Advice / Review need: Regency CI2600 fireplace insert risky & costly?

[edge-of-the-woods]

I did the dollar bill test, and it slid out easy.

Since then I've taken out one set of washers from the door, and it closes tight again...you can pull the dollar out now, but it's hard to do. Taking off two washers made the door unable to close. This is only our second week with the stove, so I'll wait a bit until the dollar slips out easy again before taking off more washers.

The wood is still our major problem, we waited too long to buy. I've got a guy claiming he has wood under 40% moisture content that he can deliver,and it seems like the best we'll be able to find.

Of course we're in New England so it's 63 degrees out today with 8" of snow predicted for tomorrow.....

 

[Jonny006]

OK. I got the plate yesterday. Pretty basic design. All it really does is reduce the size of the airhole. I did not measure but it is noticeable. No instructions on how to install but it seems to only work one way. It fits behind the nozzle and housing and bolts in sandwiched b/w.
I too removed my second set of washers. Door is reluctant to close but will so it should help somewhat.
I have not tried out the stove since installing b/c much like Edge above, it's been in the upper 60's..Snow expected tomorrow. Weird.
I will try a fire tonight and report my results.
I did take pics but I don't know how to post them on here from my iphone. If somebody could advise on how to do so i will put them on.

 

[Jonny006]

So far so good. I started a fire about an hr ago and I can already tell the burn rate has slowed with no appreciable loss of heat. I have new hope. I will load it up before bed tonight and we shall see.

 

[marty22877]

How much smaller do you think the hole is?

 

[J RD]

Spoke with regency today. They are sending me a plate. It seems like they haven't really tested these plates yet, but it is reassuring that they are responding to the issue so quickly.

In the meantime, I ran 2 #14 stainless sheet metal screws with washers into the orfice (regency calls it a pilot). This has drastically changed the way this unit operates.

I'll report back in the morning.

 

[Wolves1]

Spoke with regency today. They are sending me a plate. It seems like they haven't really tested these plates yet, but it is reassuring that they are responding to the issue so quickly.

In the meantime, I ran 2 #14 stainless sheet metal screws with washers into the orfice (regency calls it a pilot). This has drastically changed the way this unit operates.

I'll report back in the morning.

Did you take the plate off to put the screws in ?

 

[Jonny006]

I definitely see a reduction in the flames now. But, this am. No heat. Blower off. Able to start a fire up quickly but still a disappointment.
It could be that the wood I am using right now is quite large. I am not able to really pack it full. As I move down the stack the pieces will be more manageable. I had cut them large in anticipation of installing an OWB but that never came to fruition.
So as of now, the "solution" is working better. The fire is not raging out of control now but the stove is still putting out good heat. It was reading @850 with cat and damper closed.
Now if I could just get some decent burn times I will be content.

 

[marty22877]

J RD can you take a picture of the screws and washer? And it's good to hear Regency is responding quickly

 

[marty22877]

Jonny, how long did you run it for last night?

 

[Jonny006]

Jonny, how long did you run it for last night?

I filled it at @10:30pm. At 6:00 it was out. No blower. As I said I was able to start up a fire from the coals but they were not kicking out any heat into the room.
I feel like if I could just reduce it a bit more then I would be there with good burn times.

 

[J RD]

Did you take the plate off to put the screws in ?

No, I screwed them right into the plate. They're a little loose so they may jostle around a bit. It would probably require a 1/4 lag to really dig into the orfice but I didn't want to damage anything at this point.

I can't really get a picture at the moment because the stove is back up and running, but I'll take one the next time I shut it down.

I got a solid 9 hours last night. There was still a large chunk of a glowing split so if I could have let it go to just coals and probably called it 10-11 hours.

 

[marty22877]

thanks, i'm assuming you just put them on the outside of that opening from the pic you posted before?

 

[dondero14]

Wow my stove must be doing alright. I will load my stove up at around 10:30ish and the blower is still running at 7ish. Small coals in the bottom but at that point it's not really putting out any heat. Just blowing warm air. My stove still runs wild first few hour but have gotten better with packing it full of wood. I'm still getting 9-9.5 hours a burn before I'll load it again but I still feel that's pretty far off a 14+ listing. I'm curious to see what a restricter plate will do because the air supply is like a flame thrower.

 

[J RD]

thanks, i'm assuming you just put them on the outside of that opening from the pic you posted before?

Yes, I just lightly threaded them into the triangular pilot assembly.

 

[marty22877]

would you say it's worth trying? you figure that's pretty much what the plate is going to do

 

[J RD]

would you say it's worth trying? you figure that's pretty much what the plate is going to do

It's definitely worth trying since it has certainly extended my burn time. I will probably end up making my own restriction plate considering the one from regency (which they told me was 5/16") sounds like it isn't small enough to restrict the air flow enough.

 

[marty22877]

since i'll be running to the hardware store after this, would the two screws with washers be enough? or would you add some more?

 

[J RD]

since i'll be running to the hardware store after this, would the two screws with washers be enough? or would you add some more?

You could try jamming a 3rd screw in there, but it probably won't fit with a washer. I am also planning to check to see if they stayed in place after this thing cools down again.

You may just want to go straight to the steel stock and make your own plate. I think I'm going to try a 1/4" hole since the regency fix is 5/16" and appears to still be too much.

 

[marty22877]

most likely that's what i'm going to do, but if the screws work that's a lot less work.

 

[BigRocco]

Just a question, why would you take a chance of voiding a warranty by sticking screws into a $4000 insert. I am going to request a plate just to see how much longer I can go than I do already .For the record here is me loaded North South front to back getting ready to close it for the nite,don't mind the mess the maids not here

 

[woodstove guy]

Hi all, my wife and I had the Regency CI2600 installed almost a week ago today. We ran the 6 or so small fires they ask to burn it in, and have since been trying all-day and overnight burns.

Before I get into how we're not seeing the results we expected, let me ask a question about the temps.

We got a thermometer from our dealer to affix to the stove, it's on a magnet. When I placed it on the stove, the needle never moved, so I stuck it on the stove door...the metal frame around the glass. Once I did that the needle shot right up. The temp NEVER reads over 400 though, in fact it shows a "best operation" zone from 300-450, and anything over 500 is in the "danger zone".

I see where some of you are talking about getting this thing up to 500 or 700, and wonder what we're doing wrong...is this thermometer supposed to be placed in a different spot? Our liner is fully inside the chimney, so the only place to stick it is on the door, the stove, or the shielding.


View attachment 145193

Hi. That thermometer isn't going to do you any good there. The idea of the thermometer on this type of fireplace or insert is to monitor the catalyst temperatures. I mentioned earlier in other posts, I called the Regency guys. They cleared up a lot of muddy waters for me. I really learned loads from them. This insert isn't like any I've burned before. They told me to make sure I was heating the catalyst. Once that's done and I have my insert going well, if I am off to my night-shift I load the firebox up and close the draft off. But if your picture was anything to go on, you have a load of space there for bigger pieces of wood! I have noticed that hardwood like oak burns for a while longer than softer stuff. I also use large logs, the larger the better. By the time my firebox is loaded up, there isn't a lot of space for much else! 14 hours was the goal at first because thats what regency say you can get. But I was trying to get it with half a load! Once I started to get there, 14 hrs is a breeze. I set myself a target of 16 hrs. I'm close but not quite there.

 

[woodstove guy]

Just a question, why would you take a chance of voiding a warranty by sticking screws into a $4000 insert. I am going to request a plate just to see how much longer I can go than I do already .For the record here is me loaded North South front to back getting ready to close it for the nite,don't mind the mess the maids not hereView attachment 145856

Hey there Rocco. I'm with you. If the manufacturer can back up their claim just maybe the problem is not the insert. I know they can because they made a believer out of me. There is no way I'd alter a manufacturer's specs for these things. man, I spent a load of cash on this insert and I want it to do the job. But now that it is, even though I keep trying to get better at it, altering an insert from specs is dangerous territory. I used to be a fireman for a while. I saw some dumb things which people did to cause house fires. Not for me, thats for sure!

 

[dondero14]

They told me to make sure I was heating the catalyst. Once that's done and I have my insert going well, if I am off to my night-shift I load the firebox up and close the draft off.

Hey woodstove guy what do you mean by heating the cat. Is there a certain way that's more effective than just building a small kindling fire to heat up the insert after a long burn. Also I thought you were suppose to wait about 10 minutes after you open the door to the insert before closing the bypass.

 

[J RD]

Just a question, why would you take a chance of voiding a warranty by sticking screws into a $4000 insert. I am going to request a plate just to see how much longer I can go than I do already .For the record here is me loaded North South front to back getting ready to close it for the nite,don't mind the mess the maids not hereView attachment 145856

The manufacturer is well aware of what I was trying as a fix until their plate arrives. He also suggested a few other ideas on how to restrict the pilot orfice. It may be different because he knew I am a dealer. I'd imagine they aren't going to recommend the things he did to a consumer.

Not to mention, there is zero damage being done to the unit by letting 2 screws "rest" in that slot. I'm glad you are happy with your stove, Rocco and I respect your decision to not tinker with things, but I'm going to continue to work with the manufacturer and on my own until I am satisfied with these burns times.

 

[edge-of-the-woods]

Rocco my man, how long are those splits that you have loaded north to south? Did you take out the andirons? I measured from the firebrick at the back to the andirons, and it's only 13 inches. I am going to have to bust out the chainsaw to custom cut some splits to fit north to south.