a new (skeptical) englander owner!

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crackshot

Member
Jan 15, 2011
111
Moosup ct
hello folks,... well I changed my mind and instead of gettin an enviro I saved some money and bought an englander 30. I have seen so many people on here who have them and say nothing but good things about them(englander). I hope i will be one of them. Id be lieing if i didnt say i am skeptical about purchasing a new stove for such a cheap price. so this is where you guys come in,... talk me down fellas , please......!.....oh and by the way,... hahaha,. I said my store was watertown ny and got the deal ! lol,... thanks again guys(i hope).... this site has "learned" me so much already !.... hearth is built , stove is on the way,... next week Im gonna order my chimney from woodland direct,..... very excited.......
 
We were just kidding. :)
 
I have just spent the winter thoroughly enjoying a Pleasant Hearth rated to heat 1800 sq. feet. It was $629 on sale at Lowe's last fall (marked down from $699).

I am awaiting the arrival of an Englander NC-30, which I got from the Home Depot site for $649. This one will go in my dining room; the Pleasant Hearth will remain in the basement. I need a stove on my main floor, and I want the larger firebox. I will use the Pleasant Hearth as needed during cold snaps, and to keep my doggies cozy when I'm out on errands.

Look at it this way: A Toyota Corolla will get you where you want to go just as well as a Beamer.

Enjoy your stove. I know I will love mine.

Nancy
 
Bart, you devil you...
 
My wife and I have always loved the look of our 30. Of course before it ever left the garage it got five coats of Stove Bright Goldenfire Brown paint like our old stove. And left the door and legs black. Even when we have company they comment on the stove. But mostly they comment on the huge glass and view of the fire.

I had $2,500 budgeted for a stove and bought this one for a grand and have never regretted it. Can't picture any other wood stove in that fireplace.
 
This was faked.



I actually have to scrape 1 inch thick creosote off of my glass everyday ;-)

I hope to hear you enjoy yours as much as I have mine. If not then either your need drier wood, you need a taller chimney, or you need a lesson in top down fire starting! (all of which are discussed here at depth 6 to 2,366 times per day)

pen
 

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pen -

just was gonna ax dat question; so top-down (Vanessa style) is the best for a cold stove. Yet, another thing I have to re-learn ;-)
 
PJF1313 said:
pen -

just was gonna ax dat question; so top-down (Vanessa style) is the best for a cold stove. Yet, another thing I have to re-learn ;-)

Best to use top down to build a coal bed and then do the bigger load using the coals from a three or four hundred degree stove top. Alla Vanessa. Do a top down with a load of big stuff on the bottom and you ain't gonna believe what happens later when that load of big stuff gets hot and off gasses all at once. Found that out the other night. I now officially don't know how hot a 30 has to be to split down the middle.
 
thanks guys,..... please ,.... what is top down fire starting?
 
:bug:

Then it's gotta be north of 1K °F !!!
 
PJF1313 said:
:bug:

Then it's gotta be north of 1K °F !!!

Just a little bit. :red:
 
BrotherBart said:
PJF1313 said:
:bug:

Then it's gotta be north of 1K °F !!!

Just a little bit. :red:
That's comforting. I just bought a 30-nc and a 17-vl ;-)
 
kingquad said:
BrotherBart said:
PJF1313 said:
:bug:

Then it's gotta be north of 1K °F !!!

Just a little bit. :red:
That's comforting. I just bought a 30-nc and a 17-vl ;-)

I wouldn't advise doing that. That kind of firing is why my old stove is busted and sitting out back as the firebox for a meat smoker. Five to six hundred degrees is a really nice temp for a wood stove. If you want to keep it around for awhile.

I just screwed up. And probably shortened the life of my stove.
 
BrotherBart said:
kingquad said:
BrotherBart said:
PJF1313 said:
:bug:

Then it's gotta be north of 1K °F !!!

Just a little bit. :red:
That's comforting. I just bought a 30-nc and a 17-vl ;-)

I wouldn't advise doing that. That kind of firing is wht my old stove is busted and sitting out back as the firebox for a meat smoker. Five to six hundred degrees is a really nice temp for a wood stove. If you want to keep it around for awhile.

I just screwed up. And probably shortened the life of my stove.
I wouldn't ever run it that hot intentionally, but it's good to know that it can take some abuse if i screw up.
 
crackshot said:
thanks guys,..... please ,.... what is top down fire starting?

Huh . . . several days have passed and no one answered your question.

Top down fire starting is a method of starting a fire from a cold start that many folks here have found works well . . . others have found however that it does not work as well for them in their own stove . . . it really doesn't matter which method you use . . . providing you find a method that works well for you and your stove.

The long and short of it is that there seem to be three or four methods of fire starting.

Tee-Pee Method . . . think campfires where you build a teepee out of the wood and the fire burns in the middle.

Log Cabin Method . . . think Lincoln Logs and stacking the wood like a log cabin with the kindling on bottom and the heavier stuff on top.

Chaos Method . . . OK, just made this up . . . but this is for the guy who just crams his firebox full of wood, newspaper and kindling in a haphazard way and figures if he lights a match it will somehow catch on fire and burn wonderfully. This guy is usually quite disappointed.

Top Down Method . . . bigger splits on bottom, kindling on top and crumpled newspaper (Super Cedar for the educated masses or newspapers tied in bows for the purists among us) . . . the idea being that the heat from the newspaper catches the kindling on fire, heat from the kindling catches the splits on fire, etc. . . . advantage is a fire that doesn't fall down on itself and suffocate itself and some folks feel it catches faster and heats up the chimney establishing a draft easier.
 
firefighterjake said:
crackshot said:
thanks guys,..... please ,.... what is top down fire starting?

Huh . . . several days have passed and no one answered your question.

Top down fire starting is a method of starting a fire from a cold start that many folks here have found works well . . . others have found however that it does not work as well for them in their own stove . . . it really doesn't matter which method you use . . . providing you find a method that works well for you and your stove.

The long and short of it is that there seem to be three or four methods of fire starting.

Tee-Pee Method . . . think campfires where you build a teepee out of the wood and the fire burns in the middle.

Log Cabin Method . . . think Lincoln Logs and stacking the wood like a log cabin with the kindling on bottom and the heavier stuff on top.

Chaos Method . . . OK, just made this up . . . but this is for the guy who just crams his firebox full of wood, newspaper and kindling in a haphazard way and figures if he lights a match it will somehow catch on fire and burn wonderfully. This guy is usually quite disappointed.

Top Down Method . . . bigger splits on bottom, kindling on top and crumpled newspaper (Super Cedar for the educated masses or newspapers tied in bows for the purists among us) . . . the idea being that the heat from the newspaper catches the kindling on fire, heat from the kindling catches the splits on fire, etc. . . . advantage is a fire that doesn't fall down on itself and suffocate itself and some folks feel it catches faster and heats up the chimney establishing a draft easier.
Top-down also seems to produce less smoke overall on startup. My Oslo gets to good secondaries faster with top-down.

Like FFJ said, you'll find opinions on top-down quite divided here, from raving fans (like me) to folks who can't stand it. It may indeed be very stove-dependent, or perhaps very dependent on the combination of stove and chimney. The best bet is to give it a try, or maybe a couple of tries. If it doesn't work for you, then don't use it.

There used to be a great video on a Canadian web site, but they've taken it down. Here's some info from woodheat.org on top-down starting Top-Down Steps, but this kind of combines the Log Cabin Method and the pure top-down. I don't do the cross-wise stacking of small splits. I just put big splits on the bottom, a couple of small splits on the top, and then two quarters of a SuperCedar firestarter. Takes right off. You can also use newspaper instead of a firestarter, but then you have to add a layer of sticks or kindling under the paper.
 
thanks guys, appreciate it,.... i ended up doin my own research when no one answered.... thanks guys. im gonna try them all out see what ones the best for the stove. I just ordered all my odds and ends and chimney tonight, hopefully the install will be happening next weekend!!!!
 
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