I have been able to really test out the SC25 with the temps in the teens around here. With the fixes to the tstat it is running great now, it will run on Low or High or in between, whatever I want and it will kick out the heat to keep our downstairs 76 with the temps below 32, on high this thing is a heating monster and I have to turn it down.
Now that it is cold enough to run on High-Medium for longer periods I have been able to clean up the glass very nicely, only the corners will have a small amount of creo left on them.
So let's talk burn times:
- Running on Low with the firebox jammed packed with Oak I am getting 14 hour burn times, this is with the cat just on the edge of becoming inactive according to the built in cat temperature gauge and the fan on Low but heat still coming off the insert, it could probably go longer but heat output would drop. This has been heating my 600 sq ft downstairs very nicely in the 72-74 degree range with temps above 32 and light winds and the 600 sq ft upstairs at 70.
- Running on Medium with the firebox jammed packed with Oak I get about 6-7 Hours, used this setting the most during the extreme temperature drop with temps in the teens with very windy gusts, kept the room at 76 and upstairs was fighting to stay at 68, fans were run on high
- Running on High with the firebox jammed packed with Oak I am guessing I would get about 4 Hours, it produced so much heat I had to kick it back to Medium after about an hour, High cleans the glass very well and Medium maintains the clean glass, fans run on high
Considering the "small" sized 2.3cu ft firebox (I still need to measure it for accuracy as it seems smaller with the cat shield) I am pleased with its performance vs the 2.8cu ft of the Bay 52. Not to mention it is more flush than the past inserts which should detract from its heating capabilities but it does not appear to do so with the larger glass.
One thing to note, the only other insert the Wife liked was the Jotul since it only had the 1 air lever to mess with and it looked good. She did not like the Bay 52 since it had 2 air sliders and was a bit temperamental in how it would run. With the SC25 I have not had a single complaint, once again the simplicity of the single air control and the good looks has won out so both of us are now happy, I have my Low burn for longer burn times and she has ease of use. I will add that it took a while for her to get used to the damper on the Bay 52, but now that she understands it she was able to pickup that aspect of the SC25 very easily, so your mileage might vary depending on past cat damper experience.
The built in cat thermometer is geared towards simplicity which is nice for her, in the red your good, grey it needs more wood or turn it up, can't get any easier than that. I have my exhaust thermocouple hooked up just to monitor things and also have the alarm set at 600 incase one of us leaves the bypass open for to long, that would a great addition to have to the insert somehow as it has saved us a couple times so far.
Overall, best insert I have owned yet so far.