Help Needed with New Stove Purchase

[labans]

I need to buy a new stove to replace my old VC Seneca and would like to find a stove that provides me with the same features but I am stumped and confused with the "new" line of stoves. My old stove had a catalyst, side loading and a lovely ash tray and was cast iron. It seemed to be a normal stove in that I could start a fire with the door open and if needed add wood during that start up period. And then, at any time if the fire was not Roaring, but had flames I could open the door and install a lovely grill that came with the stove and enjoy the flames and fire without worry. This stove never smoked up the house. It also had two nice andirons that fit by the door in front so that loading and worrying about a log coming out was never an issue. If I fired it up real good I could just load the wood from the side door without any issues.
I have looked at many stoves, Blaze King, Lopi, Green Mountain, and many others. It seems that they all have a new tricky combustion system that requires starting the fire with the door closed or smoke will fill the room and it seems none of them allow you to enjoy the fire with the door open and a grill in front. The Green Mountain has an airflow that causes the combustion to exit in the front at the door which means that if the fire has flames and you open the door, the flames come licking out of the stove---truly dangerous.
I would appreciate it if anyone can help with some suggestions of stoves that don't have these characteristics.

 

[ckr74]

With the proper amount of draft I doubt flames would come out when you open the door. How would you add more wood if that was the case?
The non-cat Drolet 1800 allows the use of a screen so you can have an open fire. I'm sure there's others.

 

[logfarmer]

Some of these new stoves seem to need a stronger draft vs the old burners. The NC30 was the same style draft worked towards the top of the door and did not draft well in my setup.

 

[begreen]

I need to buy a new stove to replace my old VC Seneca and would like to find a stove that provides me with the same features but I am stumped and confused with the "new" line of stoves. My old stove had a catalyst, side loading and a lovely ash tray and was cast iron. It seemed to be a normal stove in that I could start a fire with the door open and if needed add wood during that start up period. And then, at any time if the fire was not Roaring, but had flames I could open the door and install a lovely grill that came with the stove and enjoy the flames and fire without worry. This stove never smoked up the house. It also had two nice andirons that fit by the door in front so that loading and worrying about a log coming out was never an issue. If I fired it up real good I could just load the wood from the side door without any issues.
I have looked at many stoves, Blaze King, Lopi, Green Mountain, and many others. It seems that they all have a new tricky combustion system that requires starting the fire with the door closed or smoke will fill the room and it seems none of them allow you to enjoy the fire with the door open and a grill in front. The Green Mountain has an airflow that causes the combustion to exit in the front at the door which means that if the fire has flames and you open the door, the flames come licking out of the stove---truly dangerous.
I would appreciate it if anyone can help with some suggestions of stoves that don't have these characteristics.

Many stoves old and new bring the flame forward around the baffle before heading out the flue in the back of the stove. This is to extend the burnpath for more complete combustion. I have a large stove and I have been loading it for many years. It brings the flame forward under the baffle which contains the secondary combustion system. I don't open the stove door that often with a fully raging fire. Normally this is not necessary. If I do, however, I am not anxious about flames licking out of the stove. A greater concern would be embers popping while open.

Any new stove is going to be different from the old Seneca. It was a nice stove and it has served you well, but it is an early design. A modern stove will be much more efficient and clean burning, but it is not going to duplicate the Seneca's full feature set. I have owned several stoves. Our first new stove was the original VC Resolute and I loved the stove's thermostatic operation and top-loading. I thought any future stove would have to have the same features. It also had a screen that could be used with the door open. Truth is that screen was used twice and then gathered dust until we sold the stove when we moved out of the house. When I was out shopping for a new stove I started out by insisting on top-loading and liked the thermostatic feature, but no stove from VC or the Quad Isle Royale could make the clearance requirements I needed in the new (old) house. I tried the Castine because I like Jotul quality and my wife loved the look. But the truth was it was too shallow so it spilled smoke when outdoor temps were above 50º and too small for our old house when temps dipped into the 20s and below. That brought us to our current stove which is a front loader and has no thermostatic control. After 11 yrs of use, it still works great and the truth is we love it for what it is and have long ago abandoned the need for features that can be satisfied by other designs.