My Hitzer EZ Flo with hopper has no secondary air intake, only slots around grate at front for secondary air and air wash. It is coal only, and stack temps get way hot just starting a coal fire with wood. It has intake through ash pan door as well as the bimetal thermostat on the back. I keep the thermostat turned back after coal ignites and only use the front to control heat output. Uses far less coal and only have to open it farther on really cold days.
I saw the ash door and figured it was a coal or multi fuel so the upper intake at dampers was secondary air for coal. As you know, it doesn’t take much secondary air for oxygen above the coal bed. I think if they gave them enough air for primary through it with wood, people would open it too far with coal allowing dilution air up the chimney, killing a coal fire.
Is there a Dremel tool in the house? You know you want to. LOL
The Fishers with glass doors have the normal size primaries on the sides and enough air wash to burn overnight with air wash only.
Hitzer 254/354 single door stoves also do not have any secondary air controls for the user. They do have e secondary air in the form of primary air that sneaks past the grate frame between the stove body and the bricks. I actually have this on video showing blue flames in those spaces to the back and sides of the brick retainer and also at the front door showing blue flames that are not over the fuel load. According to Dean at Hitzer the hopper fed stoves ( 30-95 and 50-93) are the same stove bodies and similar grate frames with the smaller 30-95 being only a single shaker grate but same stove body as the 254.
I would like to see pictures of the slots you mentioned in your EZ Flow to compare with mine and newer models I’ve looked at. I don’t think I’ve noticed any slots before.
So do you have pictures of the glass door Fishers air wash from the inside? LOL! I think I’ve seen them but I’m not sure.
I don’t have a Dremel, but do have the next best thing, a die-grinder with new carbide cutters. LOL!
What you said about too much secondary killing a coal fire is very true. I guess it never crossed my mind because of the stove (my stove…a 1998 model before EPA nixed the “advertising of combos) being sold generally as a combo stove and I was thinking I could use those spinners as ordinary air intakes for wood. That’s why I tried to run I only using the spinners which proved to be a bad decision and made a mess. LOL!
I actually bought the stove with the thought in mind to add secondary air tubes inside the stove to make it a better “wood” stove. I still intend to do this eventually.
Some have actually already added secondary air tubes in a Hitzer for coal, although I wasn’t a fan of drilling the front of the stove like they did. Here’s a couple links…
Anyway…
I knew those Fisher air intakes had to be larger than what I was seeing on my doors, as your pictures confirmed.
After I go to bed and after I get up in the morning I’m going to try and take a better look at the pictures of the drawings you sent and look at them on a bigger screen than I have on this phone. I’m sure I can learn something from those.
I would still like to make this stove a better wood burner. I think there’s improvements that could be made to it even if it’s a small improvement.