Is This Mennonite Stove Any Good?

[seedy]

I have contacted this seller and will be going to check this out today (http://houston.craigslist.org/app/2591376963.html). I would just like some opinions on this as I am new to woodburning stoves, but am looking for a cook/heating stove for a 24' diameter geodesic dome shelter @ geoshelters.com.

From the seller: "The total weight is 154 lbs. However, it separates into 3 diferent pieces for easier handling. The fire box and the top are made of thick cast iron. The dimensions are: 28'' across the front, 26'' across the side, and 54'' tall. The largest size log it will fit is aproximatelly 6'' in diameter by 18'' long. The burn time depends alot on the type of wood you use, but I think an average time would be two to three hours. Smoke does not escape into the room when the the stove is closed up. As far as the smallest area you could put it in, the only answer I can offer is that you can control how hot the stove gets, and of course if you don't want the room too hot you keep a small fire."

Should I be concerned about the burn time? How do people keep a fire going through the night anyway--what should I look for? Do you see any red flags about the stove?

ThaNK YoU!!

 

[cdirks]

Just curious where the Mennonite part comes from? lol

 

[cdirks]

Never mind, if I would have gone to the craigslist site I could have answered my own question.

 

[seedy]

Maybe there is a joke I'm missing, but it says it was made by the Mennonites last year?

Is the firebox too small for this to be a heating stove? Is this designed mainly for small fires just for making meals?

 

[firefighterjake]

No real experience with this stove . . .

But I would guess that if it is in decent shape it might be better for cooking and not as good at heating . . .

I think you will find most folks here are running EPA stoves primarily for heating their homes -- although some folks do some light cooking on or in their stoves as well. While the term "burn time" is subjective (are we talking the time from when the match is lit until there are no more hot coals, time when the stove reaches X degrees to when it dips below Y degrees, time when . . . well you get the idea) . . . most folks load up their EPA stoves at night and do not get up until several hours later to reload the stove with the coals that remain . . . getting up in middle of the night to reload the stove is not a common experience here for most of us . . .

 

[Dune]

Maybe there is a joke I'm missing, but it says it was made by the Mennonites last year?

Is the firebox too small for this to be a heating stove? Is this designed mainly for small fires just for making meals?

Yes. It is a cookstove.

 

[seedy]

I guess that's a huge DUH on my part. So if I want something small that will serve dual purposes, I need to get a small heating stove that simply has enough room to cook on?

 

[firefighterjake]

I guess that's a huge DUH on my part. So if I want something small that will serve dual purposes, I need to get a small heating stove that simply has enough room to cook on?

My own opinion is that cooking stoves -- which by their very nature tend to run better on "cooking wood" (smaller wood for quick, hot fires) -- do well at cooking and not so great at heating . . . but you will be able to get some heat from them.

Heating stoves do very well at heating . . . but are not especially designed for cooking roasted turkey and home-made bread . . . but that said you can certainly cook a lot of stuff on or in them -- folks have reported making pizzas and calzones on the coals, cooking up steaks seared on the coals and of course chili and soup on top of the stove . . . some of these stoves seem to be better suited for some light cooking than others with special plates for easy clean up of any spills.

And don't beat yourself up too badly . . . we're all learning . . . that's why you . . . and I . . . are here at hearth.com.

 

[webbie]

I've never seen this particular model before - it looks like a low cost copy of an Elmira....
http://www.elmirastoveworks.com/fireview.aspx

As Jake says, cook stoves are generally for cooking......although in your locale, it would heat pretty well too. They just don't have long burns and stuff like that......

I like the compact cook stoves like the Jotul 404.
Here is another thread mentioning a couple different cook stoves.
https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/forums/viewthread/69377/
In terms of this one, I'd verify exactly where it was made....to eliminate the possibility of it being a cheapo import.

 

[Todd]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZTuoPSTAHA

 

[FyreBug]

I cover IN, PA & OH and see many cookstoves made by Amish. This one is more 'upscale' compared to some of the plainer one they tend to use for themselves. They are also typically built like tanks and very heavy.

So I wonder about the 150 lbs weight...

 

[joecool85]

I cover IN, PA & OH and see many cookstoves made by Amish. This one is more 'upscale' compared to some of the plainer one they tend to use for themselves. They are also typically built like tanks and very heavy.

So I wonder about the 150 lbs weight...

They were missing a digit, it's 1,500 lbs! j/k, but it must be 600-700 I'd imagine.

 

[SteveKG]

I haven't used that make/model of stove, but I've used other cookstoves very much like it for over 45 yr. They do a great job of cooking. They also do a great job of heating space, but they are better at the cooking.

Some things to consider. You are in Tx., and that means a stove that heats up slowly and keeps putting out heat for many, many hours may not be what you want. If I lived there [and I did for 20 yr.], I would not like it. It takes a fairly long time for those stoves to heat up to where they are putting out a lot of heat for the space heating. Once they are warmed up, they will put out plenty of heat. But they are massively built inside and will hold and put out heat for a very long time once warmed up. The one I use now will be putting out heat 12 hr. or more AFTER I let the fire go completely out. This is great for overnight warming of the room. The relatively long time it takes to get these stoves up to temp' is not so great for taking the chill off a room or the house. Heat stoves are designed for that. These cookstoves are designed to hold their heat and release it evenly [hopefully and if designed well] so you can cook with them. The space heating is a side benefit but is not the main work the stove is meant to do.

As others pointed out, often cookstoves take smaller wood and have a smaller firebox to load up than a "heat" stove. No big deal if you're cooking. For heating, it means more frequent loading and monitoring of the fire. The cookstove we have now has a very large firebox, as do some others, but the majority of them do not. Also, the wood you use may need to be split down smaller, more work and faster burn.

If you do not need an oven, many "heat" stoves have a flat top and can easily take sauce pans and Dutch ovens and frying pans. They work great for these things, in other words stovetop cooking.

That stove looks pretty cool and would be fine if you just want to do some bread baking or whatever now and then in the cold season...and have something pretty to look at the rest of the year. But if you mainly want to heat the rooms, I would advise you to pass on it and look for an appropriate heat stove.

 

[mhrischuk]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZTuoPSTAHA

Did you see the size split he stuck in there?

BTW.. now that's a wife!.......bad

That is a great video. Thanks

 

[Dune]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZTuoPSTAHA

Great video Todd. Thanks.

 

[Hass]

3:27 if anyone wanted to see it loaded.