And yet, another newbie

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joeq

joeq

New Member
Feb 4, 2012
4
northern CT
Hello Everyone. New to the site, and new to free standing stoves.Acquired a Surdiac Gotha 513, yrs ago, and am finally basking in its warmth, for the 1st time this weekend. I'm in Northern CT, and our winter really is relatively mild this yr. I'm in the experimental stages, and am loving the performance of this stove. I've seen some tips and info from your site in the past, and am glad to be a member. Hopefully (I'm sure), there is a lot of experience here, and am thankful for your tips and ideas, and maybe someday I'll be able to contribute also. So once again, Hi, and for you football fans, enjoy the game. Out for now. Joe P.S. need to learn the picture posting details and avatars. Please be patient with me. I'm not very proficient at computers.
 
Welcome to the forums, joeq. The thing that billb3 is referring to is your statement in the opening post of your thread: "Acquired a Surdiac Gotha 513 yrs ago..." :lol:

Some info on posting pics can be found here: https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/forums/viewannounce/27_2/

If that doesn't get you where you want to go with it, just let us know and we'll help you figure it all out. Again, welcome! Rick
 
I thought the same thing..looked a few times then realized 513 is the model of stove. coal stove
 
Locust Post said:
I thought the same thing..looked a few times then realized 513 is the model of stove. coal stove
Click to expand...

AHA! Makes sense to me now. Thanks, Rick
 
That was my thought--513 years does not qualify most of us as newbies any more . . .

Congratulations on getting that valuable antique up and running, and yourself as well. You must be ready for the heat at this point . . . :lol: aw, gol, I crack myself up . . .
 
That was my first coal stove joeq. Very efficient and steady. Never lost a fire. It wasn't quite big enough for 2000 s.f. so I went to a Hitzer EZ-Flo with blower. Like many European stoves, they are more complex than they need to be. Magnets and latches, tons of small parts. The engineering does not keep simplicity in mind, but nothing failed on mine. Wipe the glass daily if it gets fly ash on the inside. The spaces between the glass panels are for the secondary air to get to the top of the coal bed to ignite gasses. The clean-outs on the heat exchanger needed to be cleaned out yearly, or where the ash packs at the bottom doesn't get exhaust flow and stays cool. I got more heat off the heat exchanger than the stove at times. That worked well since it was not against a hearth and exposed. The thermostatic capillary tube is better than a bimetallic spring used on American stoves. The draft is very important. Most owners don't have a draft gauge or water column gauge like a manometer to set the barometric damper. This keeps the draft steady and correct. Set too high (flapper closed) it will fire hard. That's OK if you have a large space to heat, but cuts down on efficiency. Set too low (flapper opens easily) it will be sluggish and slow to respond when the thermostat opens the door. I also used Chestnut instead of the recommended Pea. The larger the coal, the more air space between pieces and the faster it will burn. Same BTU per pound no matter what size you use, just a different burn rate.
I learned to keep the ash door open when starting until a good coal fire was established. Tiny splits about 4 inches long to start established a coal fire in minutes. By keeping the hopper filled, I kept the cast hopper "funnel" cool. They can slowly deteriorate away or curl if your coal bed is left burning hard under it. That's the same with any hopper fed stove, or banking plate.
I only ran about 150* flue temp with an insulated 6 inch chimney all the way. I got mine when coal was $117 a ton, and heated with 2 tons a year. Now that it's $200 a ton, I heated this year with wood since i have the property and the fuel is free. You'll like no chimney cleaning and steady heat.
 
Gentlemen, (Women?).
Thanx for your responses. Bill, I guess I'm not just slow on the 'puter. The joke went over my head till Rick cleared it up.(Amazing how things can get turned around. It's pretty funny, now that I see it). And thanks everyone for your tips. I was fortunate enough to find another (exact) stove today for possibly parts or...? Still experimenting with damper settings. Coaly, I like the idea of the nut coal, makes sense. Now I'm being paged for supper. Gutta go . Thanx again people.
 
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