Cast iron or soapstone?

[woodlot]

Last winter I asked many questions about my old Vermont castings defiant II that I was struggling with,I used that old classic for ( I bought it used from original owner) only last winter.I did not want to deal with it again this year,it burned a lot of wood and did not draft real well in my 8 inch terra cotta flue.Well,that stove is gone I have 5 cords of split oak and ash and no wood stove.I would like to get comments on whether to go back to cast iron or change to soap stone.I looked at the Jotul F 600 firelight and the Hearthstone Mansfield.I am leaning toward the soapstone Mansfield.We are heating just over 2000 sq. ft.I do know that the soap stone takes a little longer to get heat out of but retains heat a little longer, so they tell me.I have used cast iron stoves for many years and could use some advice on whether to make the change to soap stone,also to make it more confusing I just heard about the wood stock stove co. and their new hybrid stove.Any advice will be greatly appreciated as I need to make a decision very soon.Thanks.

 

[NH_Wood]

Hi Logroad,

I went through the same thing when I bought my stove. I was looking at both the F600 and Mansfield. I am very happy with the Mansfield and can only think of one major thing that would make me favor the cast iron Jotul: I burn 24/7 and I love the heat retention of the soapstone vs. cast iron. My stove never goes cold during the main burning season. If I was not burning 24/7, and had to do cold starts each weeknight, I might prefer the cast iron for the faster speed getting up to temperature and throwing heat into the room. I heated my 3000sqft last year, in NH, with ONLY the Mansfield - and it was a very cold winter. I was impressed. Depending on your layout, insulation, etc., I'd guess the Mansfield would do great for you, as well as the Jotul. I have zero complaints about my stove.

P.S. Have you addressed your poor draft problem? I'd take care of that before getting one of these expensive stoves. Also, these stove like WELL SEASONED wood - if you have oak, I hope it's on it's second year of drying right now! The ash should be great if it's been a year.

Cheers!

 

[Backwoods Savage]

logroad, don't put too much into that statement about the soapstone taking a long time to heat up. It does take longer than steel or cast iron but it doesn't take long. Re-read that last sentence.

You sound as if you'd like to go with soapstone so follow your heart. Have you also looked at the Woodstock Progress Hybrid? It will be on the market at the end of October and the introductory price is amazing.

 

[kayakkeith]

I am with Dennis - get the new Woodstock at its current intro price - its a great deal. Great stove company and awesome service

 

[NH_Wood]

I agree with Dennis that it's probably not a huge amount of extra time, I think it might take an hour to get up to 550* or so (from what I remember - not a lot of cold starts as I mentioned before). There is a lot of rock to heat up. How long does the F600 take to get up to high temps (550* is right where I like to be with the Mansfield, and not supposed to go over 600*). Any Firelight owners, or Oslo owners want to give some numbers? Cheers!

 

[leeave96]

I think you ought to reline your chimney to an insulated 6 inch.

I think the Jotul F600 is a great stove. For price, right now, if I were you, I'd jump all over the Woodstock Hybrid Progress. Give it a try. I assume they have the 6 month guarantee for your $$$$'s back if you are not happy.

Another option would be the new VC Defiant 2in1 stove. Top loading and cat or non-cat operation - you pick. Be aware though, there have been some black days with the VC stoves, but many thank these days may be behind them. With the Defiant, you could still use your 8 inch chimney, though I think you can use it with a 6 inch - just not with the front doors open.

Good luck,
Bill

 

[BrowningBAR]

Last winter I asked many questions about my old Vermont castings defiant II that I was struggling with,I used that old classic for ( I bought it used from original owner) only last winter.I did not want to deal with it again this year,it burned a lot of wood and did not draft real well in my 8 inch terra cotta flue.Well,that stove is gone I have 5 cords of split oak and ash and no wood stove.I would like to get comments on whether to go back to cast iron or change to soap stone.I looked at the Jotul F 600 firelight and the Hearthstone Mansfield.I am leaning toward the soapstone Mansfield.We are heating just over 2000 sq. ft.I do know that the soap stone takes a little longer to get heat out of but retains heat a little longer, so they tell me.I have used cast iron stoves for many years and could use some advice on whether to make the change to soap stone,also to make it more confusing I just heard about the wood stock stove co. and their new hybrid stove.Any advice will be greatly appreciated as I need to make a decision very soon.Thanks.

The F600 has a bigger usable firebox, I believe. Which would mean it would probably throw more heat. The Mansfield firebox didn't look much larger than the VC Encore. Do not confuse that with it not being able to heat as I nearly bought one this summer. But, you should be aware of the firebox sizes.

There isn't much difference between cast iron and soapstone. Once you are burning 24/7 on a larger stove the heat holding capabilities of the soapstone really do not come into play.

 

[BrowningBAR]

I think you ought to reline your chimney to an insulated 6 inch.

I think the Jotul F600 is a great stove. For price, right now, if I were you, I'd jump all over the Woodstock Hybrid Progress. Give it a try. I assume they have the 6 month guarantee for your $$$$'s back if you are not happy.

Another option would be the new VC Defiant 2in1 stove. Top loading and cat or non-cat operation - you pick. Be aware though, there have been some black days with the VC stoves, but many thank these days may be behind them. With the Defiant, you could still use your 8 inch chimney, though I think you can use it with a 6 inch - just not with the front doors open.

Good luck,
Bill

In terms of price, as it stands right now it is:
Woodstock Hybrid: $2400 (Will jump to $3600 after the sale)
VC Defiant: Starting at about $2800
Jotul F600: Starting at about $3000
Hearthstone Mansfield: Starting at about $3400

 

[branchburner]

I am with Dennis - get the new Woodstock at its current intro price - its a great deal. Great stove company and awesome service

x3

Bet you get better mileage out of that cord wood, also.

 

[BrowningBAR]

I am with Dennis - get the new Woodstock at its current intro price - its a great deal. Great stove company and awesome service

x3

Bet you get better mileage out of that cord wood, also.

It's kind of hard to recommend a stove that no one has seen and no one has used.

 

[branchburner]

I am with Dennis - get the new Woodstock at its current intro price - its a great deal. Great stove company and awesome service

x3

Bet you get better mileage out of that cord wood, also.

It's kind of hard to recommend a stove that no one has seen and no one has used.

Not for me, or the rest of the Woodstock faithful, especially considering they'll stand behind it and take it back if it doesn't work out. In a way, that makes it easier than recommending anything else!

http://woodstove.com/our-guarantee

 

[spacecowboyIV]

The most important thing you need is the right sized chimney for the stoves you are talking about you need an insulated 6" liner, an 8 inch chimney is going to cause the same draft problems you report you had last year.

Once your chimney is ready you should have good luck with any of the stoves you are conisdering if you have dry wood.

 

[BrowningBAR]

I am with Dennis - get the new Woodstock at its current intro price - its a great deal. Great stove company and awesome service

x3

Bet you get better mileage out of that cord wood, also.

It's kind of hard to recommend a stove that no one has seen and no one has used.

Not for me, or the rest of the Woodstock faithful, especially considering they'll stand behind it and take it back if it doesn't work out. In a way, that makes it easier than recommending anything else!

I just think it borders on irresponsible to tell someone to buy a stove that no one knows it's capabilities. It has a claimed 2.7 cu ft firebox which is smaller than the F600.

And, they may stand behind their product, which is good, but realizing a stove isn't working out for you is still a pain to deal with. At least with other stoves there are real world reports about how it works.

And an old Defiant is MUCH larger than the new Woodstock. How well will it compare to heat production? No one knows at this point.

 

[branchburner]

I just think it borders on irresponsible to tell someone to buy a stove that no one know it's capabilities. It has a claimed 2.7 cu ft firebox which is smaller than the F600.

Nobody is TELLING him to do anything (although you come the closest). The OP said "Any advice will be greatly appreciated as I need to make a decision very soon." I believe advice is an opinion. My opinion is that a 2.7 cu ft firebox from the best stove company around can heat 2000 sq ft., and do it using less wood and producing fewer emissions than a conventional burn-tube stove. If I had to buy a stove for MYSELF in his situation, what I would do is by a Woodstock. Telling him the truth, well, that borders on responsible.

 

[gmule]

As a new user of a woodstock fireview I have to say that I am over joyed at how well this stove works.
It takes my stove about 45 - 60 minutes to get up to temperature from a cold start but most of the time the stove is still 150 - 200 degrees in the morning. After that all I need to do is open the cat and draft all the way open put some wood in it and it usually has enough hot coals left to start back up on its own. I now know why my dad took this stove with him when he moved and I am really glad that I brought home after my mom went with a pellet stove. I am now contemplating on replacing the old stove in the basement with another Woodstock.

 

[woodlot]

Thanks for every ones opinion,I am pretty sure we will go with a soap stone stove,I spoke to a person at wood stock about their new stove.The person was very patient with my questions,as was mentioned it is tough buying a stove that has not been used by the public at this time.How ever all of the reviews I have read about their other stoves are great,plus the guarantee they give on their stoves is hard to beat.I also am the type of person who likes to see and touch important purchases,I wish they were a little closer.Any other thoughts please let me know.Thanks for the response.

 

[gmule]

The only other thing I would suggest is to have lots of help to bring it in the house. You're not going to do it by yourself that is for sure.

 

[begreen]

I'd suggest a road trip to the Woodstock/Hearth.com party!
https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/forums/viewthread/78370/

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I am with Dennis - get the new Woodstock at its current intro price - its a great deal. Great stove company and awesome service

x3

Bet you get better mileage out of that cord wood, also.

It's kind of hard to recommend a stove that no one has seen and no one has used.

It may be for you and I would expect that. However, not everyone thinks the same as you do. I will recommend it quite highly the same as branchburner and keith and several others.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I'd suggest a road trip to the Woodstock/Hearth.com party!
https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/forums/viewthread/78370/

I agree. It will be a long drive but well worth the trip. This will be our second trip and it is over 1,000 miles one way for us.

 

[raybonz]

You need to get what you prefer.. I feel they both have their good points.. To me the question was radiant vs. convection plus the wife likes the look of cast iron so I ended up with a steel convection stove with cast iron panels.. I also feel that Englander offers the best bang for your buck offering quality at a good price point.. Bottom line get what works best for you.. I will be at the Woodstock cookout so I can see how they make their stoves and meet Hearth.com people..

Good Luck!

Ray

 

[Nonprophet]

Personally, I think they both heat about the same, with a bit of an edge to going cast iron for getting up to temp quicker. We're not 24/7 burners, so this makes a real world difference for us.

But I will say that I've yet to see a soapstone stove that I really liked the looks of, whereas to me several of the cast iron stoves are quite attractive. I also would much prefer to move a cast iron stove vs a soapstone stove if we had to move, decided to change stoves, etc.

I also agree that it's speculative at best to recommend a stove that no one has ever used---any company is capable of making a dud. Personally I don't want to be a guinea pig...not with something as big and as heavy and as expensive as a new wood stove.


NP

 

[Battenkiller]

I just think it borders on irresponsible to tell someone to buy a stove that no one knows it's capabilities.

Woodstock is telling people to buy it before anyone here knows its capabilities. You either trust the manufacturer or you don't. Almost universally, Woodstock stove owners seem to trust the opinion of the company.

Well... there is one crank out there who refuses to believe Woodstock when they say unseasoned wood doesn't kill your cat, or that your firewood shouldn't get too dry if you want optimal performance. %-P

 

[krex1010]

Your old stove may not have heated well due to wet wood and no liner. If you think your old stove had draft issues then the new stoves will draft really horribly without a liner ( an insulated liner is preferable in my opinion, for safety and performance reasons). Not sure if you were planning on lining your chimney, but if you weren't you will almost definitely be disappointed with your new stove.

 

[Battenkiller]

Oh yeah...

The best thing I noticed about soapstone stoves is the uniform temperature all over the stove. I like standing next to my cast stove when it is cranking, but it definitely has hot spots. When I went to Woodstock last year, I brought along my IR thermometer. I was amazed at how even the whole outside was. About 525º everywhere I aimed the red dot at. A stove that is putting out 525º all over is putting out a lot more total heat than a stove that has a 650º top and 350º sides. Feels better, too.

I'm sold on soapstone and I'm sold on cat stoves. I can't wait to find a new house and close on it so I can start stove shopping at the Woodstock plant.