exh system but save the rest for heating the home.

rona said:

The BTUs for rating the stove is measured by how much fuel it can burn in a given time. It does not measure what is coming out in front of the stove via convection fan or radiant heat or how much is being blown out the exhaust pipe. Usually the higher priced units have a better system of capturing the heat rather then blowing it out the exh system. As a example you can have both radiant heat plus convection fans or convection fan alone, Convection tubes, The Z bar fins, and that heavy cast iron heat reclaimer that Quad has in the AE. There will be others but all try to capture the heat before it leaves the stove. Some are more efficient then others. The idea being to leave enough heat to carry the exh out through the exh system but save the rest for heating the home.

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I see, I didn't know how that worked. I thought btu output was the heat it put out. There is a input and output I know and the 6039 is rated at like 52 input but 48240 output . So assuming the input is how much fuel it burns and output would be the heat output?

Heat output at optimum burn and stove operation(clean) and probably not very good at the high end of btu input. Some stoves monitor the exhaust and ramp up room fan to try and extract as much as possible without lowering the vent gas temp to far. Cheaper stoves seem to not get the most out of the fuel at max but do a good job on low and medium.