MaineMom said:
grommal said:
Not to be too redundant, but the one choice that's a slam-dunk, absolutely, should-do is.....
***** DRY WOOD! *****
Yes, got it - I probably should have been more specific. We have a slew of seasoned wood at the ready from an abundant supply for our outdoor fire pit, but if "it" ever happens and I have to go with whatever I can get (assuming things were really bad and I had burned through a regular supply of seasoned wood), then I don't want to kill a stove burning green wood. Glad to know that the cat can be bypassed, didn't know that!
What I think I fell in love with most on the VC stoves is the idea of the warming shelves (namely for rising bread). In thinking it through though, i can see them being more of a hazard than anything. The PE Alderlea is even better because the shelves swing out, but I just don't have room for a top vent stove...
So we are now looking at the Jotul Castine... I grew up with a Jotul so I am comfortable with the operation and quality, though it will lack some of the convenient features of the VC (shelves and top load). If anyone has specific working knowledge of both the Encore and the Castine that would be great! I appreciate all the help.
The Encore's firebox is larger than the Castine's I think (though Jotul does not publish firebox volume numbers). So, the burn times might be shorter for the Castine than the Encore. I'll let actual Castine users chime in with their burn time experiences.
I ran an early Encore cat for many years, and the design of that stove has not changed much. I run an Oslo now, so I can make that comparison. Burn times are longer with the Oslo, which I attribute to the larger firebox. With the Encore, after 8 hours I had a little bed of coals, and I could bring the stove back with some small splits and work my way back up. After 10 hours it was pretty much done, and needed kindling to get going. With the Oslo, after 8-10 hours there's usually a very good bed of coals with lots of life, and I can just toss full size splits in and be cruising again, and after 12-14 hours there's still enough coals to restart with small splits.
The heat output of Oslo when you really get it rockin' is somewhat higher than the Encore was, but not phenomenally so. I wonder if the Castine has output close to the Encore, or if it's a lot less. With the Encore or the Oslo, we could/can provide 100% of the heat for our 2000 sf home. It's difficult to compare the BTU output numbers from the different manufacturers, so again, let actual Castine owners talk about how much house they can heat with their stoves.
The Encore had a top loading feature, which we really liked, and were initially disappointed that we would lose going with the Oslo. We don't miss it at all, and our house is WAY less dusty with the Oslo, so I think we were getting some very fine ash escape when top-loading. The Encore was a bit more complex to operate, with both a primary air control and a bypass damper. We found it to be a very difficult stove to keep happy, and we had chronic backpuffing issues that we could never solve by changing our operational practices or the attributes of our wood. Others will report trouble-free operation, but we just couldn't get there. I think the stove needed draft behavior from the chimney that we just couldn't give it. In contrast, the Oslo is a sweetheart to run for us. One lever, easy startup without the Encore's open-damper inferno that would come on quickly and needed constant watching during startups. Both stoves had great ashpans, but the Oslo's is larger, which is good.
Our cat elements lasted 5-6 years with the Encore, though they seemed to degrade in performance slowly after the first season, and then rapidly at the end. Our chimney stays cleaner with the Oslo. In addition to the cat element itself, the chamber below and around the cat was made of a very delicate refractory material that fell apart over time. It was in very bad shape after 10 years, and we should have probably replaced it maybe every 7 years or so. The stove has to be at least partially disassembled to do this, so it's not for the faint of heart. The other failure we had was the secondary air control on the back of the stove, which also had to be replaced once. VC parts were quite expensive for us. The company has changed hands a couple of times, so perhaps that's different now.
The Oslo has basically one moving part aside from the doors, and I expect very little maintenance to be needed. Other than door gaskets when they get too compressed, the only parts that would degrade over time would be the secondary combustion tubes in the firebox and the refractory baffle that sits above them. The Oslo has fairly heavy gauge tubes, so I think they will last quite a while, and after 2 seasons the refractory baffle looks like new. Total maintenance after two 4+ cord years has been lubricating the air intake slide with graphite once per year.
Be sure to listen to the operating experience of others with the Castine. From what I've read, most owners are very happy. I've seen a few comments about smoke spillage from the front door during reloading, as the Castine is not a very deep stove. These folks probably had relatively weaker draft. You might still consider the Oslo for your application. I find it to be very easy to dial the stove back to moderate heat output. Even with a full load, if I crank it all the way down, it cruises at 350-400 stovetop but still maintains good secondary burn.