2015-2016 Blaze King Performance thread (Everything BK)

The idea of tossing hot coals, gah. I get it, I do. My brain keeps trying to come up with creative uses for hot coals, though.

1. Sauna
2. Hibachi
3. Dutch oven cooking.

I'm only half kidding here.

I could seriously see (depending on the wood) throwing hot coals into a hibachi and throwing some hamburgers or steaks on that hibachi. (The reason I'm qualifying on types of wood: I've eaten food cooked over pine that tasted like Pine Sol. I do not recommend it. In all fairness, the pine wasn't all that cured but still. Pine Sol. Just, no.)

Or, a dedicated pit into which one could toss hot coals, followed by a Dutch oven with dinner in it, and more hot coals on top.

Because, HOT COALS. NEVER, EVER THROW AWAY BTU'S.

becasunshine said:

The idea of tossing hot coals, gah. I get it, I do. My brain keeps trying to come up with creative uses for hot coals, though.

1. Sauna
2. Hibachi
3. Dutch oven cooking.

I'm only half kidding here.

I could seriously see (depending on the wood) throwing hot coals into a hibachi and throwing some hamburgers or steaks on that hibachi. (The reason I'm qualifying on types of wood: I've eaten food cooked over pine that tasted like Pine Sol. I do not recommend it. In all fairness, the pine wasn't all that cured but still. Pine Sol. Just, no.)

Or, a dedicated pit into which one could toss hot coals, followed by a Dutch oven with dinner in it, and more hot coals on top.

Because, HOT COALS. NEVER, EVER THROW AWAY BTU'S.

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I'm a fairly hard core griller so in the winter I will take hot coals out of the wood stove and dump them into the Weber grill. Instantly ready to cook surface.

BKVP, I would like to suggest/request research into an optional accessory:

The BK Hibachi/ thermal cooker/ Dutch oven cooker, to be fueled with hot coals removed from BK wood stove during clean out cycle.

Bonus round if it can bake. Value added if it can bake a pizza.

Thanking you in advance,

Becca
A Satisfied BK Princess Owner

tarzan said:

I'm a fairly hard core griller so in the winter I will take hot coals out of the wood stove and dump them into the Weber grill. Instantly ready to cook surface.

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Tarzan, will you marry me?

I mean, you have a BK Princess, I have a BK Princess, you live in West Virginia, I think that is God's country, AND YOU KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH HOT COALS.

Mr. Sunshine's probably gonna have something to say about this ("YOU AIN'T TAKIN' MY DOG!") but if I can get a chocolate cake out of the oven in time he'll be distracted enough. For a moment or two.

Important Safety Tip: Don't try to take the dog. Or the boat. Just sayin'.

EDITED TO ADD: Mr. Sunshine said "NO! NO DOG, NO BOAT, NO WIFE- IT ALL STAYS HERE."

Oh well, it could have been glorious. We could have started our own cottage industry on recycling wood stove coals. We wouldn't have paid for a single BTU for the rest of our lives! HA!

EDITED AGAIN TO ADD: Huh. We *do* have a Lodge hibachi at the same location as the wood stove. Love love love the Lodge hibachi- it gets so hot, it sears the steaks on the outside so well, it's possible to cook the steaks to a perfect medium rare inside with a crisp exterior. Adding coals to it from the wood stove gives a whole new dimension, if even just to start the charcoal quickly. Right now we are burning 100% seasoned oak at the moment. Other than the occasional cooking over campfires, I have no experience with cooking over wood. Is oak a good candidate for cooking?

Ashes and hot coals can be good for slick driveways to.

Oak is very good coals for cooking.

becasunshine said:

BKVP, I would like to suggest/request research into an optional accessory:

The BK Hibachi/ thermal cooker/ Dutch oven cooker, to be fueled with hot coals removed from BK wood stove during clean out cycle.

Bonus round if it can bake. Value added if it can bake a pizza.

Thanking you in advance,

Becca
A Satisfied BK Princess Owner

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Request noted....but I load soft woods on top of coals, so I little issue. When I burn walnut or maple, coals galore. Tamarack or other soft woods, no coals.

tarzan said:

Ashes and hot coals can be good for slick driveways to.

Oak is very good coals for cooking.

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We do throw the ashes in the gravel driveway. They are cold when we dump them, but gawd forbid, just in case, the ashes go on gravel.

Good to know about the oak. Right now we hang onto the coals in the stove but you just never know. We typically arrive in the evening to a 50'F house, kept at that temperature by the thermostat.

Two winters ago we programmed the thermostat to warm the house up the next Friday afternoon because we knew we'd be back the next weekend. We arrived about 9pm to a 33'F temps inside the house. It was so cold, with such wind chill and wind off of the water that the drain from the condenser furnace froze up, and shut down the entire HVAC system. We didn't have the wood stove at that time. But in a case like that, we could end up with too many coals, given the situation y'all have explained tonight.

So that's good to know about oak coals. We have a great little hibachi. If we have coals, and oak coals are great for cooking... we're set! <:3~

jetsam said:

I read the whole post and didn't pee at all. Have you tried Kegel exercises?

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Dingo....watch for the postman!

I just rake 'em forward and burn 'em down. Yes, the boiler ends up running when I'm in the coaling phase, but it'd be running anyway, and I'm not throwing away BTU's.

One thing that I like about stoves with ash grates is the way the coals stay on top, and fine ash just naturally falls thru, such that you never actually have to shovel or otherwise sort the ashes from the coals. You just need to remember to empty the ash pan once or twice a week, lest it over-fill.

I may have said something about throwing away coals but that is not what I meant to say. I don't throw them out with any regularity when I clean out the ashes I do toss 80% of what coals are In the stove , After 4-5 hours of burning them down. Coals don't amount to squat to me they are not snap on tools they are coals I can make more coals in 10 minutes. All I am trying to get across it even at almost wide open for hours there are still a lot of coals and less room for wood after all it is a wood stove not a coal stove ha ha. Oh it will be alright I guess maybe I am just trying to run it too low is all right now it is at the 4:30 position and it is 72* in here and 11* outside.
In the short time I have run it higher than the normal 3 O" Clock position,.. it is quite a bit warmer in the house so I will go from 3 to maybe 4 :30. If that helps I will try 5 and so on till I get the required heat.

As far as insulation, oh yes definitely we could benefit from more but for now it is what it has always been. I have one wall that most likely has zero insulation in it the other 3 have 4" pink Owens Corning craft faced. The ceiling has 12" of pink fiberglass going east west and 12" going north south. I have a very old home with good new double pane windows and doors but I do need to gut the one room and insulate it maybe this summer.

becasunshine said:

BTW, good luck with that grandbaby in the hospital, and bless you for helping the parents by picking up the other kids. I hope you have a wonderful "sleepover" with your grandkids and I hope your grandbaby recovers!

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The grandbaby cam home an hour or so ago thanks for your concern, he had RSV very bad for a baby as young as he is (5 weeks). I set the thermostat to 80% open and took the other 2 grand kids out sliding they had a blast. Then I hauled them in a Dog sled behind our Ranger for another hour or so. The heat from the stove felt pretty good to us all when we got back. That was at about 10 am I have been burning coals at 100% open ever since it is now 3:35 , I am glad it is 40* out and not 15* this heat wave gives me a few hours to waste burning coals instead of burning wood.

Wow. +5 out today. I predict dirty glass by the end of the week.

I got a question for you seasoned BK KIng Ultra owners..
If you load the stove with oak, locust, ect. and run it @ the 4;30-5;30 setting for 10 hours (because you need that much heat, it's cold and windy)..
What would you expect to see remaining in the firebox......nothing, embers, coals, ect.
I'm a new BK user this year, so I'm wondering what I should expect from this alien technology, or if I'm getting something way different than I should...
Thanks,

10 hours on nearly WOT, coals enough to refire is about all I'd expect.

Primo dry hardwood, big splits, WFO for ten hours, I'd see a big pile of hot coals.

Keep in mind that this is 8-10 splits that pretty much fill the firebox, maybe with a couple of small ones to fill a bit of empty space (100+ lbs of fuel). I kept the ashes cleaned out when I knew I would need all the heat I could get out of the stove. And the blowers on high.

I know it costs more but my motto always will be go big or go home. If you have the room get the biggest stove you can save up for it and do things once. Ive seen way to many people in all sorts of circumstances buy smaller budget friendly and years down the road complain thats its not fitting their needs. i dunno im sure you guys have heard go big or go home. In my case it has done me well.

My blaze king ultra can get my basement up to 91 degrees easy and on cold days. The problem i have in my house is getting the heat upstairs. So next year or the one after im going to buy another king ultra and run both my stoves on way lower setting, i just hope they will burn at a setting of 1 or 1.5.

Niko said:

I know it costs more but my motto always will be go big or go home. If you have the room get the biggest stove you can save up for it and do things once. Ive seen way to many people in all sorts of circumstances buy smaller budget friendly and years down the road complain thats its not fitting their needs. i dunno im sure you guys have heard go big or go home. In my case it has done me well.

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This is the beauty of BK, IMO. Go too big on a non-cat, and it will daily roast you out of your home. Go a little big on a BK, and you can just turn it down.

I guess the other way to say it, id rather have and not need it, then need it and not have it.

webby3650 said:

10 hours on nearly WOT, coals enough to refire is about all I'd expect.

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Thanks webby,
I'm having exactly that...

btw......this freakin stove is heating 5600 sq. ft. with no problem..............awesome !!
I'm using a fraction of the wood my OWB would use, a small fraction......

You must be insulated to the moon to be heating that much space... R-30 walls?

drz1050 said:

You must be insulated to the moon to be heating that much space... R-30 walls?

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He could be heating a green house

tarzan said:

He could be heating a green house

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Was thinking the same. I have two Ashfords heating the same space, in the same climate, and I'm still burning 1000 gallons of oil per year to keep up!

drz1050 said:

You must be insulated to the moon to be heating that much space... R-30 walls?

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Nope, R-19 in the walls, R-30 something in the ceiling..
The stove is in a large great room (28x40ish) 2 floors exposed, open floorplan with ceiling fans..
If this house was 2 stories, all cut up into little rooms then I would'nt get the heat moving around like you would need...
We have alot of open space, and alot of windows...

That great room alone is bigger than my house! My Ashford 30 at full blast makes it 70 in here when the temp drops, but no more than that...

Side note: I really need insulation. Have next to nothing right now, and nothing at all in the walls. That's on the plan for this year.

Haven't felt the need to be on here much this winter. Stove works excellent. We had a good size earthquake the other night at 1:30 am that was a little bit humbling. Definitely at the mercy of Mother Nature. Some people close by lost power, others had ruptured gas lines, one house caught fire/exploded. We didn't have any problems but it reaffirmed why we go through the "trouble" of burning. It's dang good peace of mind knowing my family will be warm no matter what happens with the utilities.

Been mainly burning lowly cottonwood this winter and it has served me admirably. Another mild winter here in southcentral Alaska so that helps. Im heating 2850 sq ft well insulated new construction home from the first floor with bkk ultra. Reloading at 12-16 hours. No help from furnace! Stove room is usually 80, upstairs 68-75.

Here's what she looks like at 15 hours