heat

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I would think more heat goes up the chimney in the older stoves as they are less efficient than the newer models.
 
With the old air tight stoves in a damped down state, you would likely be sending less thermal energy up the stack, but. The gases that will be there will be mostly unburned hydrocarbons representing a larger loss of energy then the thermal loss in a modern stove.
 
Probably, you are more of a factor of how much heat you lose up your chimney rather than what type of stove you burn.

Is your wood dry (to about 20% moisture)? Less dry fuel means more heat loss.

Are you burning your fire hot? A smoldering fire is wasting fuel, contributing to pollution and creosote and is inefficient.

How much air are you putting through the firebox and up the chimney? Wood requires somewhere between 200% - 300% "excess" air for efficient combustion. Less is not good and too much cools the stack temperature.

And there's probably more... I've only had 1/2 cup of coffee so far this AM.

The worst combination of stove/person is old stove (non-EPA)/uninformed person who burns it.

Aye,
Marty
 
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