Harman TL 300 test

[John59DT]

New to wood burning, i ran a test last night on my Harman TL 300. Temp where i live is 8F. Just recently built a 32 X 24 Addition with a loft up stairs living room 768 Sqft loft 384Sqft and a full basement down stairs . the wood stove is in the living room at the far end against the wall away from the Main house . the addition is open to the main house but the entry way to the main house is boarded up with Plywood . the test was i wanted to see how hot i could get the addition with no insulation and no fans. i will be insulating next monday and Tuesday. The loft Temp furthest from the stove is reading 53F and the living room down stairs is 46F keep in mind there is no insulation. very excited to see what the temp will be when we add insulation then i can knock down the plywood to the main house. i am burning 4 year old oak i got from my grandparents 2 1/2 cords . i have 9.5 mixed hardwood cords that still needs to Dry out before i can use it. burn time last night was 14 hours with stove top temp 450F and flue 250F afterburner engaged. i will have 2 ceiling fans one in the loft and one in the living room set on reverse and an eco fan placed on top of the stove. i did add a plug for a blower but im not sure i will need to use it.

 

[branchburner]

burn time last night was 14 hours with stove top temp 450F and flue 250F afterburner engaged

Nice. Yes, 4 year old oak is that stove's favorite food. One-year old, not so much.

For fun, try monitoring the temps on the side/back of the stove where the AB is. Gets pretty toasty there.

 

[razerface]

hi john. I heat 3600 sq ft with my TL-300. My first full year with it too. I did some last year at the end of the season. Mine is in my basement, using no electric at all to circulate heat. I set it up for the "end of the world" days with no electric, but found I like it enough to use it everyday I am home. My geothermal is soooo cheap, that doing it for money savings isn't really going to get any bragging rights. I can keep everything in the house at 68-70 degrees burning the stovetop at 600-650deg in this last cold snap.

I found smaller hot fires are easier then stuffing it clear full for the overnite. It takes a while, sometimes 1hr, to get that "stuffed full" load to go into afterburn,,where a small load on good coals takes 10-15 minutes to be back in cruise mode.

So far, I really like this stove. We are in the minority here, using the TL-300, ,but that's OK,,LOL, usually the brilliant people are, right?

 

[razerface]

For fun, try monitoring the temps on the side/back of the stove where the AB is. Gets pretty toasty there.

I have heard this before, but don't see where to do it. I have shields on the back that prevent my temp gage from showing any real heat back there on my attempts so far. Where should I try it?

 

[SDWoodburner]

John your going to have a nice set up there! I've always wondered what Oak is like to burn, the best I can get is Ash around here. I would love to have 9.5 cords drying just waiting to be burned.

Razerface, I had a similar idea when I put my stove in. I learned it will heat no problem without electricity, more even with the furnace fan running of course. It's great to take responsibility for heat and become more independent.

 

[branchburner]

I have heard this before, but don't see where to do it. I have shields on the back that prevent my temp gage from showing any real heat back there on my attempts so far. Where should I try it?

Sorry, I always forget that my cast iron Oakwood is very different than the TL. It has a rear heat shield, but nothing on the sides, so I can get a direct reading on the side of the afterburner portion, where it tapers right behind the main firebox.

 

[John59DT]

im trying to do the 3 year plan, im currently clearing 1 acre of forest , lots of oak and birch probably have aound 6+ more cords from that one location. when it warms up this weekend ill go harvest some more. i have yet to try small hot fires in the stove. can't wait to get home and test it out again but this time with insulation. blown in cellulose, i still have pine here to that i would like to test out in the stove, ill post pictures when i get home from work of my set up and cord stacks.

 

[weatherguy]

Hi John, are you north or south of Worcester?

 

[John59DT]

spencer

 

[weatherguy]

Your 15 minutes from me, lets see those pics when you get home.

 

[John59DT]

nifty sure will

 

[John59DT]

Dark image sorry

early morning testing

 

[John59DT]

wood stacks drying to the left is a wood pile 5 wide by 6.5 ft high by 32 long 3 rows 20" cut to the right is 120cuft i placed on pallets so its not excatly 1 cord 2.5ft X 4 H X 12ft L heres a better shot

pictures from last weekend

 

[MishMouse]

I own a TL-300 also, and it was able to keep the upstairs of my house at around 68during extended burn times.
My house including the unfinished block basement is around 2K sq feet, the stove is located in the basement.
I consider this pretty good especially since it has been very cold this year (not counting the so called polar vortex).

Before the Polar Vortex last Thursday it was -33for a low not counting the wind. With the Polar vortex it was -26with a strong wind.
If it wasn't for the wind the Polar vortex would have been an improvement over what the temps were.

 

[John59DT]

those are some cold temps. it only got to -4 last week for where i live

 

[MishMouse]

those are some cold temps. it only got to -4 last week for where i live

Did you get the grill option for your TL300?
Living in MN I tend to BBQ more on my Harman grill then I do on the charcoal grill.
Though the Harman can turn your hamburgers to hockey pucks a lot quicker then a regular grill.

 

[weatherguy]

Nice set up for a wood stove John, did you get the stove in Barre or Shrewsbury?

 

[John59DT]

Shrewsburry i bought it for 2800 with grill and firplace screen, Barre wanted 3400

 

[weatherguy]

That's why I asked, Barre is always more.

 

[John59DT]

Did you get the grill option for your TL300?
Living in MN I tend to BBQ more on my Harman grill then I do on the charcoal grill.
Though the Harman can turn your hamburgers to hockey pucks a lot quicker then a regular grill.

Yes that was a must have . I followed you and seasonedoak around on this forum before I bought the stove I have the grill and the fireplace screen I didn't get the nickel plated finish though just black

 

[John59DT]

U

That's why I asked, Barre is always more.

Yea they have to pay for their new building lol

 

[Seasoned Oak]

Shrewsburry i bought it for 2800 with grill and firplace screen, Barre wanted 3400

I think i got a pretty good deal,i paid $1900.00 .2 other dealers wanted $2400.00.

 

[drastic]

Not trying to steal this thread I am thinking about one of these stoves but i live in CA 2143sqft single story do you guys think this stove is over kill? you guys have nice setup and i understand my climate is not cold for most of you! I would be using this stove when my house is at 57.. my wife would like to keep the house at 80 or so also i do not think i have ever seen it below 20 here. i just wanted to hear from you folks that own one.. oh i also have over 60 acres of oak. I do not wish to bring up a debate so i will make another post elsewhere with the other stove i was thinking about thank you all very much for your time.

 

[razerface]

Not trying to steal this thread I am thinking about one of these stoves but i live in CA 2143sqft single story do you guys think this stove is over kill?

if you decide it is too big, there is always the tl200 which is just a little smaller. Make sure you pay attn to the comments on using dry wood in these,,,,it makes a HUGE difference


http://www.harmanstoves.com/Browse/Stoves/Wood-Stoves.aspx#

 

[MishMouse]

Since you live in CA, what are your average temps?
The reason I ask is the Harman stoves burn best when they have a strong draft which equates to a tall chimney and or colder temps, when temps are above 50 it really doesn't burn that well. I would not recommend the TL-200, it is a stove that is no longer manufactured and there was issues with the AB chamber. The TL-200 has a viewing window so that the AB chamber can be viewed while it is in operation, a novel idea but it really didn't work that well in real world operation.

I am not familiar with the TL 2.0 or TL 2.6 version of this stove, but since they are downdraft stoves you must have a good draft in order for it work properly.

Maybe a Englander NC-30 may be a better stove for your area?
I would not go with a downdraft model for moderate temp regions.

Currently the temp here is -17 and it has no problems keeping the house 2K above 70 heating from the basement.