Are Non-CAT stoves more forgiving of less than perfectly seasoned wood than CAT stoves

Slow1 said:

I suppose my biggest problem with stacking in single rows is it takes more skill to stack well enough to avoid having the stack fall over. When stacking three deep you can have the outside rows lean in against the middle a bit and they can hold each other up. Not to mention the fact that they just fit well that way on the pallets I've gathered

Not that any of this has anything to do with how well a non-cat vs cat stove will burn it. I know the stoves don't care how the wood was stacked eh?

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Not that hard to do, once in a while one falls over but not very often, the post got a little off topic but he was wondering about drying time (I think). :smirk:

Well designed stoves are supposed to burn volatiles. The main difference in a well designed cat stove is that Vs are forced through a particular zone, the combustor, for combustion. Some noncat stoves are designed to force smoke into a secondary chamber as well, but most try to do it in the firebox. Cats are designed to burn smoke and gases. Less than perfectly dry wood makes more smoke. Cats will burn more smoke that a noncat which can allow smoke to escape the stove more easily. But even a well designed combustor zone can be overwhelmed and you'll see a light hazy blue smoke rising out of your chimney, generally. Real dry wood is always best, but I do believe a well designed cat stove will handle less than perfect wood better. With a well designed forceful main air intake just about any stove will start and keep the lesser wood burning.