Critiques of Blaze King Stoves...Exist ?

[webby3650]

Oh,and did I mention the dealer.
I'm sure you must have seen the Blaze King "free fans" promotion with a new stove ad popping up the last few months on this site.
Well,despite seeing this ad before purchase,during the waiting peiod to install,and after installed.My fans were not free.

Contact @BKVP . He will make it right.

 

[jetsam]

I burned wet (both wet as in green, and wet as in somewhat waterlogged) wood in my BK the whole first year, and I'm not shy about using it now, either. It is worse than dry wood in multiple ways, but don't let anyone tell you that you can't burn it in a BK.

(I am not endorsing using wet wood... it's a LOT of extra work and it is much less efficient and it doesn't heat as well.... But it still beats burning oil!)

 

[begreen]

Surprised no one has mentioned the distinct advantage of Woodstock stoves - rear venting.

 

[DUMF]

I'm well aware of that.....
Blaze kings control actually works though! These others never ran low or slow did they? To get one dialed in to burn clean at these low output rates is next to impossible.

No, the older cat Defiants from the 90's when they were problem free, had a reliable thermostatic control that once the cat lit off, would run low, slow, and clean; easily long burns overnight with a full load of dry hardwoods in a VT winter. The operative word is "problem free". Our old ones would run so clean that the spring flue cleanings produced barely a cup full of dry ash each year.
But, those stove were a big fat PITA to maintain; complex, expensive parts, difficult to repair and rebuild as some hearth posts have stated.
The thermostatic primary air controls are not new.
So, why the big $$$ for BK ?

 

[Hogwildz]

My house gets good solar gain. But when it gets cool enough, I'll just run the furnace to get the house up to temp. Once the cold is here to stay, then I'll burn 24/7.

 

[shoot-straight]

Both are good stoves with great customer service. There are points of both that make things very clear which you should buy most likely. For me, it was the side loading of the ph- my alcove instillation wouldn't allow it. So I went with the ashford and am happy with the product and the level of service.

When I pay a premium price for a product- be it a meal, clothing or in this case a stove I not only want a great product but great service and any issues to be taken care of immediately and properly. Bk has exceeded my expectations in all aspects.

There are cheerleaders on here and on any forum cheerleading their purchase whatever it is, saying its the best...... Bk, Woodstock, ford, Chevy, whatever. For some stupid reason it makes them feel special or strokes their ego. You can tell who they are. You won't get that from me. I wasn't too happy with my bk dealer either- but Bkvp is awesome and took care of everything I needed.

 

[drstorm]

Contact @BKVP . He will make it right.

From reading through thousands of posts on this forum over the years I believe he would if I made an issue of it.
I have my fans and don't need him to even chime in on this post though.I'll save that one up for something more major lol.
He can buy me a beer and we'll call it even if he comes to the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre area in the future.

And I'm not totally trying to trash the dealer.
BK stoves are almost unheard of in these parts so I have to give them some slack,this is anthracite coal country after all.
They were always professional,just lacked a knowledge base.

 

[webby3650]

No, the older cat Defiants from the 90's when they were problem free, had a reliable thermostatic control that once the cat lit off, would run low, slow, and clean; easily long burns overnight with a full load of dry hardwoods in a VT winter. The operative word is "problem free". Our old ones would run so clean that the spring flue cleanings produced barely a cup full of dry ash each year.
But, those stove were a big fat PITA to maintain; complex, expensive parts, difficult to repair and rebuild as some hearth posts have stated.
The thermostatic primary air controls are not new.
So, why the big $$$ for BK ?

They were not problem free or able to run so low. In fact I'm doing a $1,000 repair to one in the morning... they were never as good as people claimed. Just better than others at the time, that time is gone.
How much difference is there in price?

 

[webby3650]

Both are good stoves with great customer service. There are points of both that make things very clear which you should buy most likely. For me, it was the side loading of the ph- my alcove instillation wouldn't allow it. So I went with the ashford and am happy with the product and the level of service.

When I pay a premium price for a product- be it a meal, clothing or in this case a stove I not only want a great product but great service and any issues to be taken care of immediately and properly. Bk has exceeded my expectations in all aspects.

There are cheerleaders on here and on any forum cheerleading their purchase whatever it is, saying its the best...... Bk, Woodstock, ford, Chevy, whatever. For some stupid reason it makes them feel special or strokes their ego. You can tell who they are. You won't get that from me. I wasn't too happy with my bk dealer either- but Bkvp is awesome and took care of everything I needed.

Most every bell ringer for BK on this site had some other stove that was "high efficiency" before their BK. So they aren't simply satisfied with their purchase, but sold.. They've lived and seen the tremendous difference.

 

[rdust]

Most every bell ringer for BK on this site had some other stove that was "high efficiency" before their BK. So they aren't simply satisfied with their purchase, but sold.. They've lived and seen the tremendous difference.

This is true, most of us started with something different.

 

[begreen]

And all "lived", hopefully.

 

[drstorm]

This is true, most of us started with something different.

I have had various anthracite coal stoves over the years.
First year with wood or wood products.TSC eco-bricks rule while my wood seasons another year.

Besides a large list of coal burning negatives, perhaps the wife allowing one in the living room is the biggest factor?

Attractive wood stove in living room vs this monster(pic below) in the basement heating a space we don't use because it's too ugly for upstairs?

Now sure,this is a circa 1993 stoker and the more modern stoves are somewhat more attractive,however,the ash/fuel source is ten times worse than my experience with wood so far and most wood stoves will win a beauty contest over their coal burning cousins in my opinion.
The stoker also had several "electricity required and often needing replacing parts".

The one big possible drawback may be the venting.

Coal stoves produce zero creosote, some fly ash to blow out on occasion but nothing flammable.

With the wood stove, I have already seen what one bad cycle of wet wood can do to your stove and/or liner if the creosote is not kept up on.

Coal had the hidden co2 danger.
Is it an even trade off or is one more dangerous and likely than the other?
So far I believe one needs to be more aware and vigilant when burning wood as to SHTF scenarios.

I will keep posting my personal observations as we move through the winter season.

 

[webby3650]

And all "lived", hopefully.

You know it brother!

 

[Woody Stover]

You know Woody has been slumming the BK threads for some time, now. Nothing new. He thrives on stirring the pot.

The BK threads have never failed to deliver plenty of entertainment over the years; Always lots of drama. I don't aim to "stir the pot." I will, however, say what I think occasionally, based on what I have read here, and what I've seen of the Woodstocks, in an attempt to provide a little balance for a few newbs who might not be inclined to do much research. I doubt it's had much, if any, effect. In the end, everyone will make their own choice, then live with it.

Why sling mud, if you can't provide details?

Oh, all right, at the risk of getting a few people all riled up again, which I really don't care to do, I'll mention just a couple....but you will have to go find the rest yourself. It would take me forever to list all of them. You shoulda done that before you bought; It's too late now.
They put the thermostats on backwards (or installed faulty thermostats?) so that it worked opposite of what was intended. Really? How long did it take them to figure that out, a year or more? Sheesh.
How about this thing with their new insert, with the thermostat getting stuck wide open? Or the ash drop on one model that misses the ash pan? Is this their idea of R & D? Seems they just put the stuff out there, and try to fix the problems later. I don't know about you, but I'd expect a little more for my $3000.
Already mentioned by Highbeam, putting the glass gasket retainer bolts under the door gasket? Besides the difficulty some people had getting a good seal there, you also have to change the door gasket when you replace the glass gasket? Hey, I'm no stove engineer, but damn near anyone could have figured out that this design was a dud. They ought to just send everyone a new, re-designed door after an embarrassment like that, instead of a "fix" consisting of a few bolts. Didn't they also re-design the door latch recently? Not sure which stoves that was on.
I don't know about anyone else, but for me, this kind of stuff wouldn't inspire a lot of confidence in their ability or desire to produce a quality stove.
From what I've seen, I just don't think they are built to go the distance, and that folks are going to be buying a lot of expensive parts to keep these things going. Time will tell. There are plenty of new guinea pigs that have jumped onboard over the last several years, on this board at least.

Because simply he wants one.

Uhhh....no.

I didn't believe the "hype" before I bought mine in 2011...after selling my 2 year old Lopi Endeavor. After burning the stove for a week I understood/believed all the hype. It's a repeatable process that's damn near the same load after load. It's never tried to "run away" on me and has always done exactly what I expect it to do.

People who have only burned non-cats often seem wowed by how easy it is to run a cat, and by how predictable they are. I'm sure I'd be impressed by the low, long burn of a BK if I tried one, and the thermostat should remove the need to set the air a little differently to cruise different types of wood at the output you want. But after running cat stoves for years, even ones without a thermostat, I'm not gonna be amazed and astounded by predictability like the non-cat folk.

 

[lsucet]

I cant see me myself putting down a product that i don't had/have/and never will. how i can provide an input without the living experience. just because i want to say something? i don't think it is right. when somebody ask a question and it is looking for inputs on certain product and its performance I think people that use the product and knows the in and out should be the ones answering.
I am not saying that somebody that does not own it can not express his/her thinking about it. But totally trash a product like that, it is bad.

About the dealers it is about preferences, cause some people like to talk with somebody in person and know who is doing his transaction and not just punch the credit card number and a website.. when we talked about get parts for BK thru dealers and woodstock stoves contacting manufacture, I don't see any advantage of one over the other. if Woodstock has no dealer network and the consumer needs a part, is it normal to purchase thru them? why I have to give them credit for that? Please do not misunderstand me. I am not talking bad about it cause i have no reason to. I just saying that that is the way they conduct business. Now, BK has dealer network and you can get parts thru them. Still no point for BK neither. One more time , that is the way they conduct their business.

when i decided to upgrade my low end tube stoves from Englander, (i saying low end because that is what somebody told me in another thread) I look into BK and woodstock wood stoves. i think that the hybrid technology got me into it, after all looks interested. I read this site up and down for months, oh boy long homework.
what make me go with BK was the burn times and performance were side by side between consumer reports and manufacture advertisement. That says a lot to me. On the other hand woodstock some people and beta testers report some data that i was not able to see and confirm on their website and that make me digged more into it without can make that data looks at least close enough between consumer reports and manufacture.. But i am no saying that it is not true. just something was not clear for me. OH I was looking into Ideal Steel.

I see a lot of BK owner buying SS CAT online and i think that you don't need to go thru the dealer if you don't want to. When i got my PRINCESS, got it with everything except the OAK. I went online and i think that was on Jet.com that I get the OAK adapter for 40 bucks i think and i went to hardware store and purchase the 3" vent hose. The point is, you still can get parts online and not go thru the dealer if that is not what you want.

Now, having the Princess at this point make me feel that i made the right decision but still ( i never burn a woodstock ). but going by data and consumer reports looks like i did. I am in a short period of time with this PRINCESS a happy KING.



Regards to all and we all agree to disagree LOL LOL. just kidding.

 

[tarzan]

I cant see me myself putting down a product that i don't had/have/and never will. how i can provide an input without the living experience. just because i want to say something? i don't think it is right. when somebody ask a question and it is looking for inputs on certain product and its performance I think people that use the product and knows the in and out should be the ones answering.
I am not saying that somebody that does not own it can not express his/her thinking about it. But totally trash a product like that, it is bad.

About the dealers it is about preferences, cause some people like to talk with somebody in person and know who is doing his transaction and not just punch the credit card number and a website.. when we talked about get parts for BK thru dealers and woodstock stoves contacting manufacture, I don't see any advantage of one over the other. if Woodstock has no dealer network and the consumer needs a part, is it normal to purchase thru them? why I have to give them credit for that? Please do not misunderstand me. I am not talking bad about it cause i have no reason to. I just saying that that is the way they conduct business. Now, BK has dealer network and you can get parts thru them. Still no point for BK neither. One more time , that is the way they conduct their business.

when i decided to upgrade my low end tube stoves from Englander, (i saying low end because that is what somebody told me in another thread) I look into BK and woodstock wood stoves. i think that the hybrid technology got me into it, after all looks interested. I read this site up and down for months, oh boy long homework.
what make me go with BK was the burn times and performance were side by side between consumer reports and manufacture advertisement. That says a lot to me. On the other hand woodstock some people and beta testers report some data that i was not able to see and confirm on their website and that make me digged more into it without can make that data looks at least close enough between consumer reports and manufacture.. But i am no saying that it is not true. just something was not clear for me. OH I was looking into Ideal Steel.

I see a lot of BK owner buying SS CAT online and i think that you don't need to go thru the dealer if you don't want to. When i got my PRINCESS, got it with everything except the OAK. I went online and i think that was on Jet.com that I get the OAK adapter for 40 bucks i think and i went to hardware store and purchase the 3" vent hose. The point is, you still can get parts online and not go thru the dealer if that is not what you want.

Now, having the Princess at this point make me feel that i made the right decision but still ( i never burn a woodstock ). but going by data and consumer reports looks like i did. I am in a short period of time with this PRINCESS a happy KING.



Regards to all and we all agree to disagree LOL LOL. just kidding.

Everybody has that Ol' Uncle Woody. You know, the one that drove an AMC and showed up at every family gathering bashing Toyotas!

 

[Ashful]

The princess is enough bigger than my ashford 30 to replace all the btus i get out of the ashford - and has enough extra capacity to also generate all the electricity my house uses if it could convert btus to kwh with 100% efficiency.

Translation: you need a bigger house.

 

[Ashful]

Can it be cleaned bottom up for those that can't or won't go up on the roof? If yes, what is entailed?

My local BK dealer cleans most of them bottom-up, with a commercial version of something that looks like a sooteater, but with about 60 whips in place of the small handful on the sooteater.

 

[Ashful]

why are BK stoves much more $$$$ than similar stoves with similar specs ?

There's another stove with repeatable and regular 40 hour burn times?

 

[rdust]

From what I've seen, I just don't think they are built to go the distance, and that folks are going to be buying a lot of expensive parts to keep these things going. Time will tell. There are plenty of new guinea pigs that have jumped onboard over the last several years, on this board at least..

Not sure why you think this, the Princess and King models have been succesful for a long time. 6th season on mine, I've replaced the cat this season and door gasket has been replaced. I've never even cracked a brick. My stove really doesn't have many wear "parts" in it.

Let's see, progress had smoke issues on the door side,(ws responded quickly as I'd expect), screen and cat seem to plug with ash regularly. The IS has a radiator that warps/flakes along with the andirons warping. Let's not act like other stove don't have their issues.

These threads always turn into this, that's how I know both manufactures are good.

 

[JA600L]

I had looked into Blaze King when I bought my stove. I ended up with the Ideal Steel.
I've different times thought about what if I had gotten the Blaze King instead.

However, my house is always warm. It's in the mid 30's tonight. I threw 3 medium splits in the stove. I expect it to be 75 when I wake up later this morning and maybe 70 by noon. That's the typical result I get this time of year. I can't complain about that.

 

[Woody Stover]

I cant see me myself putting down a product that i don't had/have/and never will. how i can provide an input without the living experience. just because i want to say something?

The man asked the question, are there any critics. All you have to do is read the threads to find that I really said nothing, it's all been said by the owners of the stoves. But few and far between are the owners like Highbeam, who will bring up problems with their brand of stove; Mostly, it's the same several posters that will jump in all the time and rave about how great their BK is, never mentioning any drawbacks to these uninformed newcomers seeking advice. I don't think they are being all that helpful. I've mentioned before that my Keystone had a leaking seam from day one. Weather it came from the plant like that, or that cement was loosened in transit is unclear. I was able to remedy that problem fairly easily, with materials sent free by Woodstock. I think a better design is a steel box with welded seams...which Woodstock now produces, and which may be my next stove at some point.

Everybody has that Ol' Uncle Woody. You know, the one that drove an AMC and showed up at every family gathering bashing Toyotas!

Sure I'm old. That's one reason I have an eye for quality, which used to be much more in evidence....and why I have Toyotas and a Honda, and have bought a couple of Woodstocks.

 

[webby3650]

The drawbacks for a seasoned wood burner are so minor compared to other stoves they aren't even worth mentioning. Believe it or not woody, BK's are better than a Buck, dutchwest or a keystone... I have no idea why you could be so down on a BK? They are predictable, reliable, nearly indestructible, have incredible factory support and over 40 years of experience. If I had an extra I'd bring it over so you could see what you're missing!

 

[lsucet]

Woody I understand everything and you guys know each other from long time here thru the forums. I am new and i have to accept that sometime it is a good entertainment . LOL but the butty in life is we all have the right to choose and like something, being wrong or right. Like JA600L his stove works good for him and at the end that is all what counts. If he or you have that performance with any brand, don't have to be BK or WS in specific, and you and your family are in comfort and warm, that is it.

But I think that people should be more open to accept that something else can be out there and can be better that what he/she has. but brand loyalty is something beautiful too. hey I drive a ford and work for dodge. LOL LOL

 

[DUMF]

Now that you girls have had it out ( what's with all this thin skinned hurt feelings ? ), the original question remains besides enthusiasm and brand 'loyalty':
Why the diff in $$$ for the BK appliance ?
Forget the thermostatic control ( it's an old, simple mechanical device ).
Forget the cat ( that too has been around ).
So why so much more $$$ ?
What is it that the buyer get for that extra money compared to other cat AND non-cat wood stoves ?
An inconvenient truth for us Easterners is that except for the BK Ashfords, those BK stoves are ugly. Are we spoiled with those
oh so pretty cast beauties like Jotul, Morso, Hearthstone, Woodstock, and, and,....even the look of VC ?