Another blower question (generics, ho-made, etc.)

I borrowed a squirrel blower from a pal, jammed it under the stove w/ a coal rake and a split of ash and I can say you're right -- a fan is going to make a big difference in the heat output of my stove.

But I'm as tight as... as tight as... well, as tight as the bark on a tree and I just don't feel good about plunking down 250 clams for a Lopi specific blower. A Regency generic is going to run $110 clams or so. Some of the long gas/fireplace fans look like they'd work with a bit of modification. I've checked surplus center and electricmotorwarehouse and the I know for some of you the hassle's not worth the savings, but others of you would get peace and lasting satisfaction knowing you helped another tightwad.

I was all excited about at surpluscenter double squirrel blower for $18.00 till I realized the housing was plastic. It might not even matter since my Lopi is mobile home rated and you can touch the bottom of the stove without burning your hand. But I'm not taking my chances.

Anyway, I'd just like to hear some of the expertise from fellow tightwads. How many CFM's does the Lopi (and most Avalons) generate? Are they quiet? Anybody found a good alternative? Can you get specific about what you found?

So Grainger has a "transflow" blower in which the squirrel cage runs the length of the opening -- about 12 inches. It's an open fan w/o a shroud like the one from Lopi/Avalon, but it could be adapted fairly easily. part #4C745 (edit -- I switched some numbers originally -- this is the correct part number. Thanks, Brother.).

So here's the rub -- the spec says for woodstove and etc., but it has a 104 degree ambient temperature shut off. Now my stove is the Endeavor, rated for mobile homes w/ 4 1/2 inches to combustibles -- the brick behind it barely gets warm, but I'm wondering if the temp is an issue. I can touch the bottom of the stove w/o killing myself and I would GUESS that there on the bottom of the stove (that's where it mounts) it would be plenty cool. But if you have experience with these fans and know they're a bust, speak now or forever hold your peace! It comes tomorrow.

Anybody tried these blowers? It's $84 bucks vs the $250 for the store brand.

Doh! You're right about the number. I wrote it down right, typed it in wrong. I have slysdexia.

So, Brother Bart, do you think the fan will be ok?

The fan isn't going to do anything the Lopi fan wouldn't do. Bolt on and blow. It's not going to melt. My only question is about the durability of the motor on that stove -- thought somebody might have done this. Again, one of the applications listed is "wood stove," so it doesn't seem unreasonable, I just was hoping for some first hand testimony. I have all sorts of non OEM things in my world that are working just fine.

Well, w/o the blower the stove is an ornament. Above 30 it's ok, below 25 it's anemic below 20 it actually makes the house colder (and my home is reasonably well insulated, though large). Anyway, I borrowed an old squirrel cage blower, rammed it up under one of the inlets and it produces a noticable difference in comfort. That chamber built around the stove is designed to have air forced through it. So I'm confident a fan that actually covers the entire 12inch inlet will produce considerably more heat. It won't have the heat sensor, but I can add a rheostat (sp?) to regulate the speed.

I'll keep you posted.

(I posted this on the Dayton blower thread, too, but here's my update)

Well, I think you're in luck -- I've been your guinea pig. Once you go generic, you'll never go back.

I'm cheap. I wasn't about to pay $250 clams for a OEM blower that some of you say craps out too fast, so I finally went to Grainger and bought a 4C745 single speed by Dayton (listed on your website). It's a "transflow." It is a really well built fan. I don't know anything about evaluating the quality of electrical components, but a buddy who teaches at RIT said it seems like a really good one. Extruded aluminum casing, built in fan to cool the motor -- they even balanced the blades (making a very small cut out one one of the blades to even it up). You'll have to wire a plug to it.

I liked the enclosed nature of the dual type blowers, but mounting didn't seem as easy. My blower opening is on the bottom and is almost exactly 12 inches long (about an inch or so wide). The Dayton is a little smaller than the hole (a 1/2 inch on either side) but I guessed that that might be a bit less noisy than a blower that was a little bigger than the hole (avoiding the turbulance of blowing on the stove instead of in the stove). I still look to "plug" the openings on the side w/ a magnetic plate or some such. The holes on the fan line up perfectly w/ two of the predrilled holes so it only took two metal deck straps to hang the fan under the stove. Couldn't have been easier.

As it happens, I hung the fan just a hair under the stove so except for the straps which are bolted tightly, there is no vibration on the stove. I might be getting a bit of turbulance noise, I suppose, but I haven't gotten around to redoing the straps so it can hang closer to the stove. I, too, was worried that the contact between the blower and stove might amplify the vibrations. My straps are also a bit thin -- the blower hangs at an angle because the straps have a slight flex. It's a very slight angle, but the housing is not touching the stove. It's not the prettiest fan, but bolted underneath the stove you have to be on the floor to see it.

Performance? Whoa! I have been ready to give up on the Lopi. Just wasn't warming the house in bitter cold weather. But our stoves were DESIGNED to use blowers. With all those chambers around the stove if you don't use a blower it's like heating inside an insulated box. I saw enough testimony on this site that it made a difference, so I decided to spend some loot.
The fan really pumps out the heat. W/ the blower on low, we have massive hot air and the whole house is now comfortable. I still haven't tested it in bitter cold.

Noise? Not bad. Short of putting the fan in the basement and "ducting" it somehow, I think fans and noise just go together. However, I am using a variable speed plug-in rheostat so I can lower speed and noise. If the house is cold (in the am) I build a hot fire, turn up the fan, warm the house fast, then back the fan off to a whisper. Once at temp, the stove/fan doesn't need to work nearly so hard so I can turn the fan down. I think the Dayton specs at 300cfm, but I'm sure I haven't used it on full blast yet. In any case, while there is a bit of noise, turned to where I need it it doesn't mask conversations. I might have to run it a bit higher in the bitter cold, but it's not nearly as noisy as some fans I've heard.

Most importantly, I'm only out $100 clams total and I had the satisfaction of tinkering.