F600: did I go too big?

[RynoVT]

We had our first real non-breakin fire in our F600 this weekend. I loaded it up about 3/4 full before bed. Somewhere around 3 hours later I woke up and the house was 86 degrees....way too hot to even sleep. I had the air choked down at least 3/4.

A little about our home. It is a newly constructed 5 star energy rated home. Basically an 1800 sq ft tall posted cape. The stove is centrally located in the house and does have an outside air kit. It was about 22 outside that night so now I'm worried that our stove is simply too much for our home. Maybe I shouldn't load it up as much? Choke it the whole way down? Any suggestions besides just getting a smaller stove?

 

[shawneyboy]

I bet come Dec/Jan you will be grateful for the big stove. For now, look at lowering the amount of fuel you put in, I am in a warmer climate (we have had nights in the 20s already) but... I have yet to put in a full load. Adjust the size of the load, IMHO. You gotta learn the stove and the setup.

Shawn

 

[Todd]

I'd give it a little more time to figure out your stove before you get rid of it for something smaller. Try different loading technique's and air settings, there's always a little learning curve with a new stove.

 

[logger]

It may be a little overkill, but Id give it some time. Im heating an energy effecient 2000 sq ft cabin w the Oslo and I think the Fireview would've been too much for our setup. You're in a colder climate though, so things are different.

 

[begreen]

If the house is newly constructed and very energy efficient it may be too much. You should definitely try just half-loads for now and try turning the air down further. See if you can get the stove to cruise at about 500F stove top temperature. Try burning thicker splits too. If that is still too much at 20F outside, then you may want to consider a smaller stove.

One thing that will help is knowing what the central heating system capacity is. Do you know what the btu output of the furnace or boiler is? Also, were there cooler areas of the house or was it hot in even the remote parts of the house? If there were much cooler areas, then a fan could be used to push the cooler air towards the stove room.

 

[firefighterjake]

I'd give it a little more time to figure out your stove before you get rid of it for something smaller. Try different loading technique's and air settings, there's always a little learning curve with a new stove.

+1 . . . couldn't say it any better . . . this is still the shoulder season for many of us . . . and with a new stove there is a learning curve. If you haven't done so . . . just try one load with no reload before heading to bed at night . . . this should let the stove heat up and then that big ol' hunk of cast iron should radiate heat out a good portion of the night . . . and if the house is insulated well may do quite well at holding the heat.

As Todd said, trying smaller loads and experimenting may also result in better endings.

 

[colebrookman]

Yup we don't re load at night till it gets super cold. To hot to sleep but we usually have enough coals in early am to easily get started. Better smaller loads than choking it down and creating a creosote factory. Just experiment and you"ll find what works best for you. Be safe.

 

[raygard]

You can always build a SMALL fire in a BIG stove. Yet you can't build a BIG fire in SMALL stove.

The shoulder season always sucks. Build a smaller fire.

 

[Dexter]

I have a Firelight cb heating about 2000 sq ft near Boulder CO. With 22 degrees outside, you don't need so large a fire. I have found that our stove likes North/South loading, especially for smaller fires. When I build a small fire, I still build it tall, close to the secondary burn tubes. This stove needs a hot fire, but not a long lasting fire, to burn cleanly. I'll use smaller splits: 3 across for the first layer, then 2, then 1 at the top. Using top down ignition, you get the burn tubes to light off sooner. (On -15 degree days, we'll pack the firebox full, but usually still load north/south.)

I'm at about 5300 feet elevation, so I can't turn the primary air down as far as the regulator handle will go -- but a can bring it within about 3/4" or maybe an inch of the "shutoff". At your elevation I bet you could shut'er down all the way once you were showing 450 or 500 on a stove top thermometer (resting on a rear corner of the top). With it shut down before it overheats, you'll probably limit your max temp to 525 or 550. (With the firebox packed on a really cold night, with careful primary air management, you can cruise the stove in the 550 to 625 range for a LONG time -- maybe 1.5 to 2 hours. We get 9 hours of useful heat (above 180 or so) overnight with pine, and in the morning can light the reloaded fresh wood with the hot coals.) Keep your small fires high, and they'll burn hot, but burn out before you "cook".

It's not too much stove.

Regards,

Dexter

 

[maxed_out]

you'll get it in time. I agree smaller fires. In a couple of weeks it will be a good problem to have. Your house sounds pretty tight so I'm curious what the deep freeze performances are like. Please keep us posted. When mine gets too hot I open a window and love that cold fresh air.

 

[Stump_Branch]

Yes you did, would you care to trade?.

Kidding, you will find a happy medium in relation to load size. Non cat stoves do tend to have a need to run a bit hotter at first, once going you can stiffle it down a bit.

 

[RynoVT]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I'll start playing with how I load it. Good tips Dexter!

I'll keep you all posted on how we manage it. I figure after December we'll know whether we need to downsize, but it sounds like it is a completely different animal than our old Defiant in a poorly insulated home.

 

[begreen]

It's heat output is similar to the Defiant, though it is run differently. The big difference is the high-efficiency home. Did you find out what your primary heating system btu output is?

 

[RynoVT]

It's heat output is similar to the Defiant, though it is run differently. The big difference is the high-efficiency home. Did you find out what your primary heating system btu output is?

BG....We have NTI High Efficiency Boiler. Looks like around 136,000 BTU is max output.

 

[madrone]

In a home that efficient, I wouldn't be surprised if a stove that size can't be run at even 3/4 loads, 24-7 until the heart of winter. My stove is over-sized for my house and climate, which translates to smaller loads most of the season, and not many overnighters. Even during Jan-Feb, I usually start a new fire every morning. I have no problem with it, I use less wood that way.

 

[begreen]

It's heat output is similar to the Defiant, though it is run differently. The big difference is the high-efficiency home. Did you find out what your primary heating system btu output is?

BG....We have NTI High Efficiency Boiler. Looks like around 136,000 BTU is max output.

That seems like a large unit for a high-efficiency home. Is there a large hot water storage tank or radiant floors?

 

[FWWARDEN]

I'm central VT, and have the F500. This time of year it's two fires a day at most, three logs at a pop, otherwise I'm smoked out. Save the heavy loading til next month, and you'll be glad you have what you have. Just because it gets down to 22 at night means nuthin, if its 50 during the day, your efficient house sucks up a lot of heat. When it's cold all day and all night, that 600 will really shine. What the others said about learning your stove is true, you'll have a few more nights when you smoke yourself out, and a few when you freeze your ass off, before it all sugars off the right way.

 

[RynoVT]

It's heat output is similar to the Defiant, though it is run differently. The big difference is the high-efficiency home. Did you find out what your primary heating system btu output is?

BG....We have NTI High Efficiency Boiler. Looks like around 136,000 BTU is max output.

That seems like a large unit for a high-efficiency home. Is there a large hot water storage tank or radiant floors?

On demand system with 3 floors/zones of radiant.

 

[RynoVT]

Just an update to my original post.

We have been burning the stove now for about 2 months and think we have the hang of how to burn it. We rarely put more than 2-3 splits in at a time.....last night it was -10 and we put in 4 mid size splits. The house stayed at about 70 all night and we had coals 7 hrs later. After living in a drafty older house and pretty much burning our old VC full bore all the time, we now know that we only burn the stove with about 1/3-1/2 full at all times with our current high efficiency home. It hovers around 300-350 most of the time which is perfect as long as the temp is below freezing. The trick for us is to get a good bed of coals and add small amounts of wood frequently.

 

[begreen]

Wow, -10F on 4 splits. That would be my dream. It's good to hear you are getting the hang of it. What a difference insulation and sealing leaks makes, eh?

 

[colebrookman]

Great news. Please be sure to monitor your chimney for creosote and see how it reacts. I like to bring it up to 500 or 550 to keep the creosote to a minimum, then let it go down or even burn out. Harder to get the chimney warm at 300 or so but if you keep an eye on the chimney you can always modify your burning to suit. Be safe.
Ed

 

[gpcollen1]

It sounds like you may be able to burn just one large fire a day. In the shoulder season, that is sort of what i do. I load it up in the morning and then don't touch it until later at night - like 8-8. My Olympic is large so I can definitely go 12 hours and have coals left. Then I burn a small one at night if I need it and then start again in the AM. Some days, one fire does the trick. As for now, running it at about 75% capacity with maple and other wood. I have timed it about right and just getting into my Ash and Oak...